Jimmy Johnson: Jerry Jones told me ‘you can’t get rid of Herschel Walker’
If Jerry Jones got his way during the 1989 season, the Dallas Cowboys may have never gone on to win three Super Bowls and dominate the NFL in the 1990s. At least, that’s what Jimmy Johnson wants us to believe.
In a new “30 for 30” short film called “The Great Train Robbery,” Johnson explained how Jones was opposed to trading star running back Herschel Walker when the Cowboys were trying to rebuild before they became a powerhouse.
“When I told Jerry that we were gonna trade Herschel Walker he was kind of astonished,” Johnson said. “He said, ‘Really? You can’t get rid of Herschel Walker. We won’t score a point if we don’t have Herschel Walker!'”
Johnson hated his new roster when he first arrived in Dallas. He knew Walker was the one player he would be able to get the most return on, so he flipped him to the Minnesota Vikings in what was the largest player trade in the history of the NFL. It resulted in 18 players and draft picks changing hands.
Johnson explained how the Cowboys acquired five players from the Vikings that he never intended to keep. They were all tied to draft picks if he released them, which is exactly what he did. He then turned those picks into players like Emmitt Smith, Alvin Harper and Darren Sharper. Before he committed to trading Walker, Johnson said he even considered trading Michael Irvin.
“I considered trading every player on our roster — everybody, even a player that I loved, Michael Irvin, who played for me at Miami,” Johnson said. “My attitude was, we were 53 players away from the Super Bowl.”
As we know, Jones and Johnson used to be best friends before they had a falling out. Most recently, Johnson ripped Jones for sounding like a rich A-hole in a feature that was written about him. They still don’t get along, and both are always trying to take credit for the Super Bowls the Cowboys won in the 1990s. Johnson claims Jones hired him with an understanding that Jimmy would handle all football decisions but then went back on his word. By saying Jones didn’t want to trade Walker, Johnson is sticking with his favorite narrative.
