1961 Minnesota Vikings season
1961 Minnesota Vikings season | |
---|---|
Head coach | Norm Van Brocklin |
General manager | Bert Rose |
Home field | Metropolitan Stadium |
Results | |
Record | 3–11 |
Division place | 7th NFL Western |
Playoff finish | did not qualify |
The 1961 season was the Minnesota Vikings' first in the National Football League after being created as an expansion franchise. Under head coach Norm Van Brocklin, the team finished with a 3–11 record. The team's first ever regular season game was a 37–13 victory against their divisional rivals, the Chicago Bears; in that game, rookie quarterback Fran Tarkenton came off the bench to toss four touchdown passes and run for another.
The Vikings' defense surrendered 5.41 rushing yards per attempt in 1961, the fifth-most of all time.[1]
Contents
1 Offseason
1.1 1961 Draft
1.2 1961 Expansion Draft
2 Roster
3 Preseason
4 Regular season
4.1 Schedule
4.2 Game summaries
4.2.1 Week 1: vs. Chicago Bears
4.2.2 Week 2: at Dallas Cowboys
4.2.3 Week 3: at Baltimore Colts
4.2.4 Week 4: vs. Dallas Cowboys
4.2.5 Week 5: vs. San Francisco 49ers
4.2.6 Week 6: vs. Green Bay Packers
4.2.7 Week 7: at Green Bay Packers
4.2.8 Week 8: at Los Angeles Rams
4.2.9 Week 9: vs. Baltimore Colts
4.2.10 Week 10: vs. Detroit Lions
4.2.11 Week 11: at San Francisco 49ers
4.2.12 Week 12: vs. Los Angeles Rams
4.2.13 Week 13: at Detroit Lions
4.2.14 Week 14: at Chicago Bears
5 Standings
6 Postseason
7 Statistics
7.1 Team leaders
7.2 League rankings
8 References
Offseason
Although the NFL originally had no interest in expanding, after Max Winter and Bill Boyer agreed to start an American Football League (AFL) franchise in Minnesota, the NFL approached them to change leagues. The "Vikings" name was given to the team by Ole Haugsrud, who had been given a 10% stake in the franchise as a result of having sold the Duluth Eskimos back to the league in the 1920s.[2]
1961 Draft
Pro Bowler | |
Pro Football Hall of Famer |
1961 Minnesota Vikings Draft | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Draft order | Player name | Position | College | ||
Round | Overall | ||||
1 | 1 | Tommy Mason | Running back | Tulane | |
2 | 15 | Rip Hawkins | Linebacker | North Carolina | |
3 | 29 | Fran Tarkenton | Quarterback | Georgia | |
4 | 43 | Chuck Lamson | Safety | Wyoming | |
5 | 57 | Ed Sharockman | Cornerback | Pittsburgh | |
6 | 71 | Jerry Burch | End | Georgia Tech | |
7 | 85 | Allan Ferrie | End | Wagner | |
8 | 99 | Paul Lindquist | Defensive tackle | New Hampshire | |
9 | 113 | Dan Sheehan | Offensive tackle | Tennessee-Chattanooga | |
10 | 127 | Doug Mayberry | Fullback | Utah State | |
11 | 141 | Jerry Mays | Defensive tackle | Southern Methodist | |
12 | 155 | Steve Stonebreaker | Linebacker | Detroit | |
13 | 169 | Ray Hayes | Fullback | Central State | |
14 | 183 | Ken Petersen | Offensive lineman | Utah | |
15 | 197 | Mike Mercer | Kicker | Arizona State | |
16 | 211 | Ted Karpowicz | Running back | Detroit | |
17 | 225 | Willie Jones | Fullback | Purdue | |
18 | 239 | Bob Voigt | Offensive tackle | Cal State-Los Angeles | |
19 | 253 | Bill Hill | Fullback | Presbyterian | |
20 | 267 | Mike McFarland | Quarterback | Western Illinois |
1961 Expansion Draft
Player name | Position | College | Acquired from |
---|---|---|---|
Grady Alderman | Guard | Detroit Mercy | Detroit Lions |
Tom Barnett | Running back | Purdue | Pittsburgh Steelers |
Byron Beams | Tackle | Notre Dame | Pittsburgh Steelers |
Ken Beck | Defensive tackle | Texas A&M | Green Bay Packers |
Bill Bishop | Defensive tackle | North Texas State | Chicago Bears |
Don Boll | Offensive tackle | Nebraska | New York Giants |
Ed Culpepper | Defensive tackle | Alabama | St. Louis Cardinals |
Don Ellersick | Defensive back | Washington State | Los Angeles Rams |
Dick Haley | Defensive back | Pittsburgh | Washington Redskins |
Gerry Huth | Guard | Wake Forest | Philadelphia Eagles |
Charlie Janerette | Guard | Penn State | Los Angeles Rams |
Gene Johnson | Defensive back | Cincinnati | Philadelphia Eagles |
Don Joyce | Defensive end | Tulane | Baltimore Colts |
Bill Kimber | End | Florida State | New York Giants |
Bill Lapham | Center | Iowa | Philadelphia Eagles |
