1961 Minnesota Vikings season

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

1961 Minnesota Vikings season
Head Coach Norm Van Brocklin
Home Field Metropolitan Stadium
Results
Record 3-11-0
Place 7th Western Conference
Playoff Finish Did not qualify
Timeline
Previous Season Next Season
First season 1962

The 1961 Minnesota Vikings season was the first year of season play for the expansion franchise and the 42nd regular season of the National Football League. The Vikings finished with a record of three wins and 11 losses under head coach Norm Van Brocklin. The team's first ever regular season game was a victory against the Chicago Bears, 37-13. In that game, rookie quarterback Fran Tarkenton came off the bench to toss 4 touchdown passes and ran for another.

Contents

[edit] Offseason

[edit] 1961 NFL Draft

With the first overall pick in the 1961 NFL Draft, the Vikings selected running back Tommy Mason from Tulane University. In the third round, the Vikings selected quarterback Fran Tarkenton, a future hall-of-famer and he later would finish his professional football career as the franchise record holder for most passing yards (33,098) and passing touchdowns (239).

Round Overall
Pick		 Name Position College
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 Offensive lineman Georgia Tech
7 85 Allan Ferrie Offensive lineman 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 Peterson 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

[edit] Expansion acquisitions

Name Position Acquired from
Grady Alderman Guard Detroit Lions
Tom Barnett Running back Pittsburgh Steelers
Byron Beams Offensive tackle
Defensive tackle		 Pittsburgh Steelers
Ken Beck Defensive tackle Green Bay Packers
Bill Bishop Defensive tackle Chicago Bears
Don Boll Offensive tackle New York Giants
Ed Culpepper Defensive tackle St. Louis Cardinals
Don Ellersick Defensive back Los Angeles Rams
Dick Haley Defensive back Washington Redskins
Gerry Huth Guard Philadelphia Eagles
Charlie Janerette Guard Los Angeles Rams
Gene Johnson Defensive back Philadelphia Eagles
Don Joyce Defensive end Baltimore Colts
Bill Kimber Offensive lineman New York Giants
Bill Lapham Center Philadelphia Eagles
Hugh McElhenny Running back San Francisco 49ers
Dave Middleton Offensive lineman Detroit Lions
Jack Morris Defensive back Pittsburgh Steelers
Rich Mostardi Defensive back Cleveland Browns
Fred Murphy Offensive lineman Cleveland Browns
Clancy Osborne Linebacker San Francisco 49ers
Dick Pesonen Defensive back Green Bay Packers
Mike Rabold Guard St. Louis Cardinals
Perry Richards Offensive lineman St. Louis Cardinals
Bill Roehnelt Linebacker Washington Redskins
Karl Rubke Linebacker San Francisco 49ers
Gene Selawski Offensive tackle Cleveland Browns
Glenn Shaw Fullback Chicago Bears
Lebron Shields Defensive tackle Baltimore Colts
Zeke Smith Linebacker Baltimore Colts
Jerry Stalcup Linebacker Los Angeles Rams
Louis Stephens Guard Washington Redskins
Charlie Sumner Defensive back Chicago Bears
Dave Whitsell Defensive back Detroit Lions
Paul Winslow Running back Green Bay Packers
Frank Youso Offensive tackle New York Giants

[edit] Regular season

[edit] Final standings

W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT= Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against

[edit] Season Standings

Western Conference
Team W L T PCT PF PA
Green Bay Packers 11 3 0 .786 391 223
Detroit Lions 8 5 1 .615 270 258
Baltimore Colts 8 6 0 .571 302 307
Chicago Bears 8 6 0 .571 326 302
San Francisco 49ers 7 6 1 .538 346 272
Los Angeles Rams 4 10 0 .286 263 333
Minnesota Vikings 3 11 0 .214 285 407
[1]


[edit] Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Venue Attendance Record
1 1961-09-17 Chicago Bears W 37-13 Metropolitan Stadium 32,236 1-0
2 1961-09-24 Dallas Cowboys L 21-7 Cotton Bowl 20,500 1-1
3 1961-10-01 Baltimore Colts L 34-33 Memorial Stadium 54,259 1-2
4 1961-10-08 Dallas Cowboys L 28-0 Metropolitan Stadium 33,070 1-3
5 1961-10-15 San Francisco 49ers L 38-24 Metropolitan Stadium 34,415 1-4
6 1961-10-22 Green Bay Packers L 33-7 Metropolitan Stadium 42,007 1-5
7 1961-10-29 Green Bay Packers L 28-10 Milwaukee County Stadium 44,112 1-6
8 1961-11-05 Los Angeles Rams L 31-17 Los Angeles Coliseum 38,594 1-7
9 1961-11-12 Baltimore Colts W 28-20 Metropolitan Stadium 33,010 2-7
10 1961-11-19 Detroit Lions L 37-10 Metropolitan Stadium 32,296 2-8
11 1961-11-26 San Francisco 49ers L 38-28 Kezar Stadium 43,905 2-9
12 1961-12-03 Los Angeles Rams W 42-21 Metropolitan Stadium 30,068 3-9
13 1961-12-10 Detroit Lions L 13-7 Briggs Stadium 42,655 3-10
14 1961-12-17 Chicago Bears L 52-35 Wrigley Field 34,539 3-11

[edit] See also

[edit] References

v • d • e
Minnesota Vikings seasons
1961 • 1962 • 1963 • 1964 • 1965 • 1966 • 1967 • 1968 • 1969 • 1970 • 1971 • 1972 • 1973 • 1974 • 1975 • 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1979 • 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008


1961 NFL Season
v • d • e
Eastern Conference Western Conference
Cleveland Baltimore
Dallas Chicago
NY Giants Detroit
Philadelphia Green Bay
Pittsburgh Los Angeles
St. Louis Minnesota
Washington San Francisco
1961 NFL Draft • NFL Championship • Pro Bowl
Related: 1961 AFL Season