The Minnesota Vikings first took the field as an expansion team in 1961. The franchise has not been a staple on Turkey Day. However, when the club has played on the holiday it has been very successful. The Purple Gang has played on Thanksgiving nine times and emerged with seven victories.
Here's a look back at the team's nine appearances on Turkey Day, the most recent a season ago. The top choice on this list should hardly be a surprise and should bring back great memories for "Skol Nation."
9. Lions 16, Vikings 13 (2016)
Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater suffered a severe knee injury just before the start of the season, and the team wound up dealing for Sam Bradford. It was a season in which the Purple Gang won its first five games. It was also a year that saw the Vikings drop eight of their final 11 contests.
It was a hard fall for a team that won the NFC North the previous season with an 11-5 record. After sweeping the Detroit Lions in 2015, the Men from Motown returned the favor this season. Thanksgiving Day in Detroit was the second meeting of the year between the clubs. Minnesota owned a 13-10 late in the fourth quarter. The Lions would not the game with 1:49 to play via a 48-yard field goal by Matt Prater, and overtime appeared inevitable. Not so fast…
Vikings' quarterback Sam Bradford got the ball on his own 25-yard-line and had the ball in the closing minutes. On the third play of the drive, he was picked off by Darius Slay, who returned the ball to the Minnesota 20. Lions' quarterback Matthew Stafford took a knee, Prater nailed a 40-yard kick at the gun and the loss somehow epitomized the team's dismal season.
8. Vikings 23, Lions 0 (1988)
A year after the Vikings reached the NFC Championship Game, a loss to the then-Washington Redskins, Jerry Burns' club put together a solid year that resulted in an 11-5 record and a second-place finish in the NFC Central. Two of their victories came against the division-champion Chicago Bears, who earned the top spot with a 12-4 mark.
On Thanksgiving Day at the Silverdome, Minnesota flexed its defensive muscles and shut out the Lions. The Vikings took control with a 20-point second quarter. They outgained Detroit, 353-60, and held the ball for an astounding 44:57. Running back Alfred Anderson ran for two touchdowns, while Chuck Nelson added three field goals in the lopsided victory.
7. Lions 44, Vikings 38 (1995)
It wound up being a wild afternoon at Pontiac, and Dennis Green's Vikings wound up on the short end of a 44-38 score. Minnesota was riding a three-game winning streak entering the holiday clash with the Lions.
It was a battle of pass-happy quarterbacks in Minnesota's Warren Moon (384) and Detroit's Scott Mitchell (410), who combined for 994 yards through the air and seven scores (4 by Mitchell).
While Green's team was limited to 34 yards on the ground, the Lions got 138 yards rushing and one touchdown from Barry Sanders. All told, Wayne Fontes' team amassed 534 total yards and this came despite three turnovers. The Vikings owned a 31-24 third-quarter lead but were outscored 20-7 the rest of the afternoon.
6. Vikings 27, Cowboys 15 (2000)
Minnesota's 2000 season would culminate with a trip to the NFC Championship Game for the second time in three years. It would not end well for Dennis Green's division champions as it was humbled by Jim Fassel's New York Giants, 41-0.
On this day at Texas Stadium, the Vikings got big performances from running back Robert Smith and wide receiver Randy Moss. The former ran 21 times for 148 yards and one touchdown. Quarterback Daunte Culpepper hit on 15-of-22 passes for 205 yards and a pair of scores. Moss has nearly half of those completions (7), most of the yardage (144) and both touchdowns.
Green's club surrendered 404 total yards but came up with a couple of takeaways. Meanwhile, Minnesota played turnover-free football.
5. Vikings 33, Patriots 26 (2022)
This year's Vikings own a 6-5 record and are chasing the 8-2 Detroit Lions in the NFC North. A season ago, first-time NFL head coach Kevin O'Connell led the club to a 13-4 record, The club won its share of close games and on Thanksgiving against the visiting New England Patriots, the eventual division champions rallied in the fourth quarter for a win over Bill Belichick's club.
It was an entertaining affair from start to finish. The teams traded touchdowns in the first quarter and the clubs were tied 16-all at halftime. The Pats took a 23-16 lead in the third quarter when Mac Jones threw a 35-yard TD pass to Hunter Henry. That advantage didn't last long as Vikings' speedster Kene Nwangwu returned the ensuing kickoff 97 yards for a score.
New England took a three-point lead in the third quarter, but O'Connell's team scored the final 10 points of the game, the difference a Kirk Cousins-to-Adam Thielen 15-yard touchdown connection.
4. Vikings 44, Cowboys 38 (OT) (1987)
It was the strike-interrupted season of 1987, a year in which there were three weeks of play that featured "replacement players" or veterans (or both) that opted to cross picket lines. However, when the Vikings and Cowboys squared off on Thanksgiving at Texas Stadium, that brief interruption was well over and these two teams combined for 82 points.
Jerry Burns' squad rolled up 476 yards of total offense and needed every bit of that. The hero of the day was Vikings' running back Darren Nelson, who ran 24 yards in overtime for the winning touchdown. He finished the day with 118 yards rushing and a pair of scores.
Wide receiver Anthony Carter hauled in eight passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns. Minnesota owned a 38-24 fourth-quarter lead but allowed Dallas to tie the score and send the game into OT.
3. Vikings 30, Lions 23 (2017)
It was a year that began with Sam Bradford at quarterback and would soon have Case Keenum behind center. He would enjoy a career year and it resulted in an NFC North title and an appearance in the NFC title game. After a 2-2 start, the Vikings won 11 of their final 12 games, including a Thanksgiving Day triumph at Detroit.
Keenum led the team to a 20-3 second-quarter lead thanks to a pair of touchdown passes and a nine-yard run into the end zone. Latavius Murray gave Minnesota a 27-10 advantage early in the third quarter with a two-yard run. However, the Lions came roaring back and early in the fourth quarter had narrowed their deficit to four points. The Vikings got a late field goal for a little insurance on an afternoon in which Mike Zimmer's team amassed 408 total yards and played turnover-free football.
2. Vikings 27, Lions 0 (1969)
It was the team's first appearance on Thanksgiving Day and it would be a season in which the club would make the first of its four Super Bowl appearances.
Led by Hall of Fame head coach Bud Grant, this team rolled the Detroit Lions in the snow at Tiger Stadium. The team was in the midst of a 12-game winning streak and a talented Minnesota defense made life miserable for Lions' quarterback Greg Landry.
Neither team could mount much of an offense as Minnesota (173) and Detroit (156) combined for only 329 total yards. The latter had one more turnover than Grant's club. Landry was sacked seven times and one of his two interceptions wound up in the hands of Vikings' defensive tackle Alan Page.
1. Vikings 46, Cowboys 36 (1998)
Back to the 1998 NFL Draft. It was thought that the Dallas Cowboys would use a first-round pick on Marshall University wide receiver Randy Moss. But it just didn't work out that way and the talented but somewhat troubled performer slipped steadily in the first round.
Dennis Green and the Minnesota Vikings finally ended the wait and took Moss with the 21st overall selection. It proved to be quite a decision for a franchise that would see the talented wideout go on to capture NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. He was a big part of a team that finished 15-1, and at that time established an NFL record for points scored (556) in a season.
Moss put on quite a show at Texas Stadium on Thanksgiving. In the first quarter, he hauled in TD passes of 51 and 56 yards, respectively, from Randall Cunningham. Late in the third quarter, he caught a 56-yard pass for a score. Three receptions for 163 yards and three touchdowns. Enough said.