1968 Minnesota Vikings season

1968 Minnesota Vikings season
Head coach	Bud Grant
General manager	Jim Finks
Home field	Metropolitan Stadium
Results
Record	8–6
Division place	1st NFL Central
Playoff finish	Lost Divisional Playoffs (Colts) 24–14

1968 was the eighth year of season play for the Minnesota Vikings and the 49th regular season of the National Football League. Under head coach Bud Grant, the Vikings won the NFL Central Division title with a record of eight wins and six losses, as they qualified for postseason play for the first time in franchise history. The Vikings' first trip to the playoffs ended with 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.

Offseason

1968 Draft

= Hall of Famer

1968 Minnesota Vikings Draft
Draft order			Player name	Position	College	Notes
Round	Choice	Overall
1	1	1	Ron Yary	Offensive tackle	USC	from Giants^[a]
	7	7	Traded to the New Orleans Saints^[b]
2	6	33	Charlie West	Defensive back	Texas-El Paso
3	6	61	Traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers^[c]
	21	76	Mike McGill	Linebacker	Notre Dame	from Cowboys^[d]
4	6	89	Mike Freeman	Defensive back	Fresno State
5	6	117	Traded to the Washington Redskins^[e]
6	6	144	Bob Goodridge	Wide receiver	Vanderbilt
7	2	167	Oscar Reed	Wide receiver	Colorado State	from Falcons^[f]
	6	171	Lenny Snow	Running back	Georgia Tech
8	6	198	Hank Urbanowicz	Defensive tackle	Miami
9	6	225	Mike Donohue	Tight end	San Francisco
10	6	250	Tom Sakal	Defensive back	Minnesota
11	6	279	Bill Haas	Wide receiver	Nebraska-Omaha
12	6	308	Howie Small	Center	Rhode Island
13	6	333	Dick Wherry	Wide receiver	Northern State
14	6	360	Don Evans	Offensive tackle	Arkansas-Pine Bluff
15	6	387	Jim Haynie	Quarterback	West Chester
16	6	414	Lary Kuharich	Defensive back	Boston College
17	6	441	Bob Lee	Quarterback	Pacific
	10	445	Bill Hull	Guard	Tennessee Tech	from Lions^[g]

^{^[a]} The New York Giants traded their 1st round selection (1st overall), 1967 1st round selection (2nd overall), 1967 2nd round selection (28th overall), and 1969 2nd round selection (39th overall) to Minnesota for QB Fran Tarkenton.

^{^[b]} Minnesota traded their 1st round selection (7th overall) and their 1969 1st round selection (17th overall) to New Orleans for QB Gary Cuozzo.

^{^[c]} Minnesota traded their 3rd round selection (61st overall) to PIttsburgh for CB Brady Keys.

^{^[d]} Dallas traded their 3rd round selection (76th overall) to Minnesota for WR Lance Rentzel.

^{^[e]} Minnesota traded their 5th round selection (117th overall) to Washington for OL Bob Breitenstein.

^{^[f]} Atlanta traded their 7th round selection (167th overall) to Minnesota for QB Ron Vander Kelen.

^{^[g]} Detroit traded their 17th round selection (445th overall) to Minnesota for their 1969 16th round selection (407th overall).

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Venue	Attendance
1	September 14, 1968	Atlanta Falcons	W 47–7	Metropolitan Stadium	45,563
2	September 22, 1968	at Green Bay Packers	W 26–13	Milwaukee County Stadium	49,346
3	September 29, 1968	Chicago Bears	L 17–27	Metropolitan Stadium	47,644
4	October 6, 1968	Detroit Lions	W 24–10	Metropolitan Stadium	44,289
5	October 13, 1968	at New Orleans Saints	L 17–20	Tulane Stadium	71,105
6	October 20, 1968	Dallas Cowboys	L 7–20	Metropolitan Stadium	47,644
7	October 27, 1968	at Chicago Bears	L 24–26	Wrigley Field	46,562
8	November 3, 1968	Washington Redskins	W 27–14	Metropolitan Stadium	47,644
9	November 10, 1968	Green Bay Packers	W 14–10	Metropolitan Stadium	47,644
10	November 17, 1968	at Detroit Lions	W 13–6	Tiger Stadium	48,654
11	November 24, 1968	at Baltimore Colts	L 9–21	Memorial Stadium	60,238
12	December 1, 1968	Los Angeles Rams	L 3–31	Metropolitan Stadium	47,644
13	December 8, 1968	at San Francisco 49ers	W 30–20	Kezar Stadium	29,049
14	December 15, 1968	at Philadelphia Eagles	W 24–17	Franklin Field	54,530

Note: The October 6 game against Detroit was originally scheduled to be played in Detroit. The game was switched with the November 17 game due to game 4 of the World Series.

Playoffs

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Venue	Attendance
Western Conference	December 22, 1968	at Baltimore Colts	L 14–24	Memorial Stadium	60,238
Playoff Bowl	January 5, 1969	vs Dallas Cowboys	L 13–17	Miami Orange Bowl	22,961

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.

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 Yards	120.4 YPG	15th
Rushing Offense	1,921 Yards	137.2 YPG	6th
Total Offense	3,606 Yards	257.6 YPG	14th
Passing Defense	1,855 Yards	132.5 YPG	3rd
Rushing Defense	1,903 Yards	135.9 YPG	11th
Total Defense	3,758 Yards	268.4 YPG	5th

External links

• 1968 Minnesota Vikings at Pro-Football-Reference.com