Minnesota acquired running back Barry Word from Kansas City…
Minnesota acquired running back Barry Word from Kansas City before the 1993 opener after losing Terry Allen for the season. Word played 13 games with eight starts, rushing for 458 yards and two touchdowns. Kansas City received a 1994 fifth-round pick and used it on James Burton, who never appeared in a regular-season game for the Chiefs.
Kansas City Chiefs Received
- pick 1994 fifth round pick (#151-James Burton)
Minnesota Vikings Received
- player Barry Word
Trade Analysis
Why the Deal Happened
Minnesota lost starting running back Terry Allen for the season and responded by acquiring Barry Word from Kansas City just before the 1993 opener. The Chiefs received a fifth-round pick in the 1994 draft. For the Vikings, this was a short-term injury response; for Kansas City, it was a chance to turn a veteran back who no longer fit the offense into a future selection.
What Kansas City Chiefs and Minnesota Vikings Received
Word immediately became part of Minnesota's backfield, playing 13 games with eight starts and rushing for 458 yards and two touchdowns. Kansas City used the acquired pick on defensive back James Burton. Chiefs historical material notes that Burton never appeared in a game for Kansas City, although he later played in the NFL with Chicago. That sharply limits the team-specific value of the draft return.
How the Value Developed
The Vikings did not acquire a long-term star, but they received exactly the kind of emergency production they needed after Allen's injury. Word gave them meaningful carries and starts during the 1993 season. Kansas City reasonably chose future capital over a surplus veteran, yet the selected player produced no regular-season contribution for the Chiefs. Minnesota therefore wins on direct, realized value even though the deal's original logic was sensible for both sides.
Final Verdict
Minnesota Vikings Win. Kansas City Chiefs receives a D+ and Minnesota Vikings receives a B. The grading credits direct on-field production and follows an acquired draft choice into a later trade only when that same asset was actually controlled and moved by the receiving club. That approach avoids assigning another team's eventual selection to the wrong side and keeps the verdict tied to value each franchise truly realized.
Word's immediate Minnesota backfield production exceeded Burton's nonexistent Kansas City contribution by far.