Player Selection
| * | Selected number one overall |
| † | Enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame |
| § | Enshrined in the Minnesota Vikings Ring of Honor |
| Year | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Football League, Early Era (1950–1969) | |||||
| 1961 | 1 * | Tommy Mason | RB | Tulane | |
| 1962 | — | — No Pick | — | — | |
| 1963 | 3 | Jim Dunaway | DT | Mississippi State | |
| 1964 | 6 | Carl Eller † § | DE | Minnesota | |
| 1965 | 8 | Jack Snow | WR | Notre Dame | |
| 1966 | 7 | Jerry Shay | DT | Purdue | |
| 1967 | 2 | Clinton Jones | RB | Michigan State | |
| 8 | Gene Washington | WR | Michigan State | ||
| 15 | Alan Page † § | DT | Notre Dame | ||
| 1968 | 1 * | Ron Yary † § | OT | USC | |
| 1969 | — | — No Pick | — | — | |
| National Football League, Modern Era (1970–present) | |||||
| 1970 | 25 | John Ward | OT | Oklahoma State | |
| 1971 | 24 | Leo Hayden | RB | Ohio State | |
| 1972 | 10 | Jeff Siemon | LB | Stanford | |
| 1973 | 12 | Chuck Foreman § | RB | Miami (Florida) | |
| 1974 | 17 | Fred McNeill | LB | UCLA | |
| 25 | Steve Riley | OT | USC | ||
| 1975 | 25 | Mark Mullaney | DE | Colorado State | |
| 1976 | 25 | James White | DT | Oklahoma State | |
| 1977 | 27 | Tommy Kramer | QB | Rice | |
| 1978 | 21 | Randy Holloway | DE | Pittsburgh | |
| 1979 | 16 | Ted Brown | RB | North Carolina State | |
| 1980 | 9 | Doug Martin | DT | Washington | |
| 1981 | — | — No Pick | — | — | |
| 1982 | 7 | Darrin Nelson | RB | Stanford | |
| 1983 | 19 | Joey Browner | DB | USC | |
| 1984 | 13 | Keith Millard | DE | Washington State | |
| 1985 | 4 | Chris Doleman † § | LB | Pittsburgh | |
| 1986 | 14 | Gerald Robinson | DE | Auburn | |
| 1987 | 14 | D. J. Dozier | RB | Penn State | |
| 1988 | 19 | Randall McDaniel † § | G | Arizona State | |
| 1989 | — | — No Pick | — | — | |
| 1990 | — | — No Pick | — | — | |
| 1991 | — | — No Pick | — | — | |
| 1992 | — | — No Pick | — | — | |
| 1993 | 21 | Robert Smith | RB | Ohio State | |
| 1994 | 18 | Dewayne Washington | CB | North Carolina State | |
| 19 | Todd Steussie | OT | California | ||
| 1995 | 11 | Derrick Alexander | DE | Florida State | |
| 24 | Korey Stringer § | OT | Ohio State | ||
| 1996 | 16 | Duane Clemons | LB | California | |
| 1997 | 20 | Dwayne Rudd | LB | Alabama | |
| 1998 | 21 | Randy Moss | WR | Marshall | |
| 1999 | 11 | Daunte Culpepper | QB | Central Florida | |
| 29 | Dimitrius Underwood | DE | Michigan State | ||
| 2000 | 25 | Chris Hovan | DT | Boston College | |
| 2001 | 27 | Michael Bennett | RB | Wisconsin | |
| 2002 | 7 | Bryant McKinnie | OT | Miami (Florida) | |
| 2003 | 9 | Kevin Williams | DT | Oklahoma State | |
| 2004 | 20 | Kenechi Udeze | DE | USC | |
| 2005 | 7 | Troy Williamson | WR | South Carolina | |
| 18 | Erasmus James | DE | Wisconsin | ||
| 2006 | 17 | Chad Greenway | LB | Iowa | |
| 2007 | 7 | Adrian Peterson | RB | Oklahoma | |
| 2008 | — | — No Pick | — | — | |
| 2009 | 22 | Percy Harvin | WR | Florida | |
| 2010 | — | — No Pick | — | — | |
| 2011 | 12 | Christian Ponder | QB | Florida State | |
| 2012 | 4 | Matt Kalil | OT | USC | |
| 29 | Harrison Smith | S | Notre Dame | ||
| 2013 | 23 | TBD | |||
Read more about this topic: List Of Minnesota Vikings First-round Draft Picks
Famous quotes containing the words player and/or selection:
“Intelligence and war are games, perhaps the only meaningful games left. If any player becomes too proficient, the game is threatened with termination.”
—William Burroughs (b. 1914)
“The books for young people say a great deal about the selection of Friends; it is because they really have nothing to say about Friends. They mean associates and confidants merely.”
—Henry David Thoreau (18171862)