EAGAN, Minn. — The Vikings are mourning the passing of former tight end, radio broadcaster and Twin Cities businessman Joe Senser, who passed away Thursday at the age of 69.
Vikings Owner/President Mark Wilf and Owner/Chairman Zygi Wilf issued the following statement:
"The Vikings family is saddened by the loss of Joe Senser. Joe was a Pro Bowler on the field, but his impact on the organization and in the community was felt long after his playing days. Joe was a generous soul with countless charitable endeavors. He brought his positive personality to every interaction he had, whether it be with former teammates, Vikings staff or our family when we became stewards of this franchise. Joe's warmth and welcoming spirit will last in the memories of those who knew him.
Senser joined the Vikings in 1979 as a sixth-round pick (152nd overall) out of West Chester in his home state of Pennsylvania.
Within two years, he turned in one of the most amazing seasons by a tight end in franchise and NFL history with 79 catches, 1,004 yards and eight touchdowns, resulting in selection to the Pro Bowl.
Vikings Ring of Honor linebacker Scott Studwell, who had joined the Vikings as a ninth-round pick in 1977, described Senser as a "late-round steal" who made positive impacts in multiple ways.
"Unfortunately, his career was cut short due to a knee injury, or he would have taken his place as a true Legend and would have had a hugely productive career with the Vikings," Studwell said. "He still impacted Vikings fans on and off the field and made his mark in the Twin Cities in a variety of ways and was such a caring and supportive soul who always had a smile on his face and warmth in his heart. He had more than his fair share of physical pain and setbacks, but he always had such a positive attitude and outlook on life that it always 'picked you up' knowing that he always had your back. Great man, player and person with a warm heart and huge smile."
Punter Greg "Touch" Coleman recalled a rough start with Senser that grew into a lifelong friendship.
Coleman remembered meeting Senser at Vikings Training Camp in 1979, recalling Senser's "chiseled" frame and flowing curly hair.
"I remember running the scout team defense during a walk-through drill, holding a dummy bag, and he ripped and knocked me down," Coleman shared. "Embarrassed by the play and that he was a rookie, I jumped up and shouted, 'Rookie if you ever hit me again during walk-throughs, I am gonna kick your ass.' "
"He looked at me and said, 'Touch, you don't understand. I gotta do everything I can to make this team.' Immediately there was a bond because I totally understood what he was going through, having been a rookie myself only a few years back and having had to prove myself day-in and day out, I got it," Coleman said. "From that day on, I made it a point to watch and encourage Joe Senser as long as he was in a Purple uniform."
The 1981 campaign for the player in the No. 81 jersey, along with his endearing personality, launched him into immense popularity in Minnesota.
But it also turned out to be his apex as a professional football player.
The fateful day proved to be Nov. 29, 1981.
Senser recorded 11 catches for 98 yards, including a 13-yard touchdown in the Border Battle matchup with Green Bay, but he suffered a severe knee injury when enduring a high-low hit.
In a twist of irony, in that day's Minneapolis Tribune, former writer Roman Augustoviz had quoted Senser in a feature written about secondary tight end Bob Bruer.
Augustoviz led with Senser having recorded 60 receptions for 833 yards and six touchdowns through just 12 games, compared to four receptions for 13 yards (three scores, though!) and followed with Senser saying, "If I got hurt, he could come in and do as well, if not better."
Senser grinded through that game and started the final three of the season, but the Vikings closed 1981 — and Met Stadium — by losing the final five contests before heading to the Metrodome in 1982.
After not recording a catch in a 10-9 loss at the Bears the week after the injury, Senser caught five passes for 41 yards and a score in a 45-7 loss at Detroit and then gathered three catches for 32 yards in a 10-6 loss to the Chiefs.
The 79 receptions by Senser in 1981 stood as a Vikings record among tight ends until Kyle Rudolph recorded 83 in 2016. T.J. Hockenson topped that mark with 95 for 960 yards in 2023, but Senser remains the only Vikings tight end with more than 1,000 yards in a season.
Humble and warm-hearted
Quotes from that season revealed Senser staying humble amid stardom cast across the North Star State.
He never forgot humble and hardscrabble roots, that began with hazardous routes from his home to school on the streets of Philadelphia.
A January 1981 feature in the Minneapolis Star ahead of Minnesota's Divisional Round loss at eventual NFC Champion Philadelphia noted Senser's upbringing.
