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The Herschel Walker Trade: How Dallas Turned One Running Back Into a Dynasty

2026-10-02

The Herschel Walker Trade: How Dallas Turned One Running Back Into a Dynasty

On October 12, 1989, the Dallas Cowboys were 0-5. Jimmy Johnson was in his first year as head coach, the roster was barren, and Herschel Walker — a two-time Pro Bowler, the best player on the team — was the only asset worth anything.

Minnesota Vikings general manager Mike Lynn believed Walker was the final piece of a Super Bowl roster. He was willing to pay for that belief. What he paid became the most famous trade in NFL history, and the foundation of a Dallas dynasty that won three Super Bowls in four years.

This is the full accounting: every pick, every re-trade, every player. You can trace the complete custody chain alongside this article.

The Deal

The terms, agreed October 12, 1989:

Minnesota received:

  • RB Herschel Walker
  • Dallas's 1990 3rd-round pick (#54)
  • San Diego's 1990 5th-round pick (#116)
  • Dallas's 1990 10th-round pick (#249)
  • Dallas's 1991 3rd-round pick (#68)

Dallas received:

  • Five players: LB Jesse Solomon, LB David Howard, CB Issiac Holt, DE Alex Stewart, RB Darrin Nelson
  • Three 1990 picks outright: 1st (#21), 2nd (#47), 6th (#158)
  • Five conditional picks, one attached to each player: if Dallas cut or traded the player, the pick conveyed

There was also an accident in the middle of it. Darrin Nelson refused to report to Dallas. The Cowboys traded him to San Diego for the Chargers' 1990 5th-rounder (#116), which went to Minnesota as part of the deal. A two-team trade became a three-team trade because one running back wouldn't get on a plane.

At the press conference, Johnson called it "The Great Train Robbery." Dallas beat writers were not kind. Randy Galloway wrote that the Cowboys had received "a huge handful of Minnesota smoke."

Johnson was more direct about what he'd actually done: "I didn't see the players. I saw the picks."

The Trick

Johnson never wanted the five veterans. The conditions were the entire point.

Each of the five players carried a conditional pick that conveyed to Dallas if the player was cut or traded. Johnson simply got rid of all of them. Alex Stewart was cut immediately, converting to a 1992 3rd-rounder (#71). Nelson was traded to San Diego, triggering a 1992 2nd-rounder (#40). Solomon, Howard, and Holt were phased out over the next two seasons, triggering a 1991 1st (#11), a 1991 2nd (#38), and a 1992 1st (#13).

All five conditions triggered. Dallas turned five players it never intended to keep into five premium draft picks — a 1st, two 2nds, a 3rd, and another 1st.

Combined with the three picks received outright, the Walker trade gave Dallas eight draft picks: three 1sts, three 2nds, a 3rd, and a 6th.

The Picks, One by One

What Dallas did with those eight picks is the real story. Johnson and the Cowboys' front office re-traded nearly all of them, and the chains they started are still traceable pick by pick.

1990 1st, #21 (Minnesota's). On draft day 1990, Dallas packaged #21 with #81 and traded up to #17 with Pittsburgh. The Cowboys selected Emmitt Smith, running back from Florida. Smith became the NFL's all-time rushing leader (18,355 yards), won the 1993 MVP, made the Hall of Fame in 2010, and won three Super Bowls. Pittsburgh used #21 on tight end Eric Green, who had a solid career — and none of it matters next to Emmitt Smith.

1990 2nd, #47 (Minnesota's). Dallas bundled #47 with Kansas City's 1990 3rd-rounder (#68, acquired earlier for quarterback Steve Pelluer) and sent both to San Francisco for #81, #304, Terrence Flagler, and Danny Stubbs. The 49ers used #47 on defensive end Dennis Brown, a solid starter from 1990 to 1996.

1990 6th, #158 (Minnesota's). Dallas packaged #158 with four other late picks and sent the bundle to the Raiders for Stan Smagala, a defensive back the Raiders had just drafted at #123. The Raiders flipped the picks to New Orleans the same day for a 1991 4th-rounder. The Saints used the pick on James Williams, a marginal player. Smagala never became anything in Dallas either — this was the one branch of the tree that withered.

