2005 Minnesota Vikings
The 2005 Minnesota Vikings went 9–7, finishing 2nd in the NFC North, and missed the playoffs. They scored 306 points and allowed 344.
- Record
- 9–7
- Home
- 6–2
- Road & neutral
- 3–5
- Points
- 306–344
- NFC North
- Place 2 of 4
- Postseason
- Did not qualify
Where the season ranked
They scored 306 points, the 14th-fewest among the 32 teams, and allowed 344, tied for the 13th-most. Their point differential was -38.
How the season unfolded
The Vikings started 1–3 and were 3–5 after eight games. They went 2–2 over the final four weeks to finish 9–7.
Their longest winning streak was six games, from Week 9 to Week 14.
Best and worst games
Their biggest win was 34–10 over the Chicago Bears in Week 17 (January 1, 2006).
Their heaviest loss was 37–8 to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2 (September 18, 2005).
In games decided by eight points or fewer, they went 4–1.
Division and playoff opponents
They went 5–1 against the NFC North, sweeping the Packers and the Lions and splitting with the Bears.
Against teams that reached the playoffs, they went 2–5 in the regular season.
Postseason
They missed the playoffs. The lowest record among NFC playoff teams was 10–6, one game better than their record.
Before and after
That was a one-win improvement on 2004, when they went 8–8.
In 2006, they went 6–10.
2005 schedule and results
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Sep 11, 2005 | vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 13–24 |
| Week 2 | Sep 18, 2005 | at Cincinnati Bengals | L 8–37 |
| Week 3 | Sep 25, 2005 | vs New Orleans Saints | W 33–16 |
| Week 4 | Oct 2, 2005 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 10–30 |
| Week 6 | Oct 16, 2005 | at Chicago Bears | L 3–28 |
| Week 7 | Oct 23, 2005 | vs Green Bay Packers | W 23–20 |
| Week 8 | Oct 30, 2005 | at Carolina Panthers | L 13–38 |
| Week 9 | Nov 6, 2005 | vs Detroit Lions | W 27–14 |
| Week 10 | Nov 13, 2005 | at New York Giants | W 24–21 |
| Week 11 | Nov 21, 2005 | at Green Bay Packers | W 20–17 |
| Week 12 | Nov 27, 2005 | vs Cleveland Browns | W 24–12 |
| Week 13 | Dec 4, 2005 | at Detroit Lions | W 21–16 |
| Week 14 | Dec 11, 2005 | vs St. Louis Rams | W 27–13 |
| Week 15 | Dec 18, 2005 | vs Pittsburgh Steelers | L 3–18 |
| Week 16 | Dec 25, 2005 | at Baltimore Ravens | L 23–30 |
| Week 17 | Jan 1, 2006 | vs Chicago Bears | W 34–10 |
Counted by WHYNFL from the final score of every 2005 game. Division place uses win percentage, then point differential; the NFL's full tiebreaker procedure is not applied.