Week 4, 1974

played in Houston, TX

68 degrees, fair, 5 mph wind

Minnesota Vikings	7	7	3	3	-	20
Houston Oilers	3	0	3	0	-	6

Scoring Summary
1Q: 12:41 HOU - Jessie Becker 21 field goal
1Q: 07:09 MIN - Lance Rentzel 10 pass from Fran Tarkenton (Horst Muhlmann extra point)
2Q: 11:47 MIN - Chuck Foreman 3 run (Horst Muhlmann extra point)
3Q: 11:01 MIN - Horst Muhlmann 28 field goal
3Q: 06:12 HOU - Jessie Becker 38 field goal
4Q: 15:00 MIN - Horst Muhlmann 39 field goal

Scoring Summary
1Q: 12:41 HOU - Jessie Becker 21 field goal
1Q: 07:09 MIN - Lance Rentzel 10 pass from Fran Tarkenton (Horst Muhlmann extra point)
2Q: 11:47 MIN - Chuck Foreman 3 run (Horst Muhlmann extra point)
3Q: 11:01 MIN - Horst Muhlmann 28 field goal
3Q: 06:12 HOU - Jessie Becker 38 field goal
4Q: 15:00 MIN - Horst Muhlmann 39 field goal

Team Statistics MIN HOU
Record 4-0 1-3
First Downs 20 15
- by Rushing 6 5
- by Passing 12 8
- by Penalty 2 2
Total Net Yards 361 319
- Offensive Plays 68 58
- Yards per Play 5.31 5.50
Net Rushing Yards 130 132
- Rushing Attempts 34 10
- Yards per Rush 3.82 13.20
Net Passing Yards 231 187
- Att./Comp./Intrcpt 32 - 23 - 0 45 - 22 - 2
- Gross Passing Yards 242 204
- Sacks/Yards Lost 2/11 3/17
- Yards per Pass Play 6.79 3.90
Fumbles/Lost 1/0 2/1
3rd Down Conversions 4/14 2/12
- Avg. YtG on 3rd Down 9.1 9.6
4th Down Conversions 0/0 1/2
Penalties/Yards 6/40 7/64
Punt Returns/Yards 1/8 0/0
Kick Returns/Yards 3/71 4/75
Interception Ret./Yards 2/13 0/0
2pt Conversions 0/0 0/0
Red Zone Visits 3 2
- Red Zone TDs/FGs 2/1 0/1
Avg. Drive Start OWN 32 OWN 24
Time of Possession 37:17 22:43

Team Statistics	MIN	HOU
Record	4-0	1-3
First Downs	20	15
- by Rushing	6	5
- by Passing	12	8
- by Penalty	2	2
Total Net Yards	361	319
- Offensive Plays	68	58
- Yards per Play	5.31	5.50
Net Rushing Yards	130	132
- Rushing Attempts	34	10
- Yards per Rush	3.82	13.20
Net Passing Yards	231	187
- Att./Comp./Intrcpt	32 - 23 - 0	45 - 22 - 2
- Gross Passing Yards	242	204
- Sacks/Yards Lost	2/11	3/17
- Yards per Pass Play	6.79	3.90
Fumbles/Lost	1/0	2/1
3rd Down Conversions	4/14	2/12
- Avg. YtG on 3rd Down	9.1	9.6
4th Down Conversions	0/0	1/2
Penalties/Yards	6/40	7/64
Punt Returns/Yards	1/8	0/0
Kick Returns/Yards	3/71	4/75
Interception Ret./Yards	2/13	0/0
2pt Conversions	0/0	0/0
Red Zone Visits	3	2
- Red Zone TDs/FGs	2/1	0/1
Avg. Drive Start	OWN 32	OWN 24
Time of Possession	37:17	22:43

