Minnesota Vikings · Franchise era 3 of 7
Between Tarkenton and the Dome: the Minnesota Vikings story
Franchise era
1980—1991
Between Tarkenton and the Dome
Minnesota Vikings
The story in one sentence
Minnesota remained dangerous, including a surprise 1987 NFC title-game run, while assembling the stars of its next offense.
Carter arrives as an unlikely new cornerstone
Anthony Carter, Chris Doleman and Joey Browner gave the era its recognizable core.
Its ending created the conditions for carter, moss and the 1998 heartbreak.
Timeline
How it unfolded
Before 1980
What came before
Bud Grant's disciplined teams and a historic defensive front reached four Super Bowls and made Minnesota a permanent contender.
1983-01-09
Wild Card: Atlanta Falcons vs Minnesota Vikings
1988-01-09
Divisional Round: Minnesota Vikings vs San Francisco 49ers
1988-01-17
Conference Championship: Minnesota Vikings vs Washington
October 12, 1989
The Herschel Walker trade that built a dynasty
The Vikings believed one star could complete a contender. Jimmy Johnson viewed Walker as the fastest route to rebuilding the NFL's worst team.
01Dynasty seedOctober 12, 1989MIN⇄DALThe Herschel Walker tradeMinnesota acquired Herschel Walker for an unprecedented mix of players, a first-rounder and conditional draft capital. Dallas deliberately converted the conditions into picks.14 assets · 3 outcomes＋
The original receipt
Minnesota Vikings received
- • Herschel Walker
- • 1990 third · No. 54
- • 1990 fifth · No. 116
- • 1990 tenth · No. 249
- • 1991 third · No. 68
Dallas Cowboys received
- • Jesse Solomon
- • David Howard
- • Issiac Holt
- • Darrin Nelson
- • Alex Stewart
- • Minnesota's 1992 first
- • Conditional conversion: 1990 and 1991 firsts
- • Conditional conversion: 1990, 1991 and 1992 seconds
- • Conditional conversion: 1992 third
The resulting draft tree helped Dallas add Emmitt Smith, Russell Maryland, Kevin Smith and Darren Woodson—the spine of a three-title dynasty.
Open full trade tree →After 1991
What came next
Moss transformed the league as a rookie and the 15–1 Vikings set a scoring record before falling in overtime one game short of the Super Bowl.
The core