1991 1st, #11 (Minnesota's, via the Solomon condition). In 1991, Dallas packaged #11 with #41, Ron Francis, David Howard, and Eugene Lockhart and traded up to #1 with New England. The Cowboys selected Russell Maryland, defensive tackle from Miami. Maryland played ten seasons, made the 1993 Pro Bowl, and won three Super Bowls. New England used #11 on tackle Pat Harlow.

1991 2nd, #38 (Minnesota's, via the Howard condition). Dallas traded #38 and its 1992 5th (#136) to Houston for running back Alonzo Highsmith. The Oilers used #38 on cornerback Darryll Lewis, a decent seven-year starter. Highsmith's Dallas career was unremarkable — another branch that didn't bear much fruit, though the trade itself was defensible at the time.

1992 1st, #13 (Minnesota's, via the Holt condition). On draft day 1992, Dallas sent #13 and #71 to New England for #19, #37, and #104. Then Dallas flipped #19 and #104 to Atlanta for #17 and #120. The Cowboys used #37 on Darren Woodson, safety from Arizona State, and #17 on Kevin Smith, cornerback from Texas A&M. Woodson became a five-time Pro Bowler, three-time All-Pro, three-time Super Bowl champion, and remains one of the most debated Hall of Fame snubs of his era. Kevin Smith played nine seasons and was a 1996 second-team All-Pro. New England used #13 on guard Eugene Chung.

1992 2nd, #40 (Minnesota's, via the Nelson condition). This pick started the longest chain in the tree. Dallas traded #40 to Kansas City for #47 and #74. Kansas City used #40 on quarterback Matt Blundin. Dallas then traded #47 and #74 to Washington for #56 and #58. Washington used those picks on Shane Collins and Paul Siever. Dallas traded #56 to Detroit for #82, #109, and #250. Detroit used #56 on Jason Hanson, kicker from Washington State — who kicked for the Lions for 21 seasons (1992–2012) and scored 2,150 points. Dallas used #58 on Clayton Holmes, a role player who won two Super Bowls with the Cowboys.

1992 3rd, #71 (Minnesota's, via the Stewart condition). This pick went to New England as part of the #13 trade. The Patriots used it on fullback Kevin Turner, who played eight seasons, mostly with Philadelphia.

The Dynasty

Four of the eight picks became core players on a team that won Super Bowls in the 1992, 1993, and 1995 seasons:

  • Emmitt Smith (#17, 1990): all-time rushing leader, 1993 MVP, Hall of Fame 2010
  • Russell Maryland (#1, 1991): 10 seasons, 1993 Pro Bowl, three rings
  • Darren Woodson (#37, 1992): 5x Pro Bowl, 3x All-Pro, three rings
  • Kevin Smith (#17, 1992): 9 seasons, 1996 second-team All-Pro, three rings

The other four picks produced role players, marginal contributors, and one very good kicker who played for someone else. That's the honest accounting. Not every branch of the tree bore fruit. But the four that did were enough to build a dynasty.

Minnesota's Side

Walker played two and a half seasons in Minnesota. He rushed for 669 yards in 1989, 770 in 1990, and 825 in 1991. The Vikings made the playoffs once in that span and lost in the divisional round. Walker left for Philadelphia in 1992 as a free agent.

The five picks Minnesota received produced one genuinely good player: Jake Reed, the wide receiver drafted at #68 in 1991. Reed played 12 seasons, caught 450 passes for 6,999 yards and 36 touchdowns, posted four 1,000-yard seasons, and paired first with Cris Carter and later with Randy Moss. He was Minnesota's best return on the trade.

There is an irony worth stating plainly: Reed was drafted with Dallas's pick, not Minnesota's own. The best player the Vikings got from the Herschel Walker trade came from a pick the Cowboys had thrown in.

The other four picks: Mike Jones (#54, 1990), a tight end from Texas A&M who lasted five seasons mostly on special teams; Reggie Thornton (#116, 1990), a wide receiver from Bowling Green with a brief career; and Pat Newman (#249, 1990), who did not stick.