Drive Charts

Minnesota Vikings
Quar	Began	Poss	From	Plays	Yards	Result
1	12:35	5:33	OWN 26	11	74	Touchdown
1	3:35	1:37	OWN 42	4	18	Punt
1	0:20	3:41	OWN 25	9	75	Touchdown
2	10:05	0:47	OWN 32	3	5	Punt
2	5:55	2:30	OWN 37	3	5	Punt
2	1:45	1:10	OWN 30	3	5	Punt
2	0:01	0:01	OWN 42	1	-2	Half
3	15:00	4:04	OWN 33	8	56	Field Goal
3	6:07	6:13	OWN 32	9	46	Field Goal
4	14:00	4:16	OWN 31	8	43	Missed FG
4	8:13	6:01	OWN 46	8	30	Missed FG
4	0:32	0:32	OWN 14	2	-4	Game

Houston Oilers
Quar	Began	Poss	From	Plays	Yards	Result
1	15:00	2:25	OWN 29	4	67	Field Goal
1	7:02	3:27	OWN 31	6	11	Interception
1	1:58	1:38	OWN 20	4	23	Interception
2	11:39	1:34	OWN 13	3	9	Punt
2	9:18	3:23	OWN 20	7	15	Punt
2	3:25	1:40	OWN 19	7	17	Punt
2	0:35	0:34	OWN 31	3	0	Punt
3	10:56	4:49	OWN 19	7	60	Field Goal
4	14:54	0:54	OWN 20	3	7	Punt
4	9:44	1:31	OWN 33	4	21	Fumble
4	2:12	1:40	OWN 31	11	55	Downs

Game MVP: Fran Tarkenton, Minnesota Vikings

Rushing Statistics

Minnesota	Att	Yards	Avg	LG	10+	TD
Chuck Foreman	18	71	3.94	10	1	1
Bob Gresham	13	60	4.62	11	2	0
Fran Tarkenton	3	-1	-0.33	3	0	0

Houston	Att	Yards	Avg	LG	10+	TD
Kendall McKinley	6	53	8.83	19	1	0
Quinn Newsome	4	79	19.75	59	2	0

Passing Statistics

Minnesota	Att	Comp	Yards	Sk/Yd	TD	LG	Int	Rate
Fran Tarkenton	32	23	242	2/11	1	25	0	103.9

Houston	Att	Comp	Yards	Sk/Yd	TD	LG	Int	Rate
Lynn Dickey	45	22	204	3/17	0	20	2	43.2

Receiving Statistics

Minnesota	Catch	Targ	Yards	Avg	YAC	LG	TD
WR Bob Newland	9	11	109	12.11	14	25	0
RB Chuck Foreman	3	5	28	9.33	22	16	0
WR Frank Pitts	3	4	40	13.33	14	22	0
WR Lance Rentzel	3	4	19	6.33	0	10	1
WR Don McCauley	2	2	18	9.00	6	9	0
RB Bob Gresham	1	2	13	13.00	7	13	0
TE Lewis Rockett	1	1	18	18.00	8	18	0
FB Vincent Horton	1	1	-3	-3.00	0	-3	0
WR Ronald Fitzgerald	0	2	0	0.00	0	0	0

Houston	Catch	Targ	Yards	Avg	YAC	LG
WR Billy Johnson	4	10	27	6.75	11	12
WR Butch Stark	4	6	29	7.25	0	16
RB Kendall McKinley	4	5	30	7.50	25	14
WR Irving Royer	4	7	47	11.75	0	20
WR Mercury Duncan	4	11	45	11.25	13	16
RB Cliff Taylor	2	3	26	13.00	1	17
TE Terry Nelson	0	1	0	0.00	0	0
TE Paul Seymour	0	2	0	0.00	0	0

Interception Statistics

Minnesota	Ints	Yards	Avg	TD
CB Bobby Howard	1	0	0.00	0
CB Zeke Moore	1	13	13.00	0

Houston	Ints	Yards	Avg	TD

Fumble Statistics

Minnesota	Fumb	Recov	Force
Frank Pitts	1	1	0
Bob Atkins	0	1	1
Alan Page	0	0	1

Houston	Fumb	Recov	Force
Lynn Dickey	1	0	0
Cliff Taylor	1	0	0
Bill Olds	0	1	0
Ron Brandon	0	0	1

