As an organization, the Vikings are known for fearsome defenses and losing four Super Bowls.
A sneaky thing that is also part of their organizational lore: Seasons saved by backup quarterbacks. As such, here is a ranking of the best performances by backup quarterbacks in Vikings history, going from 10 down to 1:
10) Bob Lee, 1970: Lee went 2-0 in his two starts as a backup that season for the Vikings, who finished 12-2 but lost to San Francisco in the playoff opener. Lee went 9-2 in his 11 starts for the Vikings over the years and was also their full-time punter for two seasons.
9) Sean Salisbury, 1992: He took over for Rich Gannon down the stretch and went 3-1 as a starter, though he loses points for putting up a clunker as the playoff starter that year in a 24-7 loss to Washington.
8) Rich Gannon, 1991: Wade Wilson was the starter at the beginning of the year, but the Vikings lost three of their first five games — scoring six points or fewer in all three losses. Gannon started 11 games, going 6-5 while throwing 12 TD passes to just six INTs.
7) Gus Frerotte, 2008: The Vikings turned to Frerotte after an 0-2 start to the season by Tarvaris Jackson, and while his numbers weren't great (12 TDs, 15 INTs) he played well enough to earn an 8-3 record as a starter that year. Jackson reclaimed the job late in the season and the Vikings finished 10-6, losing to the Eagles in the playoffs.
6) Brad Johnson, 1996: Warren Moon started eight games that year. Johnson did, too. The Vikings were 5-3 in Johnson's games, and he threw 17 TD passes to just nine interceptions — much better numbers than Moon had that year. He helped the Vikings squeak into the playoffs at 9-7, where they were demolished by Dallas.
5) Brad Johnson, 2005: The only man to make this list twice, Johnson took over after Daunte Culpepper's knee injury — when the Vikings were 2-5 — and somehow went 7-2 as a starter and kept the Vikings in contention until they ultimately missed the playoffs at 9-7.