Hugh McElhenny | Running back | Washington | San Francisco 49ers |
Dave Middleton | End | Auburn | Detroit Lions |
Jack Morris | Defensive back | Oregon | Pittsburgh Steelers |
Rich Mostardi | Defensive back | Kent State | Cleveland Browns |
Fred Murphy | End | Georgia Tech | Cleveland Browns |
Clancy Osborne | Linebacker | Arizona State | San Francisco 49ers |
Dick Pesonen | Defensive back | Minnesota-Duluth | Green Bay Packers |
Mike Rabold | Guard | Indiana | St. Louis Cardinals |
Perry Richards | End | Detroit Mercy | St. Louis Cardinals |
Bill Roehnelt | Linebacker | Bradley | Washington Redskins |
Karl Rubke | Linebacker | USC | San Francisco 49ers |
Gene Selawski | Offensive tackle | Purdue | Cleveland Browns |
Glenn Shaw | Fullback | Kentucky | Chicago Bears |
Lebron Shields | Defensive tackle | Tennessee | Baltimore Colts |
Zeke Smith | Linebacker | Auburn | Baltimore Colts |
Jerry Stalcup | Linebacker | Wisconsin | Los Angeles Rams |
Louis Stephens | Guard | San Francisco | Washington Redskins |
Charlie Sumner | Defensive back | William & Mary | Chicago Bears |
Dave Whitsell | Defensive back | Indiana | Detroit Lions |
Paul Winslow | Running back | North Carolina Central | Green Bay Packers |
Frank Youso | Offensive tackle | Minnesota | New York Giants |
Roster
1961 Minnesota Vikings final roster | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
| Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
| Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
| Reserve lists
|
Preseason
Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance [1] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | August 5 | Dallas Cowboys | L 13–38 | 0–1 | Howard Wood Field (Sioux Falls, SD) | 4,954 |
2 | August 18 | at Baltimore Colts | L 3–13 | 0–2 | Memorial Stadium | 10,203 |
3 | August 26 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 10–14 | 0–3 | Multnomah Stadium (Portland, OR) | 27,044 |
4 | September 2 | Chicago Bears | L 7–30 | 0–4 | Kingston Stadium [2] (Cedar Rapids, IA) | 12,500 |
5 | September 10 | Los Angeles Rams | L 17–21 | 0–5 | Metropolitan Stadium | 27,982 |
Regular season
Schedule
Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | September 17 | Chicago Bears | W 37–13 | 1–0 | Metropolitan Stadium | 32,236 |
2 | September 24 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 7–21 | 1–1 | Cotton Bowl | 20,500 |
3 | October 1 | at Baltimore Colts | L 33–34 | 1–2 | Memorial Stadium | 54,259 |
4 | October 8 | Dallas Cowboys | L 0–28 | 1–3 | Metropolitan Stadium | 33,070 |
5 | October 15 | San Francisco 49ers | L 24–38 | 1–4 | Metropolitan Stadium | 34,415 |
6 | October 22 | Green Bay Packers | L 7–33 | 1–5 | Metropolitan Stadium | 42,007 |
7 | October 29 | at Green Bay Packers | L 10–28 | 1–6 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 44,112 |
8 | November 5 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 17–31 | 1–7 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 38,594 |
9 | November 12 | Baltimore Colts | W 28–20 | 2–7 | Metropolitan Stadium | 38,010 |
10 | November 19 | Detroit Lions | L 10–37 | 2–8 | Metropolitan Stadium | 32,296 |
11 | November 26 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 28–38 | 2–9 | Kezar Stadium | 43,905 |
12 | December 3 | Los Angeles Rams | W 42–21 | 3–9 | Metropolitan Stadium | 30,068 |
13 | December 10 | at Detroit Lions | L 7–13 | 3–10 | Tiger Stadium | 42,655 |
14 | December 17 | at Chicago Bears | L 35–52 | 3–11 | Wrigley Field | 34,539 |
Game summaries
Week 1: vs. Chicago Bears
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bears | 0 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 13 |
Vikings | 3 | 7 | 14 | 13 | 37 |
at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota
Date: September 17
Game time: 12:00 p.m. CST
Game weather: 61 °F (16 °C)
Game attendance: 52,364- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
This was the first regular season game in Vikings history. George Shaw started the game at quarterback for the Vikings, but he was soon replaced by rookie quarterback Fran Tarkenton. Tarkenton threw four touchdown passes and ran for another as the Vikings won 37–13. They were the last expansion team to win their first game until the 2002 Houston Texans.
