2012 Minnesota Vikings season explained

Team:Minnesota Vikings
Year:2012
Record:10–6
Division Place:2nd NFC North
Coach:Leslie Frazier
Owner:Zygi Wilf
Playoffs:Lost Wild Card Playoffs
(at Packers) 10–24
Mvp:Adrian Peterson
Uniform:File:Vikings 2012.png
Shortnavlink:Vikings seasons

The 2012 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 52nd in the National Football League (NFL), as well as their second full season under head coach Leslie Frazier. They looked to improve upon their 3–13 season the year before, and did so after defeating the Tennessee Titans in Week 5; their win over the Houston Texans in Week 16 made this their first winning season since 2009. The Vikings also made the playoffs for the first time since 2009 with a Week 17 win over the Green Bay Packers to give them a 10–6 regular season record, but were defeated by the same opponents in the Wild Card playoff round the following week. Adrian Peterson was named the league's Most Valuable Player after rushing for 2,097 yards, just nine yards short of breaking the single-season record held by Eric Dickerson since 1984.

On May 10, 2012, the Minnesota State Legislature approved a bill for a new stadium for the team that would see a new facility (later named U.S. Bank Stadium) constructed by 2016 and ensure the Vikings' presence in Minneapolis through the year 2046.[1] The bill was signed by Governor Mark Dayton on May 14,[2] and approved by the Minneapolis City Council by a vote of 7–6 on May 25.[3] [4]

As of 2023, the only player from the 2012 squad still with the Vikings is safety Harrison Smith.

Offseason

Pre-draft transactions

The first major transactions of the 2012 offseason were the releases of veteran guards Steve Hutchinson and Anthony Herrera, and CB Cedric Griffin on March 10, as the Vikings began rebuilding their offensive line and secondary. Three days later, the team re-signed perennial backup QB Sage Rosenfels and DT Letroy Guion off their unrestricted free agents list. This was followed up with the signing of the Seattle Seahawks' unrestricted free agent TE John Carlson on a five-year contract.

The next week, the team brought in FB Jerome Felton, also an unrestricted free agent, from the Indianapolis Colts. They then released DT Remi Ayodele on March 21, but re-signed DT Fred Evans. March 26 was a big day for signings by the Vikings, with the re-signings of WR Devin Aromashodu and LB Erin Henderson, as well as the free agent acquisitions of CB Zack Bowman from the Chicago Bears and T Geoff Schwartz from the Carolina Panthers.

April saw very few transactions go through in anticipation of the 2012 NFL draft at the end of the month. Nevertheless, the Vikings signed LB Marvin Mitchell and WR Jerome Simpson, despite the fact that Simpson would miss the first three games of the season for a violation of the NFL's substance abuse policy.

Draft

See main article: 2012 NFL draft.

Pro Bowler
2012 Minnesota Vikings Draft
Draft orderPlayer namePositionCollegeContractNotes
RoundOverall
13Traded to the Cleveland Browns
4bgcolor=lightsteelblueMatt KalilTUSC4 years[5] From Browns
29bgcolor=lightsteelblueHarrison SmithSNotre Dame4 years[6] From Ravens
235Traded to the Baltimore Ravens
366Josh RobinsonCBCentral Florida4 years[7]
498Traded to the Baltimore Ravens
118Jarius WrightWRArkansas4 yearsFrom Falcons via Browns
128Rhett EllisonFBUSC4 yearsCompensatory pick
134Greg ChildsWRArkansas4 yearsCompensatory pick
5138Traded to the Detroit Lions
139Robert BlantonSNotre Dame4 yearsFrom Browns
6173Traded to the Washington Redskins
175bgcolor=lightsteelblueBlair WalshKGeorgia4 yearsFrom Browns
7210Audie ColeILBNC State4 years
211Traded to the Tennessee TitansFrom Browns
219Trevor GuytonDECalifornia4 yearsFrom Seahawks via Lions
223Traded to the Detroit LionsFrom Eagles via Patriots

Notes:

Cleveland traded their first-round selection (4th overall), fourth-round selection (118th overall), fifth-round selection (139th overall), and seventh-round selection (211th overall) to move up one spot to the third overall selection and draft RB Trent Richardson.

Minnesota traded their second-round selection (35th overall) and fourth-round selection (98th overall) to Baltimore to move up six spots to 29th overall selection and make this pick.

