"The Missing Rings • The Story Of The 1969 Minnesota Vikings" 

RIP to both Coach Grant and Joe Kapp, who have passed this year.

My vote, Jim Marshall to HOF

It's a crime that Joe Kapp was not included among the '50 Greatest Vikings' a few years ago. I don't care that he didn't have a long career in MN or stats like Tarkenton. He was one of the fiercest, most colorful Viking warriors ever! And he was a QB!! Long live Joe Kapp!!

How in the living hell is Jim Marshall not in The Hall Of Fame!? That's a joke! He belongs in Canton, without a doubt!

More than any other former NFL player, Jim Marshall deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. I think it's criminal that he hasn't yet been enshrined.

A Missing Rings episode should be made about the 1967 Oakland Raiders. Oakland finished the regular season with a 13-1 record. In their 13 wins the Raiders outscored their opponents by an average of 19.07 points per game. In the AFL Championship they destroyed the Houston Oilers 40-7. If you include that game the Raiders outscored their foes by 20.07 points per game. Oakland’s lone regular season loss was to the New York Jets by a score of 27-14 in week 4. The Raiders avenged that loss later in the year by beating the Jets 38-29. Oakland would lose to the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl II by a score of 33-14. But if the 1969 Vikings were worthy of a show about their season, the 1967 Raiders easily seem just as worthy.

What amazes me about back then. Not the dirtiness of the game, not the roughness. No, if you watch closely, almost every play, every one of those guys is helping the other team up, they are patting eachother on the back, they aren't being assholes and taunting like now a days.

Win or lose I will never stop cheering for the Vikings

why oh why did this once great and proud franchise stop playing outdoors? 1969 Vikings have become completely forgotten and they were tremendous. I'm a cowboys fan but how can you not love Bud Grant.

Met Stadium in December was BRUTAL. Their mental toughness belongs in the Hall of Fame. Fans included.

Kapp was a tough SOB. Loved his style and fire. How great he was the Cal coach in ‘the band’ victory over Stanford.

I was 14 years old during this season. This was great football. Wasn’t a Vikings fan but loved Joe Kapp. Toughest quarterback I have ever seen.

Joe Kapp was so tough, he puts today's Quarterbacks to shame in toughness

I've never been a Vikings fan but the more I learn about these old teams the more I respect them. Bud Grant's quickly becoming one of my favorite coaches. It's sad that because of the smaller media market in Minnesota these guys are less known then the Cowboys Steelers or Packers of those days

God Bless Jim Marshall he played 20 yrs in the NFL he was durable and Tarkenton played about 18 yrs in the league.

“40 for 60” Best Motto Ever..........bar NONE !

Half of the tackles they show in this would be fineable or suspendable in today's NFL

Wow, Kapp almost gets decapitated against the 49er's and the ref just wants the ball from under him. Different time, different game back them. Tough as nails

Bud Grant had his team practice lining up for the National Anthem... I love this man.

Growing up a Browns fan, this team gave me my first heartbreak in '69. Watching this video completely erases that memory. Jim Marshall is all class.

ill never forgot Bud Grant coming out for the 2015/16 Playoff game vs the Seahawks. It was -25 degrees wind chill and he's out there with no coat and a short sleeve shirt. haha. When men were men

I had a friend who played in the old AFL and finally in Canada on a team with Joe Kapp. He called him the toughest man he ever played with, offense or defense.

The Vikings broke my heart four times. They went to the Super Bowl 4 times and lost 4 times. Each time they went, it was the other teams year. I kept rooting for them until the last one that they lost. I was heartbroken and drained emotionally. I finally gave up on them. After being a loyal fan since I was 10. I still like them and want them to win but I’m not emotionally attached like I was before. And I remember Fran Tarkenton was the greatest scrambler of the time! He was smaller than most quarterbacks and was fast on his feet. Somehow he would run back and forth and evade tackles and finally throw on the run and connect. Now this is common. Then it was mainly Fran and maybe Kenny Stabler who were great at this kind of play. I still admire both players as all time greats.

As lifelong Ram fan.. playoff lost to 69 Vikings still hurts ...I was 13 years old then 63 years old now

Love those words from Jim Marshall at the end.That's the sort of player I would want on my team, someone who cares that much about winning that it still hurts decades later.I'm not a Vikings fan but I wish they could've won one in that era.

