One of the greatest/worst draft trades ever, but not greater/worst than the trade between the Cowboys and Vikings back in Octer 12, 1989 labeled The Great Train Robbery. The
Herschel Walker trade, also known as "The Great Train Robbery", was the largest player trade in the history of the
National Football League.
[1] It involved 18 players and draft picks.
[2]
The trade
Minnesota Vikings received
- RB Herschel Walker
- Dallas's 3rd round pick - 1990 (54) (Mike Jones)
- San Diego's 5th round pick - 1990 (116) (Reggie Thornton)
- Dallas's 10th round pick - 1990 (249) (Pat Newman)
- Dallas's 3rd round pick - 1991 (68) (Jake Reed)
Dallas Cowboys received
Aftermath and legacy
Dallas ended up with a total of six of Minnesota's picks over the succeeding years, two 1st round and one 2nd round picks were used to draft
Emmitt Smith and
Darren Woodson, winning multiple Super Bowls and being voted on to go to the Pro Bowl numerous times also. Jimmy Johnson used the other draft picks to make trades with other teams around the NFL. One of the trades led to obtaining the first overall draft pick in 1991, which was used to draft
Russell Maryland. In other words, the trade of Herschel Walker to the Vikings contributed largely to the Cowboys' success in the early 1990s.
https://americanfootballdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/Herschel_Walker_trade