The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion team, the team began play the following year. They are named after the Vikings of medieval Scandinavia, reflecting the prominent Scandinavian American culture of Minnesota. The team plays its home games at U.S. Bank Stadium in the Downtown East section of Minneapolis.
Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity.
Harry Peter "Bud" Grant Jr. was an American professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL) and Canadian Football League (CFL). Grant was head coach of the NFL's Minnesota Vikings for 18 seasons; he was the team's second (1967–83) and fourth (1985) head coach, leading them to four Super Bowl appearances, 11 division titles, one league championship and three National Football Conference championships. Before coaching the Vikings, he was the head coach of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers for 10 seasons, winning the Grey Cup four times.
Randall Wade Cunningham Sr. is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons. He spent the majority of his career with the Philadelphia Eagles and is also known for his Minnesota Vikings tenure. A four-time Pro Bowl selection, Cunningham is fourth in NFL quarterback rushing yards, which he led at the time of his retirement.
Dennis Earl Green was an American football coach. During his National Football League (NFL) career, Green coached the Minnesota Vikings from 1992 to 2001 and the Arizona Cardinals from 2004 to 2006. He coached the Vikings to eight playoff appearances in nine years, despite having seven different starting quarterbacks in those postseasons. He was posthumously inducted into the Minnesota Vikings Ring of Honor in 2018.
Michael Zimmer is an American football coach who is the defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as head coach of the NFL's Minnesota Vikings from 2014 to 2021. Prior to that, Zimmer served as a defensive assistant for the Cowboys, Atlanta Falcons, and Cincinnati Bengals. He also won Super Bowl XXX with the Cowboys in 1996.
Mark Alan Mullaney is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the 1st round of the 1975 NFL draft. Mullaney attended Colorado State where he played on both offensive line and defensive line. He played in 12 NFL seasons from 1975 to 1987 for the Vikings and is 9th on the Vikings all-time sack list with 45½ sacks. Mullaney also had 597 tackles and 13 forced fumbles Mullaney also holds a place in NFL history as the first NFL Player to wear a helmet shield visor on his face mask, after suffering an eye injury in 1984. In 1986 Mullaney switched to a dark tinted shield, the first player to wear this as well. Dennis Ryan, the Vikings long time equipment manager, helped Mullaney create the shield(s).
The 1992 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 32nd in the National Football League (NFL). They finished with an 11–5 record to claim the NFC Central division title and returned to the playoffs after a two-year absence. They met the defending Super Bowl champion Washington Redskins in the wildcard round, the teams' first playoff meeting since victory for the Redskins in the 1987 NFC Championship game; the Redskins won again this time, 24–7.
The 1996 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 36th in the National Football League (NFL). Under head coach Dennis Green, they finished with a 9–7 record and qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 1994, starting a run of five consecutive playoff appearances.
The 1997 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 37th in the National Football League (NFL) and their sixth under head coach Dennis Green. Despite an 8-2 start, the Vikings would go on to lose five consecutive matches, finishing fourth in the division. The team ultimately won their final game of the regular season, matching their 9–7 record from 1996 and claiming the 6th seed in the playoffs for a second consecutive year. In the wild card round against the New York Giants, the Vikings came back from a 22–13 deficit with 90 seconds to play to win 23–22, their first playoff victory since 1988. In the divisional round, the Vikings were defeated 38–22 by the San Francisco 49ers.
Gregory Manusky is an American football coach and former linebacker who currently serves as the inside linebackers coach for the Denver Broncos. Manusky started his coaching career as a linebacker coach for two teams over six seasons. From there, he transitioned to a defensive coordinator for four teams over 12 seasons, totaling 19 seasons as a defensive coach. Prior to coaching, Manusky played as a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for three teams over 12 seasons. Manusky played college football at Colgate University and high school football at Dallas High School.
Todd Alexander Kalis is an American former professional football player in the National Football League (NFL). He was an offensive lineman for the Minnesota Vikings (1988–1993), Pittsburgh Steelers (1994) and Cincinnati Bengals (1995).
Anthony Joseph Sparano III was an American professional football coach. He served as the head coach of the Miami Dolphins and Oakland Raiders of the National Football League (NFL) and is the only NFL head coach to have led a team to the playoffs the year following a one-win season, and only the second to conduct a ten-game turnaround, both of which he accomplished in his first season with the Dolphins. He was fired by the Dolphins in December 2011 after a 4-9 start to the season, Sparano's worst start in his four-year tenure with the Dolphins.
Dennis Craig Johnson is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played six seasons for the Minnesota Vikings (1980–1985) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1985). He played college football for the USC Trojans.
The 1979 Norwegian Football Cup was the 74th edition of the Norwegian annual knockout football tournament. The Cup was won by Viking after beating Haugar in the cup final with the score 2–1. This was Viking's third Norwegian Cup title.
The Monroe F. Swilley Jr. Library serves as the information center for the Cecil B. Day campus of Mercer University in Atlanta. It is named in honor of the late Dr. Monroe F. Swilley, the first chairman of the board of trustees and only president of the Atlanta Baptist College (1968–1972). When the Atlanta Baptist College merged with Mercer University in 1972, Dr. Swilley assumed the Mercer University position of vice president.
Wade Harman is an American football coach. Harman used to be the assistant offensive line coach for the Atlanta Falcons, working with veteran offensive line coach Mike Tice.
Paul Sverchek is an American former professional football defensive tackle. He played for the Minnesota Vikings in 1984.
