Minnesota Vikings' full 10 Head Coach history and Ranking the Top 5

Philadelphia Eagles v Minnesota Vikings
Philadelphia Eagles v Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings were founded in 1961 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They compete in the National Football Conference (NFC) of the NFL. They won one Championship game in 1969 before the NFL merger. The Vikings have appeared in four Super Bowls in 1971, 1974, 1975, and 1977, but lost each one of them.

Their first head coach was Norm Van Brocklin, and Kevin O'Connell is currently in charge. Let's take a look at the history of head coaches in Minnesota.

Minnesota Vikings' head coach history table

Minnesota head coach Kevin O'Connell
Minnesota head coach Kevin O'Connell

Here is the complete list of Minnesota Vikings head coaches since the team's inception.

CoachYearsRecordPlayoff record
Kevin O'Connell20221-1-00-0
Mike Zimmer 2014-202172-56-12-3
Leslie Frazier2011-201318-29-10-1
Brad Childress2006-201039-35-01-2
Mike Tice2002-200532-32-01-1
Dennis Green1992-200197-62-04-8
Jerry Burns1986-199152-43-03-3
Bud Grant1967-1983, 1985158-96-510-12
Les Steckel19843-13-00-0
Norm Van Brocklin1961-196629-51-40-0

Minnesota Vikings head coach history

Norm Van Brocklin

Norm Van Brocklin was the first head coach for the Vikings. He served with the franchise for six seasons from 1961 to 1966. During his tenure, they played 84 games and he held a record of 29 - 51 - 4. Minnesota did not make it to the playoffs during his time and in 1966 he resigned from the position.

Bud Grant

Bud Grant took over from Norm Van Brocklin and became one of the most successful Vikings head coaches in history. He stayed with them for 18 years before returning for another season in 1985. He is the longest serving head coach in franchise history. He holds a record of 158 - 96 - 5 and a playoff record of 10 - 12.

During his tenure, Minnesota appeared in four Super Bowls (1970, 1974, 1975, and 1977) but lost each of them.

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Les Steckel

After Grant retired in 1983, Les Steckel took the job as the head coach of the franchise. His tenure was short and limited to only one season in 1984. He holds a record of 3 - 13 and was fired after the 1984 NFL season which marked the return of Bud Grant in 1985.

Jerry Burns

Jerry Burns was the fourth head coach of the Vikings. He stayed with the team for six seasons from 1986 to 1991. He led them to the playoffs three times and one NFC Championship game in 1987. The team also won the division title in 1989. He holds a record of 54 - 43.

Dennis Green

Dennis Green was the first African American to serve as the head coach without ever playing in the NFL. He took the job from Jerry Burns after he retired in 1991. Green served the Vikings from 1992 to 2001. He holds a record of 97 - 62 and a playoff record of 4 - 8.

Mike Tice

Mike Tice was the head coach from 2002 to 2005. He holds a record of 32 - 32. In 2005 he was fined $1,00,000 by the NFL for organizing and profiting from a Super Bowl ticket scalping operation within the Vikings organization. It was the biggest fine the NFL had issued to a head coach at the time.

Brad Childress

Brad Childress was the seventh coach for the Vikings. His tenure with the team was from 2006 to 2010. The team played 74 games under his tenure and won 39 of them. He was fired during the 2010 season after they lost their home game against the Green Bay Packers.

Leslie Frazier

Leslie Frazier led the team from 2011 to 2013. He holds a record of 18 - 29 -1. He was released before the 2013 season as the team had an unsuccessful 5 - 10 - 1 season.

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Mike Zimmer

Mike Zimmer was the ninth head coach of Minnesota to succeed Leslie Frazier in 2014. He remained the head coach until the 2021 season and holds a record of 72 - 56 - 1. He also has a 2 - 3 playoff record in eight seasons with the team.

Kevin O'Connell

Kevin O'Connell is the current and tenth head coach of the franchise. He started his 2022 season and led the team to a win and a loss in their first two games of the 2022 regular season.

Top 5 head coaches of the Minnesota Vikings

Left - Mike Tice
Left - Mike Tice

#5 - Mike Tice

Tenure: 2002 - 2005

Record: 32-32-0

Playoff record: 1-1

Centre- Jerry Burns
Centre- Jerry Burns

#4 - Jerry Burns

Tenure: 1986 - 1991

Record: 52-43-0

Playoff record: 3-3

Former Minnesota head coach Mike Zimmer
Former Minnesota head coach Mike Zimmer

#3 - Mike Zimmer

Tenure: 2014 - 2021

Record: 72-56-1

Playoff record: 2-3

Former head coach Dennis Green
Former head coach Dennis Green

#2 - Dennis Green

Tenure: 1992 - 2001

Record: 97-62-0

Playoff record: 4-8

Most successful head coach of Minnesota - Bud Grant
Most successful head coach of Minnesota - Bud Grant

#1 - Bud Grant

Tenure: 1967 - 1983, 1985

Record: 158-96-5

Playoff record: 10-12

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