Lynn Passed

Former Minnesota Vikings general manager Mike Lynn passed on Saturday. He was 76. Lynn went from from running movie theaters in Memphis to getting a Super Bowl in Minneapolis. In 1974, Mike Lynn was hired by owner Max Winter to be his right hand man. Ten years later Lynn had forced Winter out and had essentially taken control of the team.

Mike Lynn had the tough task of replacing Jim Finks as general manager of the Minnesota Vikings. Finks was a legend. Building Super Bowl teams and becoming the first general manager to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Lynn did some good things in his sixteen years of making decisions but he's seen mostly as a villain in Minnesota. Gary Anderson is a hero compared to Mike Lynn. His first transgression, in my book, was hiring Les Steckel as head coach in 1984 to succeed Bud Grant. The obvious choice was long time offensive coordinator Jerry Burns. I believe that Lynn wanted to make his mark on the team by going with Steckel. It was a disaster. Grant was brought back in '85 to save the team. Burns was finally hired a season later. Lynn's greatest sin in the eyes of Vikings fans is the Herschel Walker trade. This is perhaps the only thing upon which Vikings fans have ever agreed. Seven draft picks and five players to the Dallas Cowboys for Walker and a handful of mid-level picks. The trade helped bring the Cowboys three Super Bowl titles. In return the Vikings got only jokes and giggles that they never deserved. I'm sure that I wasn't the only Minnesota Vikings fan that was happy the day the Herschel Walker trade went down. Of course, I winced at the cost. I hated that linebacker Jesse Solomon was a part of it. Still, I thought, as did Mike Lynn and countless Vikings fans from across the globe, that Herschel Walker was the key to some Super Bowls. The team was loaded and Walker looked to be the missing piece. Nothing is ever guaranteed. Lynn had the guts to take a chance. Few do. He should get credit for that and he doesn't.

As far as I can tell, Mike Lynn was an excellent businessman and negotiator. I think that he would have been a fantastic agent. He followed a legend in Jim Finks and tried to become one himself. Many NFL decision makers have become stars by doing far less. He simply wanted to build a champion and he most certainly tried. Mike Lynn should be better remembered for that.

RIP Mike Lynn