The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced the list of former players nominated to be in its 2016 class.
In a press release, the hall announced 108 modern era stars being considered for the 2016 class. There are several former Vikings on the list, including former quarterback Brett Favre, kicker Morten Andersen and even defensive coordinator Tony Dungy.
But another former Viking on the list laid out his case for Hall of Fame induction to the Pioneer Press. That former Viking is none other than Herschel Walker.
Herschel Walker: "I’m deserving for the Hall of Fame… I don’t deny that I was a heck of a football player.''
— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) September 17, 2015
The simple idea of that probably makes most Vikings fan cringe. He was traded to Minnesota midway through the 1989 season in a deal that included 18 players and draft picks. While Walker never really took off during his 2 1/2 seasons with the Vikings, the Cowboys went on to win three Super Bowls in the 1990s.
According to Pro Football Reference, Walker finished his career with 8,225 rushing yards, 512 catches for 4,859 yards and 5,084 yards in kickoff returns for a total of 18,168 all-purpose yards – 9th in NFL history.
The former 1982 Heisman Trophy winner from Georgia played for Dallas, Minnesota, Philadelphia and the New York Giants from 1986-97.
Not included in any of those numbers are the 5,562 yards Walker amassed from 1983-85 while playing for the New Jersey Generals in the USFL.
Eighteen finalists will be presented to the full 46-member Pro Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee. The committee will meet on the eve of Super Bowl 50 in San Francisco Feb. 6 to elect the class.
The Class of 2016 will be announced that evening and then enshrined on Aug. 6, 2016.
