| Team: | Minnesota Vikings |
| Year: | 1983 |
| Record: | 8–8 |
| Division Place: | 4th NFC Central |
| Coach: | Bud Grant |
| General Manager: | Mike Lynn |
| Stadium: | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome |
| Playoffs: | Did not qualify |
| Uniform: | File:Vikings1975-86.png |
| Shortnavlink: | Vikings seasons |
The 1983 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 23rd in the National Football League (NFL), and their 17th under head coach Bud Grant. After starting 6–2, the Vikings lost six of their next seven – including a home loss to the 0–9 Tampa Bay Buccaneers – and were eliminated from playoff contention with one week to play.
Even with the loss to Tampa Bay, Minnesota would have won the NFC Central Division championship if not for a 13–2 loss to the Detroit Lions on Monday Night Football in week 14.
The team finished 8–8 record and failed to reach the playoffs for the third time in five seasons. At the end of the season, Grant retired as head coach, although he returned for a final season in 1985.
See main article: 1983 NFL draft.
| Pro Bowler |
| 1983 Minnesota Vikings Draft | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draft order | Player name | Position | College | Notes | ||
| Round | Selection | |||||
| 19 | bgcolor=lightsteelblue | |||||
| 2 | 46 | Traded to the Philadelphia Eagles | ||||
| 3 | 73 | |||||
| 4 | 100 | Mark Rush | ||||
| 5 | 127 | |||||
| 6 | 159 | |||||
| 7 | 186 | bgcolor=lightsteelblue | ||||
| 8 | 213 | |||||
| 9 | 239 | |||||
| 10 | 255 | Melvin Brown | From Rams | |||
| 266 | Walter Tate | |||||
| 11 | 298 | Brian Butcher | ||||
| 12 | 325 | |||||
Notes
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance[1] | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 6 | vs St. Louis Cardinals | W 28–10 | 1–0 | 32,847 | Global Cup | ||
| 2 | August 13 | Baltimore Colts | L 7–10 | 1–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 56,061 | ||
| 3 | August 19 | at Seattle Seahawks | W 19–17 | 2–1 | Kingdome | 54,402 | ||
| 4 | August 26 | Denver Broncos | W 34–3 | 3–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 59,435 |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 4 | at Cleveland Browns | W 27–21 | 1–0 | Cleveland Stadium | 70,087 | |
| 2 | September 8 | San Francisco 49ers | L 17–48 | 1–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 58,167 | |
| 3 | September 18 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 19–16 | 2–1 | Tampa Stadium | 57,567 | |
| 4 | September 25 | Detroit Lions | W 20–17 | 3–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 58,254 | |
| 5 | October 2 | Dallas Cowboys | L 24–37 | 3–2 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 60,774 | |
| 6 | October 9 | at Chicago Bears | W 23–14 | 4–2 | Soldier Field | 59,632 | |
| 7 | October 16 | W 34–14 | 5–2 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 58,910 | ||
| 8 | October 23 | at Green Bay Packers | W 20–17 | 6–2 | Lambeau Field | 55,236 | |
| 9 | October 30 | at St. Louis Cardinals | L 31–41 | 6–3 | Busch Memorial Stadium | 42,575 | |
| 10 | November 6 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 12–17 | 6–4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 59,239 | |
| 11 | November 13 | Green Bay Packers | L 21–29 | 6–5 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 60,113 | |
| 12 | November 20 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | W 17–14 | 7–5 | Three Rivers Stadium | 58,417 | |
| 13 | November 27 | at New Orleans Saints | L 16–17 | 7–6 | Louisiana Superdome | 59,502 | |
| 14 | December 5 | at Detroit Lions | L 2–13 | 7–7 | Silverdome | 79,169 | |
| 15 | December 11 | Chicago Bears | L 13–19 | 7–8 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 57,880 | |
| 16 | December 17 | W 20–14 | 8–8 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 51,565 |
Against the Detroit Lions in week 14, the Vikings became the 35th team in NFL history and only the fifth since the 1970 NFL/AFL merger, to score just a safety in a game. This has happened only three times since: by the 1993 Cincinnati Bengals, the 2011 Atlanta Falcons, and the 2013 Jacksonville Jaguars.
| width=150px style="" | Category | width=150px style="" | Player(s) | width=75px style="" | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passing yards | 2,840 | ||||
| Passing touchdowns | 911 | ||||
| Rushing yards | 642 | ||||
| Rushing touchdowns | 10 | ||||
| Receiving yards | 618 | ||||
| Receiving touchdowns | 4 | ||||
| Points | 108 | ||||
| Kickoff return yards | 838 | ||||
| Punt return yards | 158 | ||||
| Sacks | 13 | ||||
| Interceptions | 6 |
| width=150px style="" | Category | width=100px style="" | Total yards | width=110px style="" | Yards per game | width=80px style="" | NFL rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passing offense | 3,211 | 200.7 | 13th | ||||
| Rushing offense | 1,808 | 113.0 | 20th | ||||
| Total offense | 5,019 | 313.7 | 20th | ||||
| Passing defense | 2,903 | 181.4 | 6th | ||||
| Rushing defense | 2,584 | 161.5 | 25th | ||||
| Total defense | 5,487 | 342.9 | 19th |