Punting Statistics

Minnesota	Punt	Yards	Avg	Net	LG	In20
Bob Parsons	4	156	39.0	34.0	43	1

Houston	Punt	Yards	Avg	Net	LG	In20
Jessie Becker	5	185	37.0	35.4	46	0

Kicking Statistics

Minnesota	FGs	40+Yd	50+Yd	LG	PAT
Horst Muhlmann	2/4	0/2	0/0	39	2/2

Houston	FGs	40+Yd	50+Yd	LG	PAT
Jessie Becker	2/2	0/0	0/0	38	0/0

Punt Return Statistics

Minnesota	Ret	Yards	Avg	TD
Bob Atkins	1	8	8.0	0

Houston	Ret	Yards	Avg	TD

Kick Return Statistics

Minnesota	Ret	Yards	Avg	TD
Del Ross	2	48	24.0	0
Zeke Moore	1	23	23.0	0

Houston	Ret	Yards	Avg	TD
Billy Johnson	2	35	17.5	0
Cliff Taylor	2	40	20.0	0

Defensive Statistics

Minnesota	Tack	Asst	Sack	RPlay	PPlay
CB Zeke Moore	7	0	0.0	8	48
DT Alan Page	4	0	1.5	10	47
CB John Rowser	4	3	0.0	6	27
ILB Lee Roy Jordan	4	2	0.0	10	45
CB Del Ross	3	1	0.0	1	24
DE Sweeny Williams	2	0	1.0	9	46
S Bob Atkins	2	0	0.0	5	13
DE Carl Eller	2	0	0.0	9	47
CB Bobby Howard	2	0	0.0	9	48
OLB Bill Peterson	1	2	0.0	5	43
CB Brock Green	1	1	0.0	5	42
OLB Floyd Rice	1	0	0.0	4	2
DT Art Thoms	1	0	0.0	2	3
DT Fred Nolan	0	1	0.5	7	27
S Paul Krause	0	2	0.0	10	48
ILB Amos Martin	0	1	0.0	1	4

Houston	Tack	Asst	Sack	RPlay	PPlay
S Ron Brandon	9	4	0.0	30	34
OLB Jim Cheyunski	6	3	0.5	34	34
OLB Dave Robinson	6	1	0.0	32	33
CB Nelson Munsey	6	0	0.0	26	33
OLB Larry Stallings	5	2	1.5	29	26
DT Curley Culp	4	2	0.0	31	33
CB Jeris White	4	2	0.0	29	33
ILB Maurice Patton	3	1	0.0	17	4
S Kendrick Sullivan	3	0	0.0	10	10
CB Tommie Burns	2	1	0.0	20	30
CB Jackie Wallace	2	0	0.0	23	30
DE Steve Baumgartner	1	1	0.0	21	31
DE Al Cowlings	1	1	0.0	9	2
DE Elvin Bethea	1	0	0.0	34	34
S Prentice McCray	1	0	0.0	4	0
RB Cliff Taylor	1	0	---	---	---
WR Mercury Duncan	1	0	---	---	---
DE Bert Askson	0	1	0.0	3	1
DT Leo Brooks	0	1	0.0	10	3

Pass Rush Statistics

Minnesota	Sack	Block	Hurry	Knock	PPlay
DT Alan Page	1.5	0	1	2	47
DE Sweeny Williams	1.0	0	6	2	46
DT Fred Nolan	0.5	0	0	0	27
ILB Lee Roy Jordan	0.0	1	1	0	45
DE Carl Eller	0.0	0	1	0	47
CB Bobby Howard	0.0	0	1	0	48

Houston	Sack	Block	Hurry	PPlay
OLB Larry Stallings	1.5	2	1	26
OLB Jim Cheyunski	0.5	0	0	34
DT Curley Culp	0.0	0	2	33

