Super Bowl power rankings: Who’s the best loser?
By John Buhler
39. 1974 Minnesota Vikings, Super Bowl IX
The 1974 Minnesota Vikings went 10-4 under legendary head coach Bud Grant and won the NFC Central. This would stand as the Vikings’ third trip to the Super Bowl in franchise history, but it would go down as the ugliest of their franchise’s four losses.
The Vikings would defeat the St. Louis Cardinals in the NFC Divisional round and the Los Angeles Rams in the 1974 NFC Championship before having to face the AFC-champion Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl IX. Minnesota had lost the previous Super Bowl to the Miami Dolphins, trailing throughout the game before falling 24-7.
At that time, Pittsburgh had not been a competent football team. Super Bowl IX was the Steelers’ first trip to the Super Bowl in franchise history. Even so, the Steelers were a three-point favorite over the 1974 Vikings and ended up beating Minnesota 16-6 in Super Bowl IX at Tulane Stadium.
This was the Vikings’ closest margin of defeat in any of their four trips to the Super Bowl. Super Bowl IX was the Vikings’ best chance to win a Super Bowl they played in since the AFL/NFL merger, as Pittsburgh wasn’t yet an AFC dynasty under head coach Chuck Noll.
Minnesota definitely had stronger teams that made it to Super Bowls under Grant, but this was the one that because of previous Super Bowl experience, the Vikings shouldn’t have let slip away.
Next: 38. 1970 Dallas Cowboys