Dawgs By Nature
Cleveland has not had much luck against Minnesota over the years. Here are 5 of the most memorable games in the series.
The Cleveland Browns will be the home team in Week 5 of the 2025 NFL season when they take on the Minnesota Vikings at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
The game will mark the first international game for the Browns since 2017, when they coincidentally also played the Vikings in London.
Related: Browns 2025 Schedule Primer: Week 5, Minnesota Vikings
The Browns and Vikings, who first met in 1965, have only played each other 16 times, making it one of the fewest-played series in franchise history. That may be a good thing, as the Browns have won just five times against the Vikings.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at five memorable games between the two teams.
Cleveland fell behind early to the Vikings, but the defense shut out Minnesota in the second half as the Browns pulled out the win.
The first of two one-yard touchdown runs from Leroy Kelly cut Cleveland’s deficit to three points heading into halftime. With the Vikings still holding that lead in the fourth quarter, Jim Kanicki forced a fumble that Walter Johnson recovered near midfield. Frank Ryan then led the offense on a drive that culminated with Kelly scoring his second rushing touchdown with just 23 seconds left in the game.
The Browns had 210 rushing yards on the day while Ryan was battered by Minnesota’s defense, which had eight sacks. The win allowed the Browns to take over the lead of the Century Division.
The last of Cleveland’s dynasty years ended in disappointment with a loss to the Vikings in the final NFL Championship game.
Minnesota scored two touchdowns in the first eight minutes of the game and stretched the lead to 27-0 in the fourth quarter as the Browns could get nothing going on offense. Bill Nelsen finished just 17-of-33 with two interceptions as he struggled to play through a numb arm after taking a hit in the second quarter. Cleveland’s only score of the game came on a late three-yard touchdown pass from Nelsen to Gary Collins.
The loss marked the beginning of a streak where the Browns would not win a playoff game until the 1986 season.
Cleveland was on the verge of clinching the AFC Central Division title at Minnesota’s Metropolitan Stadium before it all fell apart in stunning fashion.
The Browns looked to be in control after Cleo Miller’s one-yard touchdown run gave them a 23-9 lead with about seven minutes remaining in the game. But the Vikings came back with a pair of touchdown passes by Tommy Kramer to cut Cleveland’s lead to just one point, thanks to a missed extra point by Minnesota kicker Rick Danmier, with 1:35 remaining in the game.
Cleveland was unable to run...