I haven't watched pro football in quite some time now and how I went from football being a big part of my life to not even watching the super bowl is a story of disenchantment with players as well as team owners, until enough was enough. Joe Kapp and players like him made the game what it was, just as certain "modern era" players make it what it is, quite a contrast I would say.

Can't tell you how much respect I had as a kid for the discipline Bud Grant brought to the Vikings & the Purple People Eaters! One of their calling cards was the lack of celebration after each touchdown in an era when celebrations were becoming more & more popular. Unlike today's players, who insist on acting like fools after just about every play. Long live Bud Grant!

*7 TD passes* against the team that obliterated you in the postseason? Now, that's a whoopin' 😎

9 year old kid from Seattle during this season watching as many games as possible on TV. They quickly became my favorite team and have been ever since. Still waiting for that 1st Super Bowl ring.

Thanks for this episode. Being nearly 70 I've most of the SBs live and in replay segments you hear the winners stories over and over ad nauseum; it's nice to hear the non-winners stories for a change. (I'll never call them losers; a teams that's the best in its conference and the 2cd best team in the NFL is never a loser.)

Bud Grant was in Winnipeg in 2015 for the Grey Cup and he was sitting in the private box, crying while singing O Canada.

I love that story about Lonnie Warwick and Joe into a fight over who was at fault...so different than what we see today...right on guys!

I’m a Bills fan growing up, but the Vikings were my 2nd favorite team! Great players & coach Grant! I wish they would have won 1!!

Joe Kapp is a legend & it’s a ashamed that Jim is not in the hof

THIS IS HOW FOOTBALL SHOULD STILL BE PLAYED TODAY!!!

The ending makes me tear up, anyone else?

Being a die-hard Los Angeles Rams fan, 1969 was perhaps the most bittersweet season I can remember as a young boy. We raced to an 11-0 start but everybody kept telling me that the Vikings would beat us in the Coliseum. Well, Minnesota came in and snapped our 11 game win streak with a 20-13 victory. We got blanked by Detroit 28-0 in a snowstorm at old Tiger Stadium and then finished up the regular season losing at home to Baltimore in a meaningless game with the Coastal Division title long wrapped up. I just wanted revenge on Minnesota in the divisional playoff game and when we were up 17-7 at the half, I thought for sure we were going to get that. It still hurts when I see the image of Joe Kapp hurdling over Jim Nettles for the go-ahead TD. I'll always feel that we were better but Minnesota just found ways to win.

One of the best teams that didn't take it all. I remember their season very well.

I’m a Bills fan, but I support the Vikings because they’re the only other team 0-4 in Super Bowls.

Bud Grant is absolutely a great man. Jim Marshall absolutely belongs in the Hall of Fame. Joe Kapp absolutely one tough son gun

The wrong-way run by Jim Marshall was endearing because if a Superman like him could make a mistake, the rest of us could feel a little better about all the mistakes we made.

OUTSTANDING VIDEO ! should be required watching for any so called fan under 50 years old . but most of them won"t get it

Those were great teams in the late 60's and early to mid 70's.I remember the Vikings from my childhood very well.

Vikings & most of the teams back then were so classy. The players made many more decisions on the field in those days. Such good men playing as one on teams.

I remember the purple people eaters as a cowboys fan. God they where great. Outstanding defense. Great games against the cowboys , a shame they stopped playing outside. That was a huge advantage for then like green bay. No one wanted to go there. Great Vikings teams. Shame no rings but winners in my book. Even as a cowboys fan.

Joe Kapp...wth! This man could play! Why do we not know about this man? 7 touchdown passes in one game! That says it all. One of the greats.

An incredibly well-done piece here. History at its best.

The story about Grant and Kapp on the snowy day really sums Grant up. Good coach, trying not to lose. The idea is to win. And when you have the best team, go kick their ass. Kapp is kind talking about the SB loss. Curley Culp lined up and kicked Mick Tinglehoff's tail all day. That is the blocking Kapp is talking about. I love that Jim Lynch tried to help Kapp up.

1:03 I didn't realize Sean Penn was such a Vikes fan!

Some of those hits - they wouldn't make enough penalty flags to throw in one game. The difference in today's game and yesterday's games is why QB's last a lot longer today. Thank you for uploading this video. I hated the Vikings back then because I was an avid Dolphins fan, but man oh man, what a team they were. I still can't believe they could play in that weather... 🙄🙄

Kansas City was also a great team. Three RB's ran for over 500 yards. Five defensive players in the HOF and Len Dawson who did not have a great year is a HOF QB.

