The Minnesota Vikings have improved on defense each of the past two years under the leadership of defensive coordinator Brian Flores. While the headlines around the team surround quarterback J.J. McCarthy and his ability to adapt to his role in the offense and help turn the Vikings into a championship team, the defense has a chance to become one of the better units in the NFL.

There was a time the Vikings had the best defense in the NFL, and while there were a few teams that could compete with head coach Bud Grant’s remarkable defensive unit, none were better. Not the Green Bay Packers, Los Angeles Rams or the Baltimore Colts.

Flores would love nothing more to have as dominant a defensive unit as the Vikings had in those ancient days.

The Vikings had the game’s pre-eminent pass rush unit, and that group had one of the greatest nicknames the sport has ever seen. “The Purple People Eaters” were a devastating group of pass rushers that included Alan Page, Jim Marshall, Carl Eller and Gary Larsen.

Page has been widely recognized as the Vikings’ best defensive player and he is in the Hall of Fame. However, Marshall and Eller were nearly as good and regularly wrecked opposing offenses. Larsen should not be overlooked even though he was a stay-at-home type who complemented the three superstars.

The 87-year-old Marshall died Wednesday following a long illness. He played 19 of his 20 seasons with the Vikings. He was traded to the team prior to its initial 1961 season by the Cleveland Browns. Marshall started 270 consecutive regular-season games at defensive end — the most ever by a defensive player in NFL history — and was on the team for all four of it Super Bowl appearances.

While the Vikings lost all four of those Super Bowl appearances, they did win one NFL championship. The two leagues did not officially merge until the 1970 season. Prior to that year, the NFL and the American Football League were separate entities, and the Vikings won the 1969 NFL title.

Marshall is famous for running the wrong way when he picked up a fumble in a 1964 game against the San Francisco 49ers and ran it 66 yards into the endzone before flipping the ball into the stands. However, he ran the ball into the Minnesota end zone and the play resulted in a safety for the Niners. It is considered one of the most memorable plays in NFL history, but it did not cost the Vikings. They won the game by a 27-22 margin at San Francisco’s Kezar Stadium.

That play did not define Marshall’s career. It was his determination to show up every Sunday and make plays that contributed to his team’s success. In a game where players are rightly celebrated for playing every game in a given season – let alone two or three – Marshall never took a game off. Despite injury, illness and age, Marshall showed up every week without fail and gave the Vikings everything he had.

He was a remarkable player who excelled against the run and rushed the passer extremely well. He had double-digit sacks in four seasons and he was always around the ball. He had 130.5 sacks and 30 fumble recoveries throughout his remarkable career.

Many football fans know that sacks did not become an official NFL statistic until the 1982 season, but Pro Football Reference went back and counted the stats in all of Marshall’s games – as well as many other stars – and came up with that widely recognized number.

Marshall amazed Grant with his consistency and ability to show up every week and make key contributions. Grant was not an easy leader to impress.

It would be folly to compare any of today’s Vikings to Marshall, but the consistency of Blake Cashman, Andrew Van Ginkel, Harrison Smith and Josh Metellus are key strengths of the Vikings defense. All of those players have something to aspire to as they prepare for the 2025 season.