MINNESOTA VIKINGS DEFENSES OF THE 60’S AND 70’S
The PURPLE PEOPLE EATERS is the nickname given to the defensive line of the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings during the 1960’s and 1970’s. The nickname likely was influenced by a popular song of the same name, PURPLE PEOPLE EATERS, in 1958, as well as the fact that the primary color for the Minnesota Vikings was purple. The core players of that unit were Alan Page, Carl Eller, Jim Marshall and Gary Larsen. All four went to multiple Pro Bowls, and Page and Eller are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Page even won the NFL MVP honor in 1971. To this day, only one other defensive player, Lawrence Taylor, has won this award.
The team was very successful for years, mostly in part to their stellar defensive line. Starting in 1968, when 3 of the 4 PURPLE PEOPLE EATERS joined the team, the Vikings won 11 out of the next 13 division titles. They also advanced to the Super Bowl 4 times in that span, unfortunately losing all of them.
Imagine having to play in that division back then… you had Chicago and Dick Butkus, the Purple People Eaters, the tail end of the Vince Lombardi-led Green Bay Packers dynasty with Ray Nitschke, and the lesser-known Detroit Lions defense consisting of Alex Karras, Lem Barney and Dick Lebeau. Never a dull moment.