Footnotes

The Favre pick. The #17 pick Dallas used on Kevin Smith in 1992 has its own history. On February 11, 1992, Green Bay traded that pick — which the Packers had acquired from Philadelphia the previous year — to Atlanta in exchange for Brett Favre. Atlanta then traded the pick to Dallas on draft day, and the Cowboys selected Kevin Smith. The pick Green Bay surrendered to land Brett Favre became Kevin Smith in Dallas two months later.

Jason Hanson. The #40 chain — Nelson condition → Kansas City → Washington → Detroit — ended with the Lions drafting a kicker who played 21 seasons. Hanson is the longest-tenured player to emerge from the Walker trade's pick chains, and he never played for either team in the original deal.

Stan Smagala. The strangest branch. Dallas traded five picks (including Minnesota's 1990 6th) to the Raiders for a defensive back the Raiders had drafted hours earlier at #123. Smagala played one season in Dallas. The Raiders turned the picks into a 1991 4th-rounder from New Orleans. Everyone involved would like this one forgotten.

The five veterans. Solomon, Howard, Holt, Stewart, and Nelson were never the point. They were vessels for conditional picks. Johnson cut or traded all five within two years. None of them played a meaningful snap for a Dallas championship team. That was the design.

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Sources

Trade terms, pick numbers, and custody chains verified against the site's own database (`trades.db`, tree `1989-10-12-dal-min-sd-herschel-walker`, 9 trades) and cross-checked with the sources below. Player statistics from Pro Football Reference via Wikipedia/StatMuse.

  1. Site trade tree: 1989-10-12-dal-min-sd-herschel-walker — 9 trades, full custody chains
  2. Wikipedia: Herschel Walker trade — trade terms, conditional pick triggers (Solomon→1991 1st, Howard→1991 2nd, Holt→1992 1st, Nelson→1992 2nd, Stewart→1992 3rd)
  3. Wikipedia: 1990 NFL draft — pick-by-pick trade notes
  4. Wikipedia: 1991 NFL draft — pick-by-pick trade notes
  5. Wikipedia: 1992 NFL draft — pick-by-pick trade notes
  6. Wikipedia: Emmitt Smith — #17 pick 1990, 18,355 yards, 1993 MVP, HOF 2010, 3 SBs
  7. Wikipedia: Darren Woodson — #37 pick 1992, 5× Pro Bowl, 3× All-Pro, 3 SBs
  8. Wikipedia: Russell Maryland — #1 pick 1991, 10 seasons, 1993 Pro Bowl, 3 SBs
  9. Wikipedia: Kevin Smith (cornerback)) — #17 pick 1992, 9 seasons, 1996 second-team All-Pro, 3 SBs
  10. Wikipedia: Jason Hanson — #56 pick 1992, 21 seasons (1992–2012), 2,150 points
  11. Wikipedia: Jake Reed) — #68 pick 1991, 12 seasons, 450 rec / 6,999 yds / 36 TDs, four 1,000-yard seasons
  12. Wikipedia: Mike Jones (tight end)) — #54 pick 1990, TE Texas A&M, 5 seasons (1990–1994)
  13. Wikipedia: Brett Favre — Feb 11, 1992: GB traded #17 (from PHI) to ATL for Favre; ATL traded #17 to DAL on draft day
  14. StatMuse: Herschel Walker stats with Minnesota — 669 yds (1989), 770 (1990), 825 (1991)
  15. Akron Beacon Journal: 30th anniversary retrospective (2019) — "I didn't see the players. I saw the picks."; Galloway's "huge handful of Minnesota smoke"
  16. EssentiallySports: Johnson on "The Great Train Robbery" — Johnson's press-conference quote
  17. 247sports: Packers-Eagles 1991 trade / Favre deal
  18. The Football Database: Jake Reed
  19. USA Today/ND Insider: NFL's greatest in-season trades — 0-5 start, Johnson first year, Oct 12 1989, Lynn GM, playoff/divisional details
Explore the trade tree behind this story:

About this article: it was drafted with AI assistance from the Football Trade Trees database and public reporting, then reviewed by a human editor. Spot an error? Email [email protected].