The Flea Flicker countdown of the 100 Greatest Minnesota Vikings Players continues with #s 70-61.
100 Greatest Minnesota Vikings Players: 70-61
70. Brian Robison, DE
69. Todd Steussie, OT
68. Robert Griffith, S
67. Gene Washington, WR
66. Doug Martin, DE
65. Ryan Longwell, K
64. Wally Hilgenberg, LB
63. Linval Joseph, DT
62. Korey Stringer, OT
61. Pat Williams, DT
Brian Robison is an example of a player getting a boost on this list for the person that he is. He was a terrific football player but he was also really great with the fans. He still is. His “96 Questions” was a blast.
Imagine where Ryan Longwell would be on this list if he’d had that opportunity to kick the Vikings to the Super Bowl in 2009. I probably fretted less over Longwell’s kicks than any kicker in my time with the team. That goes back to the days of Fred Cox.
Doug Martin and #94 Mark Mullaney had the unfortunate task of being drafted to replace members of the Purple People Eaters. Martin came the closest to doing so. He led the league with 11.5 sacks during the strike-shortened season of 1982. Martin’s 61.5 sacks rank 8th on the Vikings all-time sacks list. Mullaney is 14th with 41.5.
Following #74 Lonnie Warwick and #72 Roy Winston, Wally Hilgenberg is the third of the linebacker trio that played in the giant shadow of the Purple People Eaters. Hilgenberg was the best known and most productive of the three.
Linval Joseph and Pat Williams were the space-eaters, block-eaters, running game-wreckers of a couple excellent defensive lines. It’s a damn shame that Jospeh never had a tackle partner like Williams had with Kevin Williams.
RIP Korey Stringer.
No comments:
Post a Comment