8 greatest one-hit wonder Vikings seasons of the last 30 years
By Ben Donahue
Player No. 3
Michael Bennett - RB (2002)
After the 2000 season, former Vikings All-Pro and Pro Bowl running back Robert Smith decided to retire. That left a gaping hole in the running game, and the team selected former Wisconsin running back Michael Bennett in the first round of the 2001 draft.
Bennett came to Minnesota after one good year with the Badgers, where he ran for 1,681 yards and 11 touchdowns. During his rookie year, Bennett rushed for 682 yards and two scores in 13 starts. Then, in 2002, he tallied a career-high 1,296 yards with an NFL-best 85-yard touchdown and had six total scores.
Bennett received his one and only ticket to the Pro Bowl as Minny finished the year with the league’s eighth-best offense. Unfortunately, during the next three years, injuries worked against Bennett, and his best rushing season was 473 yards in 2005.
After the Vikings released him following the ‘05 campaign, Bennett spent time with five other organizations before retiring in 2010 after rushing for 11 yards in seven games with Oakland.