Pass Defense Statistics

Minnesota	Caught	Defnsd	Intrcp	PPlay
CB Zeke Moore	6	1	1	48
ILB Lee Roy Jordan	3	1	0	45
CB Del Ross	3	1	0	24
CB John Rowser	3	0	0	27
CB Bobby Howard	2	0	1	48
S Bob Atkins	2	0	0	13
DE Carl Eller	1	1	0	47
OLB Bill Peterson	1	1	0	43
CB Brock Green	1	0	0	42

Houston	Caught	Defnsd	PPlay
CB Nelson Munsey	7	2	33
OLB Jim Cheyunski	3	0	34
CB Jeris White	3	0	33
S Ron Brandon	3	0	34
OLB Larry Stallings	2	0	26
S Kendrick Sullivan	2	0	10
CB Jackie Wallace	1	2	30
OLB Dave Robinson	1	0	33
CB Tommie Burns	1	0	30

Blocking Statistics

Minnesota	KeyBl	BlOpp	RPly	SckA	PPly
Dave Manders	4	9	30	0	28
Ron Yary	2	3	34	1	34
Dan Medlin	2	3	30	0	30
Ed George	1	6	29	1	26
Tom Forrest	1	4	13	0	10
Kent Kramer	1	4	18	0	15
Pat Matson	0	3	25	0	28

Houston	KeyBl	BlOpp	RPly	SckA	PPly
Winston Hill	3	3	9	0	40
Desmond Cribbs	1	2	10	0	42
Dan Peiffer	1	1	5	1	32
Ron Saul	1	1	9	1	45
Tom Banks	1	1	5	0	17
Terry Nelson	1	1	7	0	22
Bill Olds	1	1	6	0	15
Fred Sturt	0	0	2	1	14

Special Teams Tackles

Minnesota	Tackles	STPlays
Clarence Davis	2	21
Lance Rentzel	1	16
Bob Atkins	1	13

Houston	Tackles	STPlays
Prentice McCray	1	13
Kendrick Sullivan	1	8
Fred Sturt	1	7
Jackie Wallace	1	5

Participation

Minnesota	RPlyOff	PPlyOff	RPlyDef	PPlyDef	STPly	Total Plays
Lance Rentzel	25	27	---	---	16	68
Fran Tarkenton	34	34	---	---	---	68
Ron Yary	34	34	---	---	---	68
Ed George	29	26	---	---	8	63
Pat Matson	25	28	---	---	8	61
Zeke Moore	---	---	8	48	5	61
Bobby Howard	---	---	9	48	3	60
Paul Krause	---	---	10	48	2	60
Dan Medlin	30	30	---	---	---	60
Alan Page	---	---	10	47	2	59
Carl Eller	---	---	9	47	2	58
Lee Roy Jordan	---	---	10	45	3	58
Dave Manders	30	28	---	---	---	58
Sweeny Williams	---	---	9	46	2	57
Bill Peterson	---	---	5	43	7	55
Bob Newland	22	28	---	---	2	52
Brock Green	---	---	5	42	1	48
Chuck Foreman	20	23	---	---	1	44
Ronald Fitzgerald	21	17	---	---	4	42
Kent Kramer	18	15	---	---	7	40
Del Ross	---	---	1	24	13	38
Fred Nolan	---	---	7	27	3	37
Frank Pitts	15	21	---	---	---	36
Bob Gresham	14	11	---	---	8	33
John Rowser	---	---	6	27	---	33
Bob Atkins	---	---	5	13	13	31
Tom Forrest	13	10	---	---	8	31
Lewis Rockett	9	8	---	---	14	31
Larry Schreiber	14	12	---	---	4	30
Don McCauley	7	4	---	---	12	23
Clarence Davis	0	0	---	---	21	21
Aaron Meyer	5	8	---	---	8	21
Vincent Horton	5	4	---	---	12	21
Jim Pietrzak	4	6	---	---	8	18
Luke Szorcsik	---	---	2	3	13	18
Amos Martin	---	---	1	4	8	13
Ike Howard	---	---	1	2	9	12
Dave Washington	---	---	5	5	1	11
Horst Muhlmann	0	0	---	---	9	9
Floyd Rice	---	---	4	2	3	9
Art Thoms	---	---	2	3	4	9
Don Croft	---	---	0	3	1	4
Bob Parsons	0	0	---	---	4	4
Otis Hastings	0	0	---	---	4	4
Lamar Martin	---	---	1	1	---	2
Dennis McKenzie	0	0	---	---	---	0

