On Oct. 12, 1989, Mike Lynn consummated a trade that would become part of NFL lore, though probably not for any reason he anticipated. Lynn, then the Vikings general manager, coveted Cowboys running back Herschel Walker, one of the sport’s most celebrated players since his legendary freshman season at Georgia. Walker wasn’t washed up in 1989 — he had run for 1,514 yards the previous season — but some tread had begun to wear off the 27-year-old’s tires, and the Cowboys were terrible, en route to a one-win season under first-year coach Jimmy Johnson. Johnson made the decision — an obvious one decades in hindsight, but considered bold at the time — to make Walker available and accelerate the roster rebuild, figuring that the big-name ball carrier would command a bushel of draft picks. Advertisement Oh, did he ever figure correctly. After entertaining an offer from the Browns that included two first-round and three second-round picks, Johnson found an even bigger sucker … er, trade partner … in the Vikings, who were desperate to win the franchise’s first
Super Bowl and remain so to this day. The Vikings received Walker and four draft picks, none higher than the third round (one actually ended up being receiver Jake Reed, who had a fine eight-year career and probably could help the Patriots right now). In return, the Cowboys received a haul — four marginal players, the Vikings’ first-round picks from 1990-92, second-round picks from 1990-92, a third-rounder in ‘92, and a sixth-rounder in ‘90. Conditions initially were attached to the deal; two of the first-round picks and two of the seconds wouldn’t become Cowboys property unless the players acquired in the trade were cut or traded. Johnson, who liked to boast of the deal as “The Great Train Robbery” even before everyone else caught on to the magnitude of his heist, preferred the picks to the players all along, much to the Vikings’ surprise. Advertisement Ultimately, the deal was tweaked, with Dallas keeping three of the players and the conditional picks. It’s unclear how this benefited the Vikings. It’s unclear how anything benefited the Vikings. Walker returned a kick for a touchdown in his Vikings debut, which was probably the highlight of his 2½ decent seasons in Minnesota. Meanwhile, Johnson moved around the draft board over the next three years with his picks, using his capital to target his favorite prospects. Among those whose roots as Cowboys can be traced back to the Walker deal: Emmitt Smith, the NFL’s all-time leading rusher; defensive tackle Russell Maryland; and safety Darren Woodson, who should get into the Hall of Fame right after Rodney Harrison does. All three won three Super Bowls in a Dallas uniform. Two related thoughts here: 1. The perception of a running back’s value has changed just a bit over the years, huh? 2. If the Vikings are going to convince Eliot Wolf and the Patriots to trade the No. 3 pick in this draft, they had best be prepared to make the second-most-desperate trade in franchise history. Ever since the Vikings acquired the No. 23 pick from the Texans two weeks ago, there has been rampant speculation that they will attempt to package that selection with their own at No. 11 overall to get into position to draft Kirk Cousins’s successor at quarterback. Advertisement Getting into position very well could mean making a deal with the Patriots. There are two trains of thought on what the Patriots should do, both valid. The first is that they should stay in the No. 3 spot and take a shot at a potential franchise quarterback. There is a deep and diverse cast of quarterback prospects, and the Patriots have to seize their chance to land one. The second train of thought? Trade the pick for multiple picks, because the thin roster’s most crucial non-QB flaws (left tackle and receiver, most notably) were not fixed in free agency, and playing a rookie quarterback without much of a support system in his own huddle is going to impede his chances for success. Personally, I subscribe to that first train of thought, with some caveats. The Patriots absolutely should take a quarterback — I hope it’s
Drake Maye — if they have conviction that he will be a true franchise quarterback. (As previously stated in this space, if it is Maye, who is just 21, immensely talented and raw, he should not play right away .) If there is not one the Patriots braintrust believes in, trading down is OK … but it had better be for enough picks that I’m not the only one suddenly babbling about the Herschel Walker trade. I can’t tell you who the best quarterback in this class will be, because no one knows right now. But I do know this: The Vikings’ No. 11 and No. 23 picks are nowhere near enough to give up the opportunity to select a quarterback that could be the Patriots’ much-needed franchise cornerstone. Throwing in a future first-round pick isn’t enough, either. Advertisement The Patriots desperately need elite young talent on offense. Trading down to No. 11 would eliminate them from getting one of the top two receivers (Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr. and LSU’s Malik Nabers ) and one of the three or four top left tackles. If they’re trading out of the No. 3 spot, at the least they should end up with the best prospect at a position of desperate need. To give up that No. 3 spot, the Patriots need to stay in the top seven or eight picks, or they have to get a jackpot offer that cannot be refused. What would that look like? Again, using the Vikings as the example since they are on the short list of most likely trade partners, it would have to be Nos. 11 and 23, at least two future firsts, and at least one future second-rounder. Is that a lot to ask? Heck, yeah. Is it too much to ask? Nope. The third pick in this draft is an extremely desirable spot, and the Patriots should either make the pick with conviction or demand a ransom in return. They’re the ones with the leverage. Advertisement Besides, my suggested demand is not nearly as much as the Vikings gave up for Walker 35 years ago. The Patriots don’t need to rob the train. They just need to make sure it gets them where they need to go. Chad Finn can be reached at chad.finn@globe.com . Follow him @GlobeChadFinn .