The Minnesota Vikings: What You Need to Know

The Minnesota Vikings are a professional National Football League (NFL) team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They belong to the North Division of the National Football Conference (NFC). They currently play their home games at Mall of America Field in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, located at 900 South 5th Street in downtown Minneapolis, but are on the verge of a new stadium deal. The Minnesota Vikings were the 14th franchise and began play on September 17, 1961.

The Minnesota Vikings have a tradition of greatness. Named after the Nordic people who were ancestors to Minnesota's large population of Scandinavian Americans, the Vikings possess both physical and mental toughness.

Since the late 1960s, the Vikings have been one of the most consistently successful franchises in the NFL. During the 1970s head coach Bud Grant steered the team to four Super Bowls. Grant also assembled one of the fiercest defenses in NFL history. Known collectively as the Purple People Eaters, players such as linemen Carl Eller, Jim Marshall, and Alan Page "devoured" opposing offenses.

The Vikings have successfully won the division 16 times, are one of five NFL teams to win 15 games during the regular season and became the first team to appear in four Super Bowls. But the club also became the first team to lose four Super Bowls. The much coveted Super Bowl Champion title appears to be the Achilles' heal of the Minnesota Vikings.