Houston	RPlyOff	PPlyOff	RPlyDef	PPlyDef	STPly	Total Plays
Jim Cheyunski	---	---	34	34	5	73
Elvin Bethea	---	---	34	34	4	72
Dave Robinson	---	---	32	33	4	69
Curley Culp	---	---	31	33	4	68
Ron Brandon	---	---	30	34	4	68
Nelson Munsey	---	---	26	33	8	67
Jeris White	---	---	29	33	4	66
Steve Baumgartner	---	---	21	31	7	59
Larry Stallings	---	---	29	26	4	59
Lynn Dickey	10	48	---	---	---	58
Jackie Wallace	---	---	23	30	5	58
Kendall McKinley	6	33	---	---	19	58
Desmond Cribbs	10	42	---	---	6	58
Winston Hill	9	40	---	---	7	56
Ron Saul	9	45	---	---	---	54
Tommie Burns	---	---	20	30	3	53
Mercury Duncan	8	40	---	---	---	48
Billy Johnson	6	32	---	---	8	46
Bob Newton	10	35	---	---	1	46
Irving Royer	6	27	---	---	12	45
Dan Peiffer	5	32	---	---	7	44
Butch Stark	4	27	---	---	5	36
Terry Nelson	7	22	---	---	5	34
Bill Olds	6	15	---	---	13	34
Paul Seymour	1	13	---	---	14	28
Kendrick Sullivan	---	---	10	10	8	28
Maurice Patton	---	---	17	4	5	26
Cliff Taylor	2	13	---	---	10	25
Fred Sturt	2	14	---	---	7	23
Tom Banks	5	17	---	---	---	22
Kerry Webster	0	15	---	---	7	22
Mario Galloway	---	---	8	1	10	19
Prentice McCray	---	---	4	0	13	17
Al Cowlings	---	---	9	2	5	16
Quinn Newsome	4	12	---	---	---	16
Leo Brooks	---	---	10	3	---	13
Jessie Becker	0	0	---	---	10	10
Jimmy Bernard	---	---	2	1	7	10
Jon Keyworth	0	6	---	---	3	9
Ralph Trinidad	---	---	2	1	5	8
Ike Delgado	---	---	0	0	8	8
Bert Askson	---	---	3	1	---	4
Bill Windauer	---	---	0	0	4	4
Jack Concannon	0	0	---	---	2	2
Larry Cipa	0	0	---	---	---	0
Jeremy Woodcock	0	0	---	---	---	0

Directional Rushing Statistics

Distance	Att	Yards	Avg
Left	8	38	4.8
Middle	17	60	3.5
Right	7	36	5.1
None	2	-4	-2.0

Distance	Att	Yards	Avg
Left	3	28	9.3
Middle	5	93	18.6
Right	2	11	5.5
None	0	0	0.0

Detailed Passing Statistics

Minnesota	Att	Cmp	20+	BdTh	Drop	Dfns	Hurr	Knck	Intc
Fran Tarkenton	32	23	2	0	0	4	3	0	0

Houston	Att	Cmp	20+	BdTh	Drop	Dfns	Hurr	Knck	Intc
Lynn Dickey	45	22	1	2	3	5	10	4	2

Directional Passing Statistics

Distance	Att	Comp	Yards	Avg
Screen	5	5	37	7.4
Short (0-8 Yds)	13	10	75	5.8
Medium (9-18 Yds)	12	6	83	6.9
Long (19+ Yds)	2	2	47	23.5

