NFL game summary for 11/19/1972:
In the highest-scoring game during the first 10 weeks of the NFL season, Viking veterans Fran Tarkenton and Bill Brown enjoyed their most productive days of the current campaign. Tarkenton passed for four touchdowns and totaled 319 yards with 14 completions. Brown caught five passes for 116 yards, including scoring tosses of five and 76 yards. John Gilliam caught four passes for 105 and a TD for the Vikings. Roman Gabriel's 25 pass completions were the second highest game total for the Los Angeles quarterback.
Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):
| Team | Rush Yds/Gm | Pass Yds/Gm | Tot Yds/Gm | Turnovers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | OFFENSE | 142.0 (13) | 170.2 (8) | 312.2 (8) | 20 |
| DEFENSE | 127.4 (11) | 121.3 (6) | 248.8 (3) | 23 | |
 | OFFENSE | 158.2 (6) | 128.8 (22) | 287.0 (17) | 24 |
| DEFENSE | 145.8 (16) | 113.0 (2) | 258.8 (4) | 22 |
Line: Vikings by 3½
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Vikings (6-4-0) | 3 | 7 | 14 | 21 | 45 |
| Los Angeles Rams (5-4-1) | 7 | 13 | 7 | 14 | 41 |
( 0- 7) LA Jim Bertelsen 1 yard rush (David Ray kick)
( 3- 7) MIN Fred Cox 37 yard field goal
( 3-10) LA David Ray 33 yard field goal
( 3-17) LA Roman Gabriel 1 yard rush (David Ray kick)
(10-17) MIN Bill Brown 1 yard rush (Fred Cox kick)
(10-20) LA David Ray 34 yard field goal
(17-20) MIN Paul Krause 30 yard fumble return (Fred Cox kick)
(24-20) MIN Bill Brown 76 yard pass from Fran Tarkenton (Fred Cox kick)
(24-27) LA Jim Bertelsen 1 yard rush (David Ray kick)
(31-27) MIN John Henderson 70 yard pass from Fran Tarkenton (Fred Cox kick)
(38-27) MIN Bill Brown 5 yard pass from Fran Tarkenton (Fred Cox kick)
(38-34) LA Willie Ellison 7 yard rush (David Ray kick)
(45-34) MIN John Gilliam 66 yard pass from Fran Tarkenton (Fred Cox kick)
(45-41) LA Joe Sweet 17 yard pass from Roman Gabriel (David Ray kick)
MIN LA
First Downs: 14 25
Rushes-yards: 22-56 39-191
Yards/rush: 2.5 4.9
Comp-Att-Yd-INT: 14-28-319-0 25-33-240-1
Sacked-yards: 0-0 1-5
Net pass yards: 319 235
Net yards/pass: 11.4 6.9
Total net yards: 375 426
Total plays: 50 (44% run) 73 (53% run)
Yards/play: 7.5 5.8
Fumbles-lost: 0-0 1-1
Turnovers: 0 2
Penalties-yards: 0-0 3-38
Attendance: 77,982
Passing:
MIN: Fran Tarkenton, 14 of 28 for 319 yards and 4 TDs LA: Roman Gabriel, 25 of 33 for 240 yards and 1 TD (1 int)
Rushing:
MIN: Bill Brown, 9 for 17 yards and 1 TD; Dave Osborn, 5 for 14 yards; Ed Marinaro, 4 for 2 yards; Oscar Reed, 3 for 14 yards; Fran Tarkenton, 1 for 9 yards LA: Willie Ellison, 16 for 104 yards and 1 TD; Jim Bertelsen, 12 for 35 yards and 2 TDs; Bob Thomas, 8 for 49 yards; Roman Gabriel, 2 for 1 yard and 1 TD; Larry Smith, 1 for 2 yards
Receiving:
MIN: Bill Brown, 5 for 116 yards and 2 TDs; John Gilliam, 4 for 105 yards and 1 TD; John Henderson, 2 for 81 yards and 1 TD; John Beasley, 2 for 3 yards; Ed Marinaro, 1 for 14 yards LA: Jack Snow, 8 for 112 yards; Bob Klein, 6 for 39 yards; Jim Bertelsen, 3 for 35 yards; Larry Smith, 3 for 27 yards; Willie Ellison, 3 for 5 yards; Joe Sweet, 1 for 17 yards and 1 TD; Lance Rentzel, 1 for 5 yards
Kick returns:
MIN: John Gilliam, 3 for 82 yards LA: John Pergine, 3 for 46 yards; Willie Ellison, 2 for 58 yards; Bob Thomas, 1 for 24 yards
Punt returns:
LA: Jim Bertelsen, 3 for 53 yards
Interceptions:
MIN: Bobby Bryant, 1 for 28 yards
Punting:
MIN: Mike Eischeid, 6 for 253 yards LA: Dave Chapple, 4 for 163 yards
Field Goals:
MIN: Fred Cox, 1/1 LA: David Ray, 2/3
MIN: Fran Tarkenton, 14 of 28 for 319 yards and 4 TDs LA: Roman Gabriel, 25 of 33 for 240 yards and 1 TD (1 int)
Rushing:
MIN: Bill Brown, 9 for 17 yards and 1 TD; Dave Osborn, 5 for 14 yards; Ed Marinaro, 4 for 2 yards; Oscar Reed, 3 for 14 yards; Fran Tarkenton, 1 for 9 yards LA: Willie Ellison, 16 for 104 yards and 1 TD; Jim Bertelsen, 12 for 35 yards and 2 TDs; Bob Thomas, 8 for 49 yards; Roman Gabriel, 2 for 1 yard and 1 TD; Larry Smith, 1 for 2 yards
Receiving:
MIN: Bill Brown, 5 for 116 yards and 2 TDs; John Gilliam, 4 for 105 yards and 1 TD; John Henderson, 2 for 81 yards and 1 TD; John Beasley, 2 for 3 yards; Ed Marinaro, 1 for 14 yards LA: Jack Snow, 8 for 112 yards; Bob Klein, 6 for 39 yards; Jim Bertelsen, 3 for 35 yards; Larry Smith, 3 for 27 yards; Willie Ellison, 3 for 5 yards; Joe Sweet, 1 for 17 yards and 1 TD; Lance Rentzel, 1 for 5 yards
Kick returns:
MIN: John Gilliam, 3 for 82 yards LA: John Pergine, 3 for 46 yards; Willie Ellison, 2 for 58 yards; Bob Thomas, 1 for 24 yards
Punt returns:
LA: Jim Bertelsen, 3 for 53 yards
Interceptions:
MIN: Bobby Bryant, 1 for 28 yards
Punting:
MIN: Mike Eischeid, 6 for 253 yards LA: Dave Chapple, 4 for 163 yards
Field Goals:
MIN: Fred Cox, 1/1 LA: David Ray, 2/3