After his father passed away at age 47 due to a brain tumor and left Senser's mother to care for three sons and two daughters, Joe was enrolled at the Milton Hershey School, a cost-free boarding school for children from low-income families. At age 11, Joe headed 120 miles west of his home, and his mom worked two jobs, totaling 16 hours a day to take care of Joe's siblings.
Cow-milking at 5:30 a.m. and curfew at 9 p.m. were part of the program at the school, but Senser also found a new home on the basketball court. He played just one season of high school football before playing both sports at West Chester before becoming one of the NFL's earliest basketball-background tight ends who could be quite productive as passing targets.
A necessary learning curve, however, occurred as Senser jumped from the small school to the pros.
In an August 2005 Star Tribune story, Kent Youngblood relayed Senser's recollection from his first Vikings practice. The 22-year-old lined up across from 41-year-old Ring of Honor defensive end Jim Marshall, who was preparing for his 20th NFL season and 19th with Minnesota.
"When the ball was snapped, he was so fast that all I could do was try to reach back and grab the last three letters on the back of his jersey," Senser said. "He took that big, giant hand, slapped me on the side of the leg and said, 'You'll get it, kid.' "
The duo wound up rooming together during Senser's rookie season.
Toward the end of that first camp, Senser's foot was stepped on during practice, and the Vikings opted to place him on Injured Reserve before reducing the roster to 45 players. At that time, that meant his first campaign was over before it started.
In 1980, however, Senser put the behind-the-scenes learning into play, catching 42 passes for 447 yards and seven scores on just 65 targets.
Almost everyone knows Tommy Kramer found Ring of Honor receiver Ahmad Rashad for a 46-yard Hail Mary to deliver the Miracle at the Met on Dec. 14, 1980, but what about the play before the play?
To start a two-play drive that began with 20 seconds remaining, Senser caught a pass at the Minnesota 29-yard line atop a 9-yard hook route and lateralled the ball to running back Ted Brown, who streaked an additional 25 yards before stepping out of bounds at the Cleveland 46 with five seconds remaining. Kramer and Rashad followed with the deep heave for the 28-23 comeback victory. Senser also turned a tight end screen into a 31-yard touchdown earlier in the game.
The 1982 season was shortened to nine games because of a work stoppage. Senser caught 29 passes for 261 yards and what proved to be his final career TD nearly a year after his initial knee injury (in a 35-7 win over Chicago on Nov. 28, 1982).
Vikings Ring of Honor tight end Steve Jordan was drafted in 1982 and essentially received the baton to provide Minnesota's offense with a dynamic pass-catching threat at the position. Jordan said Senser inspired him during and after his career.
"Our Vikings community will miss our former teammate Joe Senser," Jordan said. "He's been inspirational in terms of his unheralded entry into the NFL and to see his hard work and talent achieve Pro Bowler status. Then, over the past number of years, his battle to recover from the stroke has continued to inspire us."
Senser missed all of 1983, rehabbing his knee long before sports medicine became more advanced.
"I don't feel sorry for myself because every time I want to feel sorry for myself, I think about all the great things that have happened to me in football," he told the Minneapolis Tribune that fall. "I've been so, so lucky."
Senser returned to action in 1984, mustering 15 catches for 110 yards on 24 targets.
Les Steckel, who had coached Vikings receivers and tight ends (and drawn up that hook-and-lateral) before becoming head coach for one season, told former Pioneer Press reporter Chris Tomasson in 2019 that Senser "was the most enjoyable player I ever coached. He always had a smile on his face; he always was laughing. He loved life."
After his playing career, Senser partnered on a chain of sports bars around the Twin Cities that began with locations in Roseville (1988) and Bloomington (1990) and expanded in Eagan (1998) and Plymouth (2007), but those have all closed.
He also worked as a color commentator for the Vikings Radio Network in 1993-94 and from 2001-06.
Coleman appreciated working games as the sideline reporter while Senser was in the broadcast booth. They had stayed connected, making their homes in the Twin Cities after their retirements.
"He was a man with a charitable heart and a giving spirit to a fault. He became one of my closest teammates," Coleman said. "That relationship blossomed even more when we became teammates again for the Vikings Radio Network. Joe and Paul Allen were in the booth, and I was the on the field.
"We had such a chemistry because we had seen and been a part of so much football and friendship," Coleman continued. "We could almost complete each other's sentences because we shared so many memories together as teammates and broadcast partners.
"What I will remember the most how he had to fight to make the Vikings squad and the faith to endure the last 10 years of a difficult journey," Coleman added. "But now I can say that Joe Senser has finished his race. I love Joe Senser."
