1968 Minnesota Vikings season
NFL team season
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The 1968 season was the Minnesota Vikings' eighth in the National Football League. In their second year under head coach Bud Grant, the Vikings won the NFL Central division title with an 8–6 record, and qualified for the postseason for the first time in franchise history. This was the first of four consecutive division titles for the Vikings. The Vikings' first trip to the playoffs saw them suffer a 24–14 loss in the Western Conference Championship Game to the eventual NFL champion and Super Bowl runner-up Baltimore Colts at Baltimore's Memorial Stadium. In the Playoff Bowl two weeks later, they again lost to the Dallas Cowboys 17–13.
| 1968 Minnesota Vikings season | |
|---|---|
| General manager | Jim Finks |
| Head coach | Bud Grant |
| Home stadium | Metropolitan Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 8–6 |
| Division place | 1st NFL Central |
| Playoffs | Lost Western Conference Championship Game (at Colts) 14–24 Lost NFL Playoff Bowl (vs. Cowboys) 13–17 |
| All-Pros | DE Carl Eller (1st team) C Mick Tingelhoff (1st team) FB Bill Brown (2nd team) S Paul Krause (2nd team) |
| Pro Bowlers | DE Carl Eller C Mick Tingelhoff FB Bill Brown DT Alan Page DE Jim Marshall |
| Uniform | |
| |
Offseason
1968 draft
| Hall of Famer |
| 1968 Minnesota Vikings Draft | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draft order | Player name | Position | College | Notes | |
| Round | Selection | ||||
| 1 | 1 | Ron Yary | Offensive tackle | USC | from Giants[A] |
| 7 | Traded to the New Orleans Saints[B] | ||||
| 2 | 33 | Charlie West | Cornerback | UTEP | |
| 3 | 61 | Traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers[C] | |||
| 76 | Mike McGill | Linebacker | Notre Dame | from Cowboys[D] | |
| 4 | 89 | Mike Freeman | Defensive back | Fresno State | |
| 5 | 117 | Traded to the Washington Redskins[E] | |||
| 6 | 144 | Bob Goodridge | Wide receiver | Vanderbilt | |
| 7 | 167 | Oscar Reed | Wide receiver | Colorado State | from Falcons[F] |
| 171 | Lenny Snow | Running back | Georgia Tech | ||
| 8 | 198 | Hank Urbanowicz | Defensive tackle | Miami (FL) | |
| 9 | 225 | Mike Donohoe | Tight end | San Francisco | |
| 10 | 250 | Tom Sakal | Defensive back | Minnesota | |
| 11 | 279 | Bill Haas | Wide receiver | Nebraska–Omaha | |
| 12 | 308 | Howie Small | Center | Rhode Island | |
| 13 | 333 | Dick Wherry | Wide receiver | Northern State | |
| 14 | 360 | Don Evans | Offensive tackle | Arkansas AM&N | |
| 15 | 387 | Jim Haynie | Quarterback | West Chester | |
| 16 | 414 | Lary Kuharich | Defensive back | Boston College | |
| 17 | 441 | Bob Lee | Quarterback | Pacific | |
| 445 | Bill Hull | Guard | Tennessee Tech | from Lions[G] | |
Notes
- The Vikings traded QB Fran Tarkenton to the Giants in exchange for a first- (1st overall), a 1967 first- (2nd overall), a 1967 second- (28th overall) and a 1969 second-round selection (39th overall).
- The Vikings traded their first-round (7th overall) and their 1969 first-round selection (17th overall) to the Saints in exchange for QB Gary Cuozzo.
- The Vikings traded their third-round selection (61st overall) to the Steelers in exchange for CB Brady Keys.
- The Vikings traded WR Lance Rentzel to the Cowboys in exchange for a third-round selection (76th overall).
- The Vikings traded their fifth-round selection (117th overall) to the Redskins in exchange for OT Bob Breitenstein.
- The Vikings traded QB Ron Vander Kelen to the Falcons in exchange for a seventh-round selection (167th overall).
