1970 Minnesota Vikings season
| 1970 Minnesota Vikings season | |
|---|---|
| General manager | Jim Finks |
| Head coach | Bud Grant |
| Home field | Metropolitan Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 12–2 |
| Division place | 1st NFC Central |
| Playoff finish | Lost Divisional Playoffs (49ers) 17–14 |
The 1970 Minnesota Vikings season was the franchise's 10th season in the National Football League. It was also the first season of play following the AFL-NFL merger, as the Vikings played in the National Football Conference. The Vikings' defense became the second defense in the history of the NFL to lead the league in fewest points allowed and fewest total yards allowed for two consecutive seasons.[1] The Vikings won the first-ever NFC Central title, as they finished with a record of 12 wins and two losses, before losing to the San Francisco 49ers at home in the NFC Divisional Playoff game.
Offseason
1970 Draft
| 1970 Minnesota Vikings Draft | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draft order | Player name | Position | College | ||
| Round | Choice | Overall | |||
| 1 | 25 | 25 | John Ward | Offensive Tackle | Oklahoma State |
| 2 | 25 | 51 | Bill Cappleman | Quarterback | Florida State |
| 3 | 25 | 77 | Chuck Burgoon | Linebacker | North Park |
| 4 | 25 | 103 | Traded to the New Orleans Saints[a] | ||
| 5 | 25 | 129 | Greg Jones | Running Back | UCLA |
| 6 | 25 | 155 | Traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers[b] | ||
| 7 | 25 | 181 | Hap Farber | Linebacker | Mississippi |
| 8 | 25 | 207 | Mike Carroll | Guard | Missouri |
| 9 | 25 | 233 | George Morrow | Defensive End | Mississippi |
| 10 | 25 | 259 | Stu Voigt | Tight End | Wisconsin |
| 11 | 25 | 285 | Godfrey Zaunbrecher | Center | Louisiana State |
| 12 | 25 | 311 | James Holland | Defensive Back | Jackson State |
| 13 | 25 | 337 | Robert Pearce | Defensive Back | Stephen F. Austin |
| 14 | 25 | 363 | Tommy Spinks | Wide Receiver | Louisiana Tech |
| 15 | 25 | 389 | Bennie Francis | Defensive End | Chadron State |
| 16 | 25 | 415 | Bruce Cerone | Wide Receiver | Emporia State |
| 17 | 25 | 441 | Brian Healy | Defensive Back | Michigan |
- ^[a] Minnesota traded their 4th round selection (103rd overall) to New Orleans for TE Kent Kramer.
- ^[b] Minnesota traded their 6th round selection (155th overall) to Pittsburgh for TE Tony Jeter.
Regular season
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 20, 1970 | Kansas City Chiefs | W 27–10 | Metropolitan Stadium | |
| 2 | September 27, 1970 | New Orleans Saints | W 26–0 | Metropolitan Stadium | |
| 3 | October 4, 1970 | at Green Bay Packers | L 10-13 | Milwaukee County Stadium | |
| 4 | October 11, 1970 | at Chicago Bears | W 24–0 | Wrigley Field | |
| 5 | October 18, 1970 | Dallas Cowboys | W 54–13 | Metropolitan Stadium | |
| 6 | October 26, 1970 | Los Angeles Rams | W 13–3 | Metropolitan Stadium | |
| 7 | November 1, 1970 | at Detroit Lions | W 30–17 | Tiger Stadium | |
| 8 | November 8, 1970 | at Washington Redskins | W 19–10 | RFK Stadium | |
| 9 | November 15, 1970 | Detroit Lions | W 24–20 | Metropolitan Stadium | |
| 10 | November 22, 1970 | Green Bay Packers | W 10–3 | Metropolitan Stadium | |
| 11 | November 29, 1970 | at New York Jets | L 10-20 | Shea Stadium | |
| 12 | December 5, 1970 | Chicago Bears | W 16–13 | Metropolitan Stadium | |
| 13 | December 13, 1970 | at Boston Patriots | W 35–14 | Harvard Stadium | |
| 14 | December 20, 1970 | at Atlanta Falcons | W 37–7 | Atlanta Stadium |
Playoffs
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divisional | December 27, 1970 | San Francisco 49ers | L 14-17 | Metropolitan Stadium |
Standings
| NFC Central | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| Minnesota Vikings | 12 | 2 | 0 | .857 | 5–1 | 10–1 | 335 | 143 | W3 |
| Detroit Lions | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 4–2 | 7–4 | 347 | 202 | W5 |
| Green Bay Packers | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 2–4 | 4–7 | 196 | 293 | L2 |
| Chicago Bears | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 1–5 | 5–6 | 256 | 261 | W2 |
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Roster
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
|
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
|
Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
|
Rookies in italics | ||||||
Awards, records, and honors
![[icon]](/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (July 2010) |
Statistics
Team leaders
| Category | Player(s) | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Passing Yards | Gary Cuozzo | 1,720 |
| Passing Touchdowns | Gary Cuozzo | 7 |
| Rushing Yards | Dave Osborn | 681 |
| Rushing Touchdowns | Clint Jones | 9 |
| Receiving Yards | Gene Washington | 702 |
| Receiving Touchdowns | Gene Washington | 4 |
| Points | Fred Cox | 125 |
| Kickoff Return Yards | Clint Jones | 452 |
| Punt Return Yards | Charlie West | 169 |
| Interceptions | Ed Sharockman | 7 |
League rankings
| Category | Total yards | Yards per game | NFL rank (out of 26) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Passing Offense | 2,181 Yards | 155.8 YPG | 14th |
| Rushing Offense | 1,634 Yards | 116.7 YPG | 14th |
| Total Offense | 3,815 Yards | 272.5 YPG | 19th |
| Passing Defense | 1,438 Yards | 102.7 YPG | 1st |
| Rushing Defense | 1,365 Yards | 97.5 YPG | 5th |
| Total Defense | 2,803 Yards | 200.2 YPG | 1st |
References
- ^ The Best Show in Football:The 1946–1955 Cleveland Browns, p.294, Andy Piascik, Taylor Trade Publishing, 2007, ISBN 978-1-58979-360-6