Minnesota was awarded two compensatory picks for the loss of free agents Ray Edwards, Ben Leber, Tarvaris Jackson, and Sidney Rice.

Detroit traded their seventh-round selection (219th overall) and 2013 fourth-round selection (102nd overall) to Minnesota for their fifth-round selection (138th overall) and the seventh-round selection (223rd overall) that they received from New England in the trade for Randy Moss in 2010.

Minnesota traded their sixth-round selection (173rd overall) to Washington for QB Donovan McNabb.

Cleveland traded their sixth-round selection (175th overall) to Minnesota in exchange for DE Jayme Mitchell.[8]

Tennessee traded their 2013 sixth-round selection (176th overall) to Minnesota for the seventh-round selection (211th overall) that they received in the first-round trade with Cleveland. Minnesota later traded the pick they received from Tennessee to the Arizona Cardinals in exchange for a seventh-round pick and CB A. J. Jefferson.

Post-draft transactions

With the 2012 Draft over, the Vikings resumed their transactions in May, signing a number of undrafted free agents to their roster, and releasing RB Caleb King, following a short jail term. With the drafting of Blair Walsh, veteran kicker Ryan Longwell found himself surplus to requirements for the Vikings and he was released on May 7. By the start of June, all of the Vikings draft selections (with the exception of T Matt Kalil) had been signed to long-term contracts.

Preseason

Schedule

This was the first year the Vikings used a TV/radio simulcast for their preseason games.

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue NFL.com
recap
1August 10at San Francisco 49ersL 6–170–1Candlestick ParkRecap
2August 17Buffalo BillsW 36–141–1Mall of America FieldRecap
3August 24 San Diego ChargersL 10–121–2Mall of America FieldRecap
4August 30 at Houston TexansL 24–281–3Reliant StadiumRecap

Game summaries

Week 4: at Houston Texans

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue NFL.com
recap
1September 9Jacksonville JaguarsW 26–23 (OT)1–0Mall of America FieldRecap
2September 16at Indianapolis ColtsL 20–231–1Lucas Oil StadiumRecap
3September 23San Francisco 49ersW 24–132–1Mall of America FieldRecap
4September 30at Detroit LionsW 20–133–1Ford FieldRecap
5October 7Tennessee TitansW 30–74–1Mall of America FieldRecap
6October 14at Washington RedskinsL 26–384–2FedExFieldRecap
7October 21Arizona CardinalsW 21–145–2Mall of America FieldRecap
8Tampa Bay BuccaneersL 17–365–3Mall of America FieldRecap
9November 4at Seattle SeahawksL 20–305–4CenturyLink FieldRecap
10November 11Detroit LionsW 34–246–4Mall of America FieldRecap
11Bye
12November 25at Chicago BearsL 10–286–5Soldier FieldRecap
13December 2at Green Bay PackersL 14–236–6Lambeau FieldRecap
14December 9Chicago BearsW 21–147–6Mall of America FieldRecap
15December 16at St. Louis RamsW 36–228–6Edward Jones DomeRecap
16December 23at Houston TexansW 23–69–6Reliant StadiumRecap
17December 30Green Bay PackersW 37–3410–6Mall of America FieldRecap

Team names in bold indicate Vikings' home games.

Game summaries

Week 17: vs. Green Bay Packers

Adrian Peterson rushed for 199 yards, coming up nine yards short of breaking the single season record by Eric Dickerson. This included five rushes for 36 yards on the final drive to set up the winning field goal by Blair Walsh. This game was rated #3 on the Top 20 NFL Games of 2012 on NFL.com as AP2K.[9]

Standings

Postseason

Game summaries

NFC Wild Card Round: at Green Bay Packers

Having secured the NFC's #6 seed, the Vikings traveled to Lambeau Field for a rematch with the Packers. With the two teams meeting in the playoffs for only the second time ever, Blair Walsh capped the game's opening drive with a field goal to put the Vikings 3–0 up. However, the Packers then scored 24 unanswered points to take a 24–3 lead in the 3rd quarter. The Vikings tried to rally a comeback with a touchdown to make it 24–10, but it was too little, too late as time ran out for Minnesota.

