Five Reasons We Shouldn’t Blame Gary Anderson For The 1998 NFC Championship Loss
Cole Smith
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The Minnesota Vikings have completed 61 seasons and have yet to bring home a championship. Although every season has ended in disappointment, some seasons stick out due to the heartbreaking fashion in which they played out.
Perhaps no season stands out more than the 1998 season. The Vikings rolled to a 15-1 record and scored a then-record 556 points, spearheaded by rookie sensation Randy Moss. Fans weren’t hoping to advance to the Super Bowl; they were expecting it.
The Vikings would host the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Championship Game. Dominant all season, the Vikings allowed the Falcons to hang around all afternoon, clinging to a 27-20 lead. But a fourth down stop with 6:07 left in regulation put the Vikings in the driver’s seat to the Super Bowl.
Instead, kicker Gary Anderson, who had become the first kicker in NFL history to make every kick during the regular season, missed a 38-yard field goal with just over two minutes remaining. Atlanta would drive downfield and tie the game before winning in overtime, 30-27.
Most fans pin the blame on Anderson for loss. However, when looking back at the game, there were many contributing factors for the loss that weren’t Anderson’s fault. Today, we look back at five other egregious errors that the Vikings made on January 17, 1999 that didn’t involve Anderson.
Cunningham Is Stripped
The Vikings gave up a 12 play, 76-yard touchdown drive to begin the game. After that, though, the defense began to stand tough. They recovered two fumbles and forced two punts on the next four drives. Minnesota’s offense was rolling as well, and the Vikings offense took over at their own 18-yard line with 1:17 left in the first half, leading 20-7.
With momentum on their side, the Vikings opted to go for the kill shot. Quarterback Randall Cunningham threw two poor passes to the outside to open the drive. On third down, the Vikings once again took to the air. But Falcons defensive end Chuck Smith beat left tackle Todd Steussie and stripped Cunningham. The Falcons recovered at the 14-yard line, and on the ensuing play, Chris Chandler found Atlanta wideout Terance Mathis for a touchdown.
Taking over with 56 seconds to go in the half, the Vikings ran the drive that they should have run prior to the fumble. They ran a combination of draws, screens, and checkdown passes against a soft prevent defense, getting the ball down to the Falcons’ 43-yard line before a failed Hail Mary attempt. Minnesota led at halftime, 20-14.
A Failed Four-Minute Offense
Atlanta took over at the Vikings’ 30-yard line with 7:30 to go in the game. Minnesota still led 27-20, and facing fourth down, the Falcons kept their offense on the field for fourth down. But the Vikings’ defense held strong, and the high-powered offense took over with 6:07 to go in the game.
Now, there was some good news on the ensuing drive. It appeared that the Falcons felt defeated, and the Vikings churned out runs of 9, 16, 5, 8, and 8 yards to open the drive. Unfortunately, running back Robert Smith ran out-of-bounds on the 9- and 16- yard runs, temporarily stopping the clock. So the Vikings ran their third play of the drive having only run 50 seconds off of the game clock.
Following a five-yard run by Leroy Hoard, Smith re-entered the game and ran out-of-bounds again on his eight-yard run, stopping the clock at 4:32. It wasn’t until two plays later, at the 3:43 mark, that Atlanta finally had to use a timeout.
With Smith opting to run out-of-bounds, the Vikings missed out on eating up 1:10 off the game clock. Gary Anderson’s miss came at the 2:11 mark, and the Falcons still had the two-minute warning and an extra timeout at their disposal.
The Defense Self-Destructed
The Vikings still held a 27-20 lead over the Falcons when Anderson missed his kick. Chandler hit Mathis on second-down, who smartly got out-of-bounds following the two-minute warning. Chandler then connected with Ronnie Harris for a 29-yard gain on the next play. Oh yeah, Harris also got out of bounds.
From there, strong safety Robert Griffith had two opportunities to intercept Chandler. Both were tough but manageable catches for a player of his caliber. After getting to the Vikings’ 16-yard line, Chandler once again found Mathis in the endzone, stunning the Metrodome crowd and tying the game 27-27.
Playing For Overtime
So the Vikings took the ball with 49 seconds left at their own 20-yard line. Cunningham scrambled around for an eight-yard gain, but spent a few seconds deciding whether to go down or head out of bounds. He then waited three seconds before taking a timeout. On the next play, Cunningham threw a bomb over the middle that Moss lost in the lights.
On third down, at home, knowing the Falcons had no timeouts, with 30 seconds left, the highest-scoring offense in NFL history…. lined up to kneel the ball down. The Metrodome crowd rained boos down on the Vikings as overtime approached.
The Offense Fails Once Again In The Biggest Spot
We all know that Morten Andersen kicked the game-winner in overtime. But people forget that the Vikings had shots to win in overtime. Twice. In fact, the Vikings won the coin toss. But after an 11-yard catch by Hoard, the offense sputtered at the Vikings’ 42-yard line and punted back to Atlanta.
The Vikings defense held on, forcing a punt after the Falcons got to their own 41-yard line. Once again, though, the Vikings offense was only able to muster one first down, and they punted the ball back to Atlanta, who set up shop at their own 9-yard line.
Ten plays and 70 yards later, the Falcons’ Andersen trotted out and connected on a field goal of, you guessed it, 38 yards to send Atlanta to their first Super Bowl ever.
So there you have it. The Vikings had ample opportunities before and after Gary Anderson’s miss to seal the game. It was a collective meltdown, aided in part by injuries and in other parts by poor game management by coaches and other players on the team. Did Anderson play a part in the loss? Absolutely. But next time you hear someone place all of the blame on him, just remember, the entire team fell short.
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