The 1964 season was the Minnesota Vikings' fourth in the National Football League. Under head coach Norm Van Brocklin, the team finished with an 8–5–1 record for their first winning season and a franchise-best until 1969. They tied with the Green Bay Packers for second place in the Western conference, who gained the berth in the third-place Playoff Bowl in Miami on January 3. The two teams had split their season series, with the road teams winning, but the Packers won the tiebreaker on point differential: the Vikings' victory was by just one point, while Green Bay won by over four touchdowns. In the season opener, the Vikings upset eventual Western champion Baltimore.

To date, this is the only season the Vikings wore white jerseys for all their home games. In January 1964, the NFL owners had approved a new rule which allowed home teams to wear the jersey color of their choice.

This was the first season for the forty-man roster, an increase of three.

Offseason 1964 draft

Pro BowlerHall of Famer

1964 Minnesota Vikings Draft Draft order Player name Position College Notes Round Selection16Carl EllerDefensive tackleMinnesota219Hal BedsoleWide receiverUSC334George RoseRunning backAuburn447Traded to the Chicago Bears53Tom KeatingDefensive tackleMichiganfrom Giants562John KirbyLinebackerNebraska675Bob LaceyWide receiverNorth Carolina790Wes BryantDefensive tackleArkansas8103Bill McWattersFullbackNorth Texas State9118Darrell LesterFullbackMcNeese State10131Traded to the Los Angeles Rams11146H. O. EstesGuardEast Central State12159Sandy SandsWide receiverTexas13174Russ VollmerRunning backMemphis State14187Tom MichelRunning backEast Carolina15202Monte KiffinDefensive tackleNebraska16215Carleton OatsWide receiverFlorida A&M17230Jerry McClurgWide receiverColorado18243Carl RobinsonDefensive tacklePrairie View A&M19258Dick SchottWide receiverLouisville20271Milt SundeOffensive tackleMinnesota

Notes

Roster

Preseason Game Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Sources 1 August 8 New York Giants W 21–7 1–0 Metropolitan Stadium 31,581 2 August 15 St. Louis Cardinals W 24–10 2–0 Cheney Stadium 10,000 3 August 22 San Francisco 49ers W 24–21 3–0 Ute Stadium 20,207 4 August 29 at Los Angeles Rams W 34–23 4–0 L.A. Memorial Coliseum 39,938 5 September 5 at Philadelphia Eagles W 21–20 5–0 Hershey Stadium 9,212

Regular season

Schedule Game Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap Sources 1 September 13 Baltimore Colts W 34–24 1–0 Metropolitan Stadium 35,563Opening day attendance record at Metropolitan Stadium. Recap 2 September 20 Chicago Bears L 28–34 1–1 Metropolitan Stadium 41,387 Recap 3 September 27 at Los Angeles Rams L 13–22 1–2 L.A. Memorial Coliseum 50,009 Recap 4 October 4 at Green Bay Packers W 24–23 2–2 City Stadium 42,327 Recap 5 October 11 Detroit Lions L 20–24 2–3 Metropolitan Stadium 40,840 Recap 6 October 18 Pittsburgh Steelers W 30–10 3–3 Metropolitan Stadium 39,873 Recap 7 October 25 at San Francisco 49ersW 27–22 4–3 Kezar Stadium 31,845 Recap 8 November 1 Green Bay PackersL 13–42 4–4 Metropolitan Stadium 44,278Single game attendance record at Metropolitan Stadium. Recap 9 November 8 San Francisco 49ersW 24–7 5–4 Metropolitan Stadium 40,408 Recap 10 November 15 at Baltimore Colts L 14–17 5–5 Memorial Stadium 60,213 Recap 11 November 22 at Detroit Lions T 23–23 5–5–1 Tiger Stadium 48,291 Recap 12 November 29 Los Angeles Rams W 34–13 6–5–1 Metropolitan Stadium 31,677 Recap 13 December 6 at New York Giants W 30–21 7–5–1 Yankee Stadium 62,802 Recap 14 December 13 at Chicago Bears W 41–14 8–5–1 Wrigley Field 46,486 Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries Week 7: vs. San Francisco 49ers The Vikings defeated the 49ers 27–22 on October 25 in San Francisco at Kezar Stadium, but not before defensive end Jim Marshall made one of the most embarrassing errors in NFL history. In the fourth quarter, 49er halfback Billy Kilmer caught a pass from rookie quarterback George Mira and fumbled the ball forward, which was scooped up in stride by Marshall. He unknowingly ran 66 yards with it the wrong way into his own end zone; thinking he scored a touchdown, he tossed the ball in the air throwing it out of bounds, resulting in a safety. The Vikings had a 27–17 lead at the time, and it narrowed the gap to eight points.

On the previous possession, Marshall had forced a Mira fumble in the collapsing pocket and defensive end Carl Eller had scooped up the loose ball and ran it back 45 yards for a touchdown. Just before that, Viking linebacker Roy Winston had intercepted a Mira pass early in the fourth quarter and returned it to the 49er eleven-yard line, setting up a touchdown run by quarterback Fran Tarkenton to take the lead. Two weeks later in Minnesota, the Vikings defeated the 49ers again, by a score of 24–7.

YouTube – NFL Films – Jim Marshall's Wrong Way Run

Standings

Statistics

Team leaders Category Player(s) Value Passing yards Fran Tarkenton 2,506 Passing touchdowns Fran Tarkenton 22 Rushing yards Bill Brown 866 Rushing touchdowns Bill Brown 7 Receiving yards Bill Brown 703 Receiving touchdowns Bill Brown 9 Points Fred Cox 103 Kickoff return yards Bill Butler 597 Punt return yards Bill Butler 156 Interceptions George Rose 6SacksJim Marshall11.5 Note that sack totals from 1960 to 1981 are considered unofficial by the NFL.

League rankings Category Total yards Yards per game NFL rank Passing offense 2,123 151.6 11th Rushing offense 2,183 155.9 2nd Total offense 4,306 307.6 6th Passing defense 2,724 194.6 13th Rushing defense 1,616 115.4 5th Total defense 4,340 310.0 10th

References