Ive been a fan for 51 years and remember this like it was yesterday! Thank you for the memories!

I was only 7 but I remember how upset my dad was. Between the icy sidewalk at my uncles' apartment in New Hope MN, the result of the game and multiple bottles of Pfieffer's he slipped and hurt his elbow, it still hurts him sometimes. Tomorrow we will watch the Chiefs play again and I will give him shit about his elbow.

"69 Vikings were a great team, one of the best of all time. Because of it, KC's Super Bowl win was one of the greatest of all time.

Became a FAN in 1972 when I was in highschool....... SKOL VIKINGS DOMINATE FOREVER......The best is yet to come 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💪

THIS WAS EXTREMELY ENTERTAINING !!!!!!! LEARNED ALOT ABOUT JOE KAPP !!!!!!! Wish there were more .......When sports were real back in the day !!!!!

Can't believe Jim Marshall is not in the HOF!!

I'm not a Vikings fan nor root for a rival of theirs, but I genuinely feel bad this team came up short.

Grew up a Cowboys fan in Houston, Texas. My closest friend was a diehard Vikings fan so we had some pretty intense arguments after Cowboys-Vikes games. The incredible skill of Fran Tarkenton and the military-like precision of the Vikings offense was legendary back then. 'We hated the Vikings but you knew a game against them would always be a knockdown, drag out affair.

Dan Fouts has long pushed for Ed White to be in the Hall Of Fame. He made the Vikings 50th Anniversary Team and the Chargers 50th Anniversary Team. That is a huge feat. He belongs in the HOF. A fun aside was that he was a world arm wrestling champion.

In sports as in life, timing is everything. Of the Vikings' four SB opponents, two were in the midst of dynasties and two were the best teams their respective franchises ever fielded.

I LOVED those Vikings...The people LOVED those Vikings 💜 What a great group of men. Such a unique group of personalities. Bud Grant has always been mentor for me. Always be respectful and do the right way.

I’m watching this while receiving word that Bud Grant passed: RIP to a legend

I was 10 for Super Bowl IV. I had learned football watching with my Dad as a young boy and followed those Vikings as a crazed fan, then and ever since! I fell in Love with the Lore of Vikings, the Snow, the Purple Uniforms, the Viking Mascot, and Great Players! I Love it that they did win the NFL Championship in 69, and will always hope for a Super Bowl. I got to meet Jim Marshall a few years ago; what a great day! Carl Eller, Chuck Foreman, & Alan Page were my favorite Vikings along with so many others! SKOL!

They hit a lot harder back then then they do today, plus the helmets and pads were not as protective as today. Those were tough ass guys.

Man...I could watch this over and over again. They played so great. One of the greatest teams in history of football in my opinion for sure

I was 9 years old and I made my first "bet" with my dad in Super Bowl 4. He took the Chiefs (because they were big underdogs) and he expected that I would win. Of course the Vikes lost. He didn't want to take the money but I made him. And for some reason, I became a Vikings fan.

The ending almost put me in tears. All right it did!

The best video on RU-vid! So sad the Vikings lost the Super Bowl that year and then painfully 3 more times. And it's pitiful that Jim Marshall isn't in the HOF.

Love these classic NFL years. Back when people knew how to tackle and the rules committee allowed defenders to play.

I remember this season very well! Watching this makes me cry! I was living in los angles at the time and when the Vikings beat the Rams which was the Los Angeles Rams at the time, was most happiest day of my life! And the good feelings only got better! Until 😢😢 i never been so broken hearted in my life! That season taught me how to take the bad with the great! Something I had to deal with 3 other times! What I would give for 1 more shot at a championship! Im not a spring chicken anymore 😂 I love the Vikings! i have for 60 years, but i hate them so much!

RIP Coach. Shame you never got to see the Vikings win a Super Bowl.

Jim Marshall should have been in the hall of fame decades ago.

Joe Kapp throwing 7 touchdown passes in a game was the last time this was done until 2015 when Nick Foles and Peyton Manning did it. The 1969 Vikings were surely a powerhouse. This is were it started with the Vikings coming up short in the Super Bowl. Jim Marshall certainly does belong in Canton.

This was the game that made me into a Vikings fan in New Jersey. I was 8 years old at the time, now I’m 60, just once before I die.

RIP Bud Grant. One of the best coaches to never win a Super Bowl and one of only three people (alongside Marv Levy & Warren Moon) to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.