Undrafted free agents
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Ralph Galloway | Tackle | Southern Illinois |
| Gayle Knief | Wide receiver | Morningside |
| Ron Oswalt | Lineback | Drake |
Roster
Preseason
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance[1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 10 | Kansas City Chiefs (AFL) | L 10–13 | 0–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 46,228 |
| 2 | August 17 | at Denver Broncos (AFL) | W 39–16 | 1–1 | University of Denver Stadium | 20,901 |
| 3 | August 24 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 52–10 | 2–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 41,229 |
| 4 | September 1 | at St. Louis Cardinals | L 28–31 | 2–2 | Busch Memorial Stadium | 25,233 |
| 5 | September 6 | New Orleans Saints | W 20–17 | 3–2 | State Fair Stadium (Shreveport, LA) | 23,000 |
Regular season
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 14 | Atlanta Falcons | W 47–7 | 1–0 | Metropolitan Stadium | 45,563 |
| 2 | September 22 | at Green Bay Packers | W 26–13 | 2–0 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 49,346 |
| 3 | September 29 | Chicago Bears | L 17–27 | 2–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,644 |
| 4 | October 6 | Detroit Lions[a] | W 24–10 | 3–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 44,289 |
| 5 | October 13 | at New Orleans Saints | L 17–20 | 3–2 | Tulane Stadium | 71,105 |
| 6 | October 20 | Dallas Cowboys | L 7–20 | 3–3 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,644 |
| 7 | October 27 | at Chicago Bears | L 24–26 | 3–4 | Wrigley Field | 46,562 |
| 8 | November 3 | Washington Redskins | W 27–14 | 4–4 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,644 |
| 9 | November 10 | Green Bay Packers | W 14–10 | 5–4 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,644 |
| 10 | November 17 | at Detroit Lions | W 13–6 | 6–4 | Tiger Stadium | 48,654 |
| 11 | November 24 | at Baltimore Colts | L 9–21 | 6–5 | Memorial Stadium | 60,238 |
| 12 | December 1 | Los Angeles Rams | L 3–31 | 6–6 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,644 |
| 13 | December 8 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 30–20 | 7–6 | Kezar Stadium | 29,049 |
| 14 | December 15 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 24–17 | 8–6 | Franklin Field | 54,530 |
- Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 11: at Baltimore Colts
Minnesota Vikings (6–4) at Baltimore Colts (9–1) – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vikings | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| Colts | 7 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland
- Date: November 24, 1968
- Game time: 1:00 p.m.
- Game weather: 50 °F or 10 °C
- TV: CBS
- Pro-Football-Reference.com
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
This was the last occasion the Colts hosted the Vikings in the regular season until 2000, seventeen years after they had relocated to Indianapolis. The intervening gap of 31 seasons constitutes the second-longest gap without one team visiting another in NFL history.[b]
Standings
| NFL Central | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| Minnesota Vikings | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 4–2 | 6–4 | 282 | 242 | W2 |
| Chicago Bears | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 3–3 | 5–5 | 250 | 333 | L1 |
| Green Bay Packers | 6 | 7 | 1 | .462 | 1–4–1 | 2–7–1 | 281 | 227 | W1 |
| Detroit Lions | 4 | 8 | 2 | .333 | 3–2–1 | 4–5–1 | 207 | 241 | L1 |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Playoffs
| Round | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference | December 22 | at Baltimore Colts | L 14–24 | 0–1 | Memorial Stadium | 60,238 |
| Playoff Bowl | January 5 | Dallas Cowboys | L 13–17 | 0–2 | Miami Orange Bowl | 22,961 |
Conference Playoff: at Baltimore Colts
Minnesota Vikings (8–6) at Baltimore Colts (13–1) – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vikings | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
| Colts | 0 | 7 | 14 | 3 | 24 |
at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland
- Date: December 22, 1968
- Game time: 1:00 p.m.
- Game weather: 33 °F (1 °C)
- TV: CBS
- Pro-Football-Reference.com
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Four weeks after their last regular-season visit to the Colts for 32 years, the Vikings' first ever playoff appearance saw them return to play the Colts in their only postseason meeting.
Statistics
Team leaders
| Category | Player(s) | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Passing yards | Joe Kapp | 1,695 |
| Passing touchdowns | Joe Kapp | 10 |
| Rushing yards | Bill Brown | 805 |
| Rushing touchdowns | Bill Brown | 11 |
| Receiving yards | Gene Washington | 756 |
| Receiving touchdowns | Gene Washington | 6 |
| Points | Fred Cox | 88 |
| Kickoff return yards | Charlie West | 576 |
| Punt return yards | Charlie West | 201 |
| Interceptions | Paul Krause | 7 |
League rankings
| Category | Total yards | Yards per game | NFL rank (out of 16) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Passing offense | 1,685 | 120.4 | 15th |
| Rushing offense | 1,921 | 137.2 | 6th |
| Total offense | 3,606 | 257.6 | 14th |
| Passing defense | 1,855 | 132.5 | 3rd |
| Rushing defense | 1,903 | 135.9 | 11th |
| Total defense | 3,758 | 268.4 | 5th |