| Team: | Minnesota Vikings |
| Year: | 1966 |
| Record: | 4–9–1 |
| Division Place: | T-6th NFL Western |
| Coach: | Norm Van Brocklin |
| General Manager: | Jim Finks |
| Stadium: | Metropolitan Stadium |
| Playoffs: | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers: | C Mick Tingelhoff T Grady Alderman E Paul Flatley G Milt Sunde |
| Ap All-Pros: | C Mick Tingelhoff (1st team) |
| Uniform: | File:Vikings 1966-68.png |
| Shortnavlink: | Vikings seasons |
The 1966 season was the Minnesota Vikings' sixth in the National Football League. Sixth-year head coach Norm Van Brocklin resigned at the end of the season, after the team finished with a 4–9–1 record.
See main article: 1966 NFL draft.
| 1966 Minnesota Vikings Draft | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draft order | Player name | Position | College | Notes | ||
| Round | Selection | |||||
| 1 | 6 | Jerry Shay | Tackle | Purdue | ||
| 2 | 27 | Jim Lindsey | Running back | Arkansas | ||
| 3 | 42 | Don Hansen | Linebacker | Illinois | ||
| 4 | 57 | Ron Acks | Defensive back | Illinois | ||
| 5 | 72 | Doug Davis | Tackle | Kentucky | ||
| 76 | Bob Hall | Defensive back | Brown | from Bears | ||
| 6 | 83 | Wilbur Aylor | Tackle | Southwest Texas State | from Steelers via Giants | |
| 87 | Traded to the Detroit Lions | |||||
| 7 | 106 | Bob Meers | End | Massachusetts | ||
| 8 | 120 | Traded to the Baltimore Colts | ||||
| 9 | 134 | Ron Green | Wide receiver | North Dakota | ||
| 10 | 148 | Traded to the Detroit Lions | ||||
| 11 | 162 | Stan Quintana | Defensive back | New Mexico | ||
| 12 | 181 | Bob Petrella | Defensive back | Tennessee | ||
| 13 | 195 | Larry Martin | Tackle | San Diego State | ||
| 14 | 209 | Howard Twilley | Wide receiver | Tulsa | ||
| 15 | 223 | Hugh Wright | Running back | Adams State | ||
| 16 | 237 | Jim Williams | Defensive end | Arkansas | ||
| 17 | 256 | Monroe Beard | Running back | Virginia Union | ||
| 18 | 270 | Dale Greco | Defensive tackle | Illinois | ||
| 19 | 284 | Jesse Stokes | Running back | Corpus Christi State | ||
| 20 | 298 | Traded to the Philadelphia Eagles | ||||
The Vikings traded OG Palmer Pyle to the Chicago Bears in exchange for Chicago's fifth-round selection (76th overall).
The Vikings trade LB Bill Swain to the New York Giants in exchange for the sixth-round selection the Giants acquired from the Pittsburgh Steelers (83rd overall).
The Vikings traded their sixth-round selection (87th overall) and 1965 seventh-round selection (92nd overall) to the Detroit Lions in exchange for DT Mike Bundra and E Larry Vargo.
The Vikings traded their eighth-round selection (120th overall) and LB John Campbell to the Baltimore Colts in exchange for OT Larry Kramer.
The Vikings traded their 10th-round selection (148th overall) to the Detroit Lions in exchange for DB Gary Lowe.
The Vikings traded their 20th-round selection (298th overall) to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for HB Billy Ray Barnes.
| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance[1] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 6 | Detroit Lions | T 6–6 | 0–0–1 | 38,229 | ||
| 2 | August 13 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 35–6 | 1–0–1 | 21,228 | ||
| 3 | August 20 | Los Angeles Rams | W 24–10 | 2–0–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 40,270 | |
| 4 | August 26 | Washington Redskins | W 30–27 | 3–0–1 | 83,418 | ||
| 5 | September 2 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 24–28 | 3–1–1 | Cotton Bowl | 58,316 |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 11 | at San Francisco 49ers | T 20–20 | 0–0–1 | Kezar Stadium | 29,312 | |
| 2 | September 18 | Baltimore Colts | L 23–38 | 0–1–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,426 | |
| 3 | September 25 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 17–28 | 0–2–1 | Cotton Bowl | 64,116 | |
| 4 | October 2 | Chicago Bears | L 10–13 | 0–3–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,426 | |
| 5 | Bye | ||||||
| 6 | October 16 | Los Angeles Rams | W 35–7 | 1–3–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,426 | |
| 7 | October 23 | at Baltimore Colts | L 17–20 | 1–4–1 | Memorial Stadium | 60,238 | |
| 8 | October 30 | San Francisco 49ers | W 28–3 | 2–4–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 45,077 | |
| 9 | November 6 | at Green Bay Packers | W 20–17 | 3–4–1 | Lambeau Field | 50,861 | |
| 10 | November 13 | Detroit Lions | L 31–32 | 3–5–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 43,939 | |
| 11 | November 20 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 6–21 | 3–6–1 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 38,775 | |
| 12 | November 27 | Green Bay Packers | L 16–28 | 3–7–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,426 | |
| 13 | December 4 | Atlanta Falcons | L 13–20 | 3–8–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 37,117 | |
| 14 | December 11 | at Detroit Lions | W 28–16 | 4–8–1 | Tiger Stadium | 43,022 | |
| 15 | December 18 | at Chicago Bears | L 28–41 | 4–9–1 | Wrigley Field | 45,191 | |
| width=150px style="" | Category | width=150px style="" | Player(s) | width=75px style="" | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passing yards | 2,561 | ||||
| Passing touchdowns | 17 | ||||
| Rushing yards | 829 | ||||
| Rushing touchdowns | 6 | ||||
| Receiving yards | 777 | ||||
| Receiving touchdowns | 4 | ||||
| Points | 88 | ||||
| Kickoff return yards | 301 | ||||
| Punt return yards | 95 | ||||
| Interceptions | 5 | ||||
| Sacks | Jim Marshall | 7 |
| width=150px style="" | Category | width=100px style="" | Total yards | width=110px style="" | Yards per game | width=80px style="" | NFL rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passing offense | 2,548 | 182.0 | 7th | ||||
| Rushing offense | 2,091 | 149.4 | 3rd | ||||
| Total offense | 4,639 | 331.4 | 4th | ||||
| Passing defense | 2,236 | 159.7 | 2nd | ||||
| Rushing defense | 1,686 | 120.4 | 7th | ||||
| Total defense | 3,922 | 280.1 | 5th |