There was more at stake than winning the NFL title. The winner of the game would advance to Super Bowl IV and compete for the last time as NFL champions. The NFL-AFL merger took place the following season. The Vikings did to the Browns what they had done to many opponents while putting together a 12-2 record during the 1969 season: They thoroughly dominated them. This was a Vikings team that led the NFL in scoring with 379 points and in fewest points allowed (133). Joe Kapp had a part in the Vikings' first two touchdowns against the Browns, running seven yards for the first score and connecting on a 75-yard touchdown pass with Gene Washington. The Vikings cruised to a 27-0 lead and it wasn't until the fourth quarter that the Browns were able to score against a defense that featured three future Hall of Famers (Alan Page, Carl Eller and Paul Krause).

2. NFC DIVISIONAL PLAYOFFS, DEC. 28, 1975 (METROPOLITAN STADIUM) DALLAS Cowboys 17, Vikings 14

Some old-time Vikings fans might rate the 1975 NFC divisional playoff game as the toughest playoff loss of all. It's the infamous Drew Pearson game. With just 30 seconds to play on the Vikings' home tundra -- Metropolitan Stadium -- Pearson caught a controversial 50-yard Hail Mary pass from Dallas Cowboys teammate Roger Staubach. The controversy had to do with the contact between Pearson and Vikings cornerback Nate Wright. Vikings fans swear Pearson pushed off Wright and should have been penalized for offensive pass interference. There was no flag, and fans got ornery. One fan was so ornery he conked referee Armen Terzian on the noggin with a whiskey bottle. The Cowboys' win catapulted them to the Super Bowl, where they lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Here's the thing: Vikings coach Bud Grant said his '75 team "might have been as dominant a team as we ever had." In other words, it was a Vikings team that might have been good enough to win the Super Bowl.