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On this date 20 years ago one of the biggest trades took place in the National Football League.  The Dallas Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings traded 18 players and/or draft picks.  This trade was most infamously remembered as a one-sided deal that sent a productive Herschel Walker for the pieces that helped Jimmy Johnson construct the Cowboys dynasty of the mid 1990's.

As with any legendary moment, there are a few misconceptions about the trade.  For example, Herschel Walker was not the only player the Minnesota Vikings received via this trade.  The Dallas Cowboys sent four draft picks along with him, one of which was used to draft wide receiver Jake Reed.  The Cowboys didn't actually receive much in the way of ready-to-go players, as the deal included such forgettable names as Jesse Solomon, David Howard, Issiac Holt, Alex Stewart, and Darrin Nelson (who actually was traded again because he refused to report to Dallas).

The value in this trade for Dallas came in the form of draft picks.  Dallas received three 1st round picks, three 2nd round picks, one third round pick, and one 6th round pick.  Through drafting and various other deals, these picks resulted in such notable players as Alvin Harper, Dixon Edwards, Darren Woodson, and Russell Maryland.

Why would Minnesota agree to such a deal?  One year earlier, the Vikings completed a season where they finished with an 11 - 5 record, winning six of their last seven games.  Unfortuantely, they lost in San Francisco 34 - 9.  It appeared to the ownership this team was ready to win now and may only need one or two pieces to get over that hump.  They started the 1989 season 3 - 2, and so the deal for Walker was a hope that the season would get back on track and bring the team some much needed post season success.  After adding Walker, the team finished 10 - 6, which was good enough to win the division; however, the Vikings were again eliminated by the 49ers dynasty by the score of 41 - 13.

Herschel Walker played two and a half years for the Vikings, but never cracked 1,000 rushing yards in a single season while on their roster.  Ironically, Walker would finish his career with the team that initially traded him, playing out his final two years in the NFL for Dallas.