Statistics

Team leaders

width=150px style=""Category width=150px style=""Player(s) width=75px style=""Value
Passing yards 2,935
Passing touchdowns 18
Rushing yards 2,097 *
Rushing touchdowns 12
Receiving yards 677
Receiving touchdowns 9
Points 141
Kickoff return yards 574
Punt return yards 287
Tackles148
Sacks 12.0
Interceptions 3
Forced fumbles 4

League rankings

width=150px style=""Category width=100px style=""Total yards width=110px style=""Yards per game width=80px style=""NFL rank
Passing offense 2,751 171.9 31st
Rushing offense 2,634 164.6 2nd
Total offense 5,385 336.6 20th
Passing defense 3,908 244.2 24th
Rushing defense 1,692 105.8 11th
Total defense 5,600 350.0 16th

Pro Bowl

Four Minnesota Vikings players were selected for the 2013 Pro Bowl: two on offense (running back partners Adrian Peterson and Jerome Felton), one on defense (DE Jared Allen) and one special teamer (K Blair Walsh). Of these, Peterson, Felton and Walsh were selected as starters, with Allen going as a reserve.[10]

With the withdrawal of Dallas Cowboys LB DeMarcus Ware on January 10 because of a shoulder injury, Vikings LB Chad Greenway was called up to the NFC roster as a replacement.[11] TE Kyle Rudolph was also added to the NFC roster for his first Pro Bowl two weeks later after Atlanta Falcons TE Tony Gonzalez dropped out due to injury.[12] Rookie Matt Kalil was also added later as a replacement for the Washington Redskins' tackle, Trent Williams, yet another casualty of injury.[13] Rudolph was named the game's MVP.

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: New Minnesota Vikings stadium law heads to governor amid questions over state's financing . CBSNews.com . CBS Interactive . May 11, 2012 . January 28, 2018 .
  2. News: Dayton Signs $975M Vikings Stadium Bill . CBS Minnesota . CBS Broadcasting . May 14, 2012 . January 28, 2018 .
  3. News: Frederick . Melo . Vikings stadium wins Minneapolis City Council's final approval . TwinCities.com . Digital First Media . May 24, 2012 . January 28, 2018 .
  4. News: City Council's Final Vote In Favor Of Stadium, 7-6 . CBS Minnesota . CBS Broadcasting . May 25, 2012 . January 28, 2018 .
  5. News: Jeremy . Fowler . Minnesota Vikings sign Matt Kalil . TwinCities.com . MediaNews Group . July 27, 2012 . August 1, 2012 .
  6. News: Harrison Smith signs rookie contract; was Vikings first-round pick . SportingNews.com . May 31, 2012 . August 1, 2012 .
  7. Web site: Minnesota Vikings – Player Contract Information . Rotoworld.com . NBC Sports Digital . August 1, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140729224051/http://www.rotoworld.com/teams/contracts/nfl/min/ . July 29, 2014 . dead .
  8. Web site: Florjancic . Matt . March 26, 2012 . "Browns awarded four compensatory picks" . ClevelandBrowns.com . March 27, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120329032433/http://www.clevelandbrowns.com/news/article-1/Browns-awarded-four-compensatory-picks/77bf5680-cbc5-4f76-adc7-2eb146c137ff . March 29, 2012 . dead .
  9. Web site: Top 20 NFL Games of 2012 . . November 28, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130812165909/http://www.nfl.com/top20games/2012/packers-at-vikings . August 12, 2013 . dead .
  10. News: 2013 Pro Bowl rosters: AFC, NFC . NFL.com . National Football League . December 26, 2012 . December 31, 2012 .
  11. News: Tom . Pelissero . Vikings linebacker Chad Greenway added to NFC Pro Bowl roster . 1500ESPN . Hubbard Broadcasting . January 10, 2013 . January 10, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130214005333/http://www.1500espn.com/sportswire/Vikings_linebacker_Chad_Greenway_added_to_NFC_Pro_Bowl_roster011013 . February 14, 2013 . dead . mdy-all .
  12. News: Rudolph Selected To First Pro Bowl . vikings.com . Minnesota Vikings Football . January 22, 2013 . January 23, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130126191243/http://www.vikings.com/news/article-1/Rudolph-Selected-To-First-Pro-Bowl/ecc918a0-fc4e-4447-9604-f8e18af87fde . January 26, 2013 . dead .
  13. News: Kalil Selected To His First Pro Bowl . vikings.com . Minnesota Vikings Football . January 25, 2013 . January 26, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130313161555/http://www.vikings.com/news/article-1/Kalil-Selected-To-His-First-Pro-Bowl/f4d1db24-2cf0-4e93-be31-6573f4df1f14 . March 13, 2013 . dead .