Ranking Stuff Week: All-time Vikings quarterbacks by category
Welcome to another edition of Ranking Stuff Week. It’s too cliche to simply rank Vikings quarterbacks in history by their stats or accomplishments, so let’s have a look at a bunch of different ways to rate the great historic group of QBs….
Best deep ball
- Jeff George
- Brett Favre
- Daunte Culpepper
- Wade Wilson
- Randall Cunningham
- Sam Bradford
- Tommy Kramer
- Warren Moon
- Fran Tarkenton
- Gus Frerotte
Breaking news: Vikings history has some bazookas. George and Favre threw line drives while Culpepper’s deep passes fell beautifully from the sky into Randy Moss’s hands over and over in the early 2000s.
Those weren’t the only guys flinging it up for grabs though. Wade Wilson’s absurd 15.0 yards per completion came from heaving it deep to Anthony Carter, particularly in 1987 when Carter averaged 24.3 yards per catch. Bradford didn’t have the same fastball from his early career but he was a sniper when he had enough time to throw downfield. The tough one to leave off this list was Todd Bouman, who had a cannon but threw fewer than 100 passes as a Viking.
Most entertaining
- Fran Tarkenton
- Brett Favre
- Joe Kapp
- Daunte Culpepper
- Case Keenum
- Tommy Kramer
- Jeff George
- Kirk Cousins
- Warren Moon
- Jim McMahon
Tarkenton was the original Mahomes, scrambling around like a wild man and finding receivers all over the field. Favre’s play speaks for itself here. Kapp may have orchestrated the most entertaining season in Vikings history. Keenum was so crazy with the ball sometimes that his head coach declared he had “big balls.” Kramer was a comeback king who never gave up. George’s arm talent combined with his receivers alone made for lots of fun and Kirk Cousins’s 2022 season put him on this list.
Best season
- 1998 Randall Cunningham
- 2004 Daunte Culpepper
- 2009 Brett Favre
- 1975 Fran Tarkenton
- 1986 Tommy Kramer
- 2017 Case Keenum
- 2019 Kirk Cousins
- 1988 Wade Wilson
- 1995 Warren Moon
- 2016 Sam Bradford
Only one per QB here. If we used multiple seasons the list would be filled with Tarkenton and not make enough room for others to be recognized. There’s a great debate between the top four here. Cunningham’s ‘98 offense was the best the NFL had ever seen to that point but Culpepper nearly took home MVP in ‘04, a season in which Randy Moss was slowed somewhat by injury. Kramer led the league in QB rating in ‘86. It’s hard to choose between ‘19 and ‘22 for Kirk Cousins. He was statistically better in ‘19 and won a playoff game, though ‘22 was more fun during the regular season and he threw more passes.
Best moments
- Case Keenum, Minneapolis Miracle
- Tommy Kramer, Miracle at the Met
- Randall Cunningham, MNF vs. Green Bay
- Brett Favre, game-winning throw vs. 49ers
- Joe Kapp running over Browns in NFL Championship
- Daunte Culpepper’s four TDs over GB in ‘04 playoffs
- Wade Wilson, Hail Mary in playoff blowout of Saints
- Fran Tarkenton’s scramble touchdown vs 49ers
- Kirk Cousins walk-off TD vs. Saints
- Brad Johnson, throwing himself a touchdown
Once again we went with one per QB here. Vikings historians might be able to pin down another Tarkenton moment that carried more gravity but his scramble vs. the 49ers goes in the all-time NFL Films highlight reel. There’s certainly an argument for Cunningham’s throws to Moss on Thanksgiving Day as being his most memorable, though the Green Bay game was the NFL’s introduction to the ‘98 Vikings. Brad Johnson’s TD to himself could have been on a “most improbable” plays list along with Sean Mannion’s accidental pass to Garrett Bradbury.
Most surprising games
- Joe Kapp — Seven touchdowns vs. Baltimore in 1969
- Gus Frerotte — 157.2 rating (franchise best) vs. SF in 2003
- Todd Bouman — 348 yards, 4 TD vs. Tennessee in 2001
- Case Keenum — 369 yards, 3 TD vs. Tampa Bay in 2017
- Teddy Bridgewater — 17-for-20 with 4 TDs vs. Chicago in 2015
- Tarvaris Jackson — 11-for-17 with 4 TDs vs. Arizona in 2008
- Matt Cassel — 123.4 QB rating in 34-27 win over Pittsburgh in 2013
- Sam Bradford — 121.2 QB rating in debut win vs. Green Bay in 2016
- Christian Ponder — 234 yards and 3 TDs in 37-34 win over Green Bay in 2012
- Sean Salisbury — 292 yards and 2 TD in a win over Green Bay in 1992
If you weren’t aware that Gus Frerotte had the best game by QB rating in Vikings history, feel free to use that at your family reunion this summer. Keenum’s breakout game coming after a miserable performance against the Steelers made it all the more stunning. Lots of other QBs on this list had games that made folks believe in QBs whose success was fleeting.
Biggest disappointment
- Christian Ponder
- 2010 Brett Favre
- 2018 Kirk Cousins
- Donovan McNabb
- Gary Cuozzo
- 1999 Randall Cunningham
- 2005 Daunte Culpepper
- Tarvaris Jackson’s playoff game
- Josh Freeman
- Joe Webb’s playoff game
You could throw Case Keenum’s NFC Championship into the mix here but that was a full team effort rather than just a poor QB showing. Ponder gets the top nod here in part because the Vikings haven’t drafted enough quarterbacks high enough to have a bigger bust. The other trend is lots of run-it-back seasons or desperate attempts to find a QB.
Biggest what-if
- Fran Tarkenton wasn’t traded
- Daunte Culpepper’s knee isn’t injured
- Brett Favre doesn’t throw across his body
- The Vikings lost vs. Washington in 2011 and landed Andrew Luck
- Teddy Bridgewater’s knee isn’t injured
- Sam Bradford is healthy in 2017
- The Vikings drafted Lamar Jackson in 2018
- They stuck with Rich Gannon and he developed
- The Vikings drafted Roman Gabriel
- Christian Ponder didn’t get hurt before the 2012 playoffs
Is there a better place to finish our list of lists? The thing about Vikings history is that you can finish this sentence: “The Vikings would have a Super Bowl if _____” like 93 different ways. Certainly they get one if Tarkenton had remained the QB through the late 60s when the Purple People Eaters defense was peaking. They beat the Colts in ‘09, right? The ‘17 season has three in itself. Gannon might be debatable because it took a long time before he became MVP with the Raiders.