Week 2: at Dallas Cowboys
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vikings | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
Cowboys | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
at Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas
Date: September 24
Game weather: 82 °F (28 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 3: at Baltimore Colts
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vikings | 3 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 33 |
Colts | 7 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 34 |
at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland
Date: October 1
Game weather: 58 °F (14 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 4: vs. Dallas Cowboys
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cowboys | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
Vikings | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota
Date: October 8
Game weather: 66 °F (19 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 5: vs. San Francisco 49ers
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
49ers | 7 | 7 | 10 | 14 | 38 |
Vikings | 7 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 24 |
at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota
Date: October 15
Game weather: 56 °F (13 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 6: vs. Green Bay Packers
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Packers | 10 | 3 | 3 | 17 | 33 |
Vikings | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota
Date: October 22
Game weather: 48 °F (9 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 7: at Green Bay Packers
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vikings | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
Packers | 14 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 28 |
at Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Date: October 29
Game weather: 57 °F (14 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 8: at Los Angeles Rams
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vikings | 7 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
Rams | 14 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 31 |
at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California
Date: November 5
Game weather: 65 °F (18 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 9: vs. Baltimore Colts
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Colts | 0 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 20 |
Vikings | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota
Date: November 12
Game weather: 50 °F (10 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 10: vs. Detroit Lions
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lions | 0 | 14 | 9 | 14 | 37 |
Vikings | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota
Date: November 19
Game weather: 23 °F (−5 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 11: at San Francisco 49ers
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vikings | 0 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
49ers | 14 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 38 |
at Kezar Stadium, San Francisco, California
Date: November 26
Game weather: 53 °F (12 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 12: vs. Los Angeles Rams
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rams | 0 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
Vikings | 7 | 14 | 14 | 7 | 42 |
at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota
Date: December 3
Game weather: 37 °F (3 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 13: at Detroit Lions
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vikings | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
Lions | 0 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 13 |
at Tiger Stadium, Detroit, Michigan
Date: December 10
Game weather: 36 °F (2 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Week 14: at Chicago Bears
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vikings | 14 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 35 |
Bears | 7 | 14 | 24 | 7 | 52 |
at Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois
Date: December 17
Game weather: 33 °F (1 °C)- Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information | ||
---|---|---|
|
Standings
NFL Western Conference | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK | ||
Green Bay Packers | 11 | 3 | 0 | .786 | 9–3 | 391 | 223 | W1 | |
Detroit Lions | 8 | 5 | 1 | .615 | 7–4–1 | 270 | 258 | L1 | |
Chicago Bears | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 7–5 | 326 | 302 | W2 | |
Baltimore Colts | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 6–6 | 302 | 307 | W1 | |
San Francisco 49ers | 7 | 6 | 1 | .538 | 6–5–1 | 346 | 272 | L1 | |
Los Angeles Rams | 4 | 10 | 0 | .286 | 3–9 | 263 | 333 | L1 | |
Minnesota Vikings | 3 | 11 | 0 | .214 | 3–9 | 285 | 407 | L2 |
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Postseason
Both halfback Hugh McElhenny and receiver (end) Jerry Reichow were voted to the East–West Pro Bowl game, played January 14, 1962, at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The coach for the West squad was Vikings head coach Norm Van Brocklin. McElhenny scored a third-quarter touchdown on a 10-yard pass from Green Bay Packers quarterback Bart Starr, and the West won the game 31–30.[3]
Statistics
Team leaders
Category | Player(s) | Value |
---|---|---|
Passing yards | Fran Tarkenton | 1,997 |
Passing touchdowns | Fran Tarkenton | 18 |
Rushing yards | Hugh McElhenny | 570 |
Rushing touchdowns | Fran Tarkenton | 5 |
Receiving yards | Jerry Reichow | 859 |
Receiving touchdowns | Jerry Reichow | 11 |
Points | Jerry Reichow | 66 |
Kickoff return yards | Tommy Mason | 603 |
Punt return yards | Hugh McElhenny | 155 |
Interceptions | Rip Hawkins | 5 |
League rankings
Category | Total yards | Yards per game | NFL rank (out of 14) |
---|---|---|---|
Passing offense | 1,989 | 142.1 | 13th |
Rushing offense | 1,897 | 135.5 | 6th |
Total offense | 3,886 | 277.6 | 12th |
Passing defense | 2,926 | 209.0 | 13th |
Rushing defense | 2,667 | 190.5 | 14th |
Total defense | 5,593 | 399.5 | 14th |
References
^ "Cold Hard Football Facts: The 5.0 Club: run defense in '11 lit up like hippies in '69". Archived from the original on 2012-05-14. Retrieved 2012-05-16..mw-parser-output cite.citationfont-style:inherit.mw-parser-output .citation qquotes:"""""""'""'".mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registrationcolor:#555.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration spanborder-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output code.cs1-codecolor:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-errordisplay:none;font-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-errorfont-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-maintdisplay:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-formatfont-size:95%.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-leftpadding-left:0.2em.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-rightpadding-right:0.2em
^ Gruver, The American Football League, pp. 22–23.
^ "Unitas' last-second pass nips East; 31–30". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. AP. January 15, 1962. p. 23. Retrieved January 23, 2012.
.mw-parser-output .refbeginfont-size:90%;margin-bottom:0.5em.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents>ullist-style-type:none;margin-left:0.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents>ul>li,.mw-parser-output .refbegin-hanging-indents>dl>ddmargin-left:0;padding-left:3.2em;text-indent:-3.2em;list-style:none.mw-parser-output .refbegin-100font-size:100%
"1961 Draft". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Retrieved April 8, 2007.
"1961 Minnesota Vikings". DatabaseFootball. Archived from the original on 11 April 2007. Retrieved April 8, 2007.