They say NFL scouting is an inexact science, and one can look back at the 1990 NFL Draft as definitive proof. A total of 331 selections were made during the 12 rounds. One name absent among those picks was a future Pro Football Hall of Famer, Mumford Texas’ own John Randle.
Despite dominating the Division-II ranks with Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Randle was knocked for his lack of size at 6’1″ 287 lbs playing the defensive tackle position and went undrafted because of it. What Randle lacked in physical size, he more than made up for with an unmatched intensity to his game.
After being passed on during the 12 round draft, John Randle was signed to the Vikings as an undrafted free agent shortly after being brought in and cut by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. When Randle arrived in Minnesota, the defensive coordinator was convinced his frame was better suited for the linebacker position in the NFL. Unwavering in his desire to play defensive tackle and rush the quarterback, the coaches relented and gave him a shot. The decision would pay dividends.
The 287 lbs. ball of lightning waited until his second season with the purple before exploding onto the scene and putting the fear of God into opposing quarterbacks. With a total of nine and a half sacks in just eight games started, there was little doubt left that the Vikings had found a diamond in the rough with Randle.
“When I walked on the field for the first time as a free agent, I said I had something to prove and I did that. Playing in the NFL was an honor and a privilege. For a kid from a small town in Texas, it was a dream come true,” said Randle.
The following season Randle would notch his first of eight straight double-digit sack seasons, earning him his first trip to Honolulu for the Pro Bowl. Randle had solidified himself among the best pass-rushers in the game, and perhaps the biggest thorn in opponent’s sides after the whistle with his trash-talk.
Randle talked the talk and walked the walk as his game was as boisterous and in your face as the trash-talk that inevitably followed. Nowhere was that more evident than when the Vikings played the rival Green Bay Packers.
The battles shared by Packer’s star quarterback Brett Favre and Vikings’ John Randle were ones to remember as both seemed to elevate their game when playing against one another. During Randle’s illustrious career, he sacked Favre more than any other quarterback that he played against. The rivalry seemed to take on a life of its own.
Beneath the trash-talk and competitive fire was a mutual respect that the rivals had for one another. Favre described Randle as the toughest defensive player he ever played against and alluded to the Nike chicken barbeque commercial in an interview with the Star Tribune when he said, “I know what that chicken feels like.”
Unfortunately, the rivalry came to an end in 2001 when Randle moved on from the Minnesota Vikings and joined the Seattle Seahawks. Randle would go on to post his final double-digit sack total that season and earned his last Pro Bowl trip, the seventh of his career.
Randle played two more seasons with the Seahawks before hanging up the pads for good following the 2003 season. He finished his career tied for 5th all-time in sacks and 2nd most all-time for a defensive tackle behind another Vikings Hall of Famer, Alan Page.
Randle’s legendary career would be recognized in 2010 when he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio in his second year of eligibility.
The undrafted free agent turned Pro Football Hall of Famer had proven all of the scouts wrong. While small in stature for a defensive tackle, his game was larger than life.
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