What a great year by any football team's standard. I don't care that they lost to motormouth Hank Stram's Chiefs in the Superbowl. It was a great, memorable year.

Best Vikings team ever

In 1969 I became a Vikings fan. I'm born and Raised in Massachusetts liked the Pat's but was addicted to The Vikes!! I wore #88 in High School paying respect to my Favorite Alan Page. Played like him by watching him every play. My allegiance of course has changed a bit (lolol) but I will always Love my Vikes. Sadly one summer coming back home from a family vacation at 8 yrs old on the radio in my dad's car I heard of Karl Kassulke's Paralyzing Motorcycle accident. I cried!! Praying for Diggs to Wear that Pat's uniform. Lol Good Luck Vikes fans Always loved them still route for my Nfc team

There will come a time when the Vikings WILL nail the big one!!!

These guys are REAL FOOTBALL 🏈PLAYERS ...ring or no ring.

Wow watching these highlights in the frozen field makes me appreciate how tough these players were back in the days! Amazing

I am 45 and have watched The Longest Yard ever since I was a kid, and it's only just occurred to me that Joe Kapp was the Walking Boss. Obviously I never paid attention to the credits 🤣

The Vikes were built with playing in bad weather in mind. Plus, the NFL/NFC was built largely on big running teams that were generally slower than their AFL/AFC counterparts. Believe me it pains me to say it because ive been a Vikes fan since 69.

That clothesline on Kapp was epic, and no flag. Today Kapp has dementia, not hard to see why. Bud is still a god here in Winnipeg. There's a statue of him outside the new Blue Bombers stadium. Bud still has a parcel of land up here and comes hunting at 89 years old.

I still have this poster. It's the year I started watching football. Loved this team.

Judge Alan Page came to speak to my law school assembly back in the early 80s. He was still an impressive guy. Intimidating.

I thought Bud Grant was a great coach and I do feel he earned his HOF award. However, he did just a horrible job of preparing his teams for the Super Bowl. First of all, he stated that football was nothing but a way to provide for his family, and I'm sorry, you have to be motivated more than that on Super Bowl Sunday. He also has stated that the Super Bowl was just another game, which explains his total lack of preparedness. The Vikings lost all of their SB's despite not being that inferior to their opposition. Vikes lost to the Chiefs badly, but whipped them badly 9 months later. The Vikes played the Dolphins tough and should have won in 1972, then got whipped in the 73 SB. The Vikes lost to the Steelers in 74, but beat them convincingly in 1976. The 1973 Vikes handled the Raiders, but got beat in the 76 Super Bowl. They just always played their worst football in the Super Bowls, and I have to blame Grant for that.

As an eagles fan, I can share the pain, a pity this team didn't win the superbowl

R.I.P. Bud Grant. We miss you already.

The 1968 regular season finale for the Vikings was a 24-17 win over the Eagles at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. That was the infamous game where Eagles fans booed Santa Claus.

Bud Grant the greatest Winnipeg Blue Bomber and Minnesota Viking of all time. 4 time Grey Cup champion and 4 time NFC champion! Go Blue!

The Vikings and the 49ers each had an all pro receiver named Gene Washington.

i was 3 years old so I don't remember this Super Bowl, however I remember the 78' Super Bowl against the Oakland Raiders. I have been a fan ever since and I am waiting for a Super Bowl Championship for Minnesota where I was born and raised a State that I don't live in but am Proud of my Roots. Skol Vikings !!!!!!

Thanks for posting this. It is a great film.

The real Viking jinx: the Vikings were part of the original 8 AFL teams. Lamar Hunt and a couple of other AFL owners were offerend NFL franchises if they abandoned the AFL but all refused except the Vikings owners, who sold out and joined the NFL. For their bad faith, they've been punished by a non-championship jinx.

Totally Awesome! Yep I was a HUGE Vikings fan and in fact got my start with watching the NFL based on this one team because one of my childhood friend's Dad always had their games on the TV and we happened to drop everything just to be part of the audience around the set when they played.

loved this!!! THANK YOU!!!

The incredible thing is that while not being known as an offensive juggernaut, the Vikings scored 50+ points four times within a season and a half during the 1969-70 seasons. And three out of the four were very good teams in Baltimore, Cleveland and Dallas.

Thank you for posting this. It's nice to learn more history about my favorite team. I was a newborn in 1969 so I didn't know the history. Someday I hope they win a Superbowl.