Distance	Att	Comp	Yards	Avg
Screen	4	4	30	7.5
Short (0-8 Yds)	15	10	64	4.3
Medium (9-18 Yds)	18	7	90	5.0
Long (19+ Yds)	8	1	20	2.5

Detailed Receiving Statistics

Minnesota	Targt	Caugt	Yards	20+	PPlay
WR Bob Newland	11	9	109	1	28
RB Chuck Foreman	5	3	28	0	23
WR Frank Pitts	4	3	40	1	21
WR Lance Rentzel	4	3	19	0	27
RB Bob Gresham	2	1	13	0	11
WR Don McCauley	2	2	18	0	4
WR Ronald Fitzgerald	2	0	0	0	17
TE Lewis Rockett	1	1	18	0	8
FB Vincent Horton	1	1	-3	0	4

Houston	Targt	Caugt	Dropd	Yards	20+	PPlay
WR Mercury Duncan	11	4	1	45	0	40
WR Billy Johnson	10	4	1	27	0	32
WR Irving Royer	7	4	0	47	1	27
WR Butch Stark	6	4	0	29	0	27
RB Kendall McKinley	5	4	0	30	0	33
RB Cliff Taylor	3	2	0	26	0	13
TE Paul Seymour	2	0	1	0	0	13
TE Terry Nelson	1	0	0	0	0	22

Red-Zone Rushing Statistics

Minnesota	Att	Yards	Avg	Overall Avg
Chuck Foreman	3	7	2.33	3.94
Bob Gresham	1	2	2.00	4.62

Houston	Att	Yards	Avg	Overall Avg

Red-Zone Passing Statistics

Minnesota	Att	Comp	Yards	Avg/Att	Overall Avg
Fran Tarkenton	4	2	19	4.75	7.56

Houston	Att	Comp	Yards	Avg/Att	Overall Avg
Lynn Dickey	3	2	18	6.00	4.53

Red-Zone Receiving Statistics

Minnesota	Target	Catch	Yards	Avg/Targ	Overall Avg
WR Lance Rentzel	2	1	10	5.00	4.75
WR Don McCauley	1	1	9	9.00	9.00
WR Ronald Fitzgerald	1	0	0	0.00	0.00

Houston	Target	Catch	Yards	Avg/Targ	Overall Avg
WR Billy Johnson	2	1	4	2.00	2.70
WR Mercury Duncan	1	1	14	14.00	4.09

Third Down Rushing Statistics

Minnesota	Rushes	Conversions
Bob Gresham	5	2

Houston	Rushes	Conversions

Third Down Passing Statistics

Minnesota	Att	Comp	Conversions
Fran Tarkenton	9	6	2

Houston	Att	Comp	Conversions
Lynn Dickey	12	7	2

Third Down Receiving Statistics

Minnesota	Targ	Catch	Conversions
WR Bob Newland	3	3	1
WR Don McCauley	2	2	1
RB Bob Gresham	1	0	0
WR Frank Pitts	1	0	0
WR Lance Rentzel	1	1	0
WR Ronald Fitzgerald	1	0	0

Houston	Targ	Catch	Conversions
WR Mercury Duncan	3	2	1
WR Billy Johnson	2	1	0
RB Cliff Taylor	2	1	1
WR Butch Stark	2	1	0
TE Paul Seymour	1	0	0
RB Kendall McKinley	1	1	0
WR Irving Royer	1	1	0

Section Attendance
Stadium 55,100 (70,000 capacity)
Upper Deck 16,900 (21,400)
End Zone 12,100 (15,400)
Mezzanine 7,000 (8,900)
Sideline Seats 10,700 (13,600)
Club Seats 5,800 (7,400)
Luxury Boxes 2,600 (3,300)

Section	Attendance
Stadium	55,100 (70,000 capacity)
Upper Deck	16,900 (21,400)
End Zone	12,100 (15,400)
Mezzanine	7,000 (8,900)
Sideline Seats	10,700 (13,600)
Club Seats	5,800 (7,400)
Luxury Boxes	2,600 (3,300)