Minnesota sent defensive tackle Jim Prestel and defensive…
Minnesota sent defensive tackle Jim Prestel and defensive back Larry Vargo to New York on June 7, 1966, receiving defensive end Bill Briggs and a future draft choice. Contemporary team histories place the pick in the 1967 sixth round, with No. 135 later moving through Minnesota. Briggs never played a regular-season game for the Vikings, while both Giants acquisitions started games in 1966.
Minnesota Vikings Received
- player Bill Briggs
- pick 1967 sixth-round draft choice (No. 135, later associated with Don Bandy)
New York Giants Received
- player Jim Prestel
- player Larry Vargo
Trade Analysis
The Exchange
Minnesota and New York completed a multi-player trade on June 7, 1966. The Vikings received defensive end Bill Briggs and a future draft choice, while the Giants acquired defensive tackle Jim Prestel and defensive back Larry Vargo. New York's 1966 team material describes a draft choice going with Briggs, and later draft histories connect Minnesota to the 1967 sixth-round selection at No. 135. Because the downstream path is described with some uncertainty, the grade does not depend on claiming that pick as a Vikings draftee.
Minnesota's Return
Briggs was a young defensive end, but he never produced regular-season value for Minnesota. A Washington team history later described the Redskins as obtaining him from the Vikings for a draft choice in September 1966. The future pick attached to the Giants trade had value, but the surviving record around No. 135 is complicated by another transfer through Minnesota. The Vikings therefore received more theoretical than realized on-field value from their side.
New York's Return
Prestel and Vargo both contributed during the Giants' difficult 1966 season. Prestel appeared in 13 games and started five, while Vargo played and started seven. Neither became a long-term franchise pillar, but both gave New York actual lineup service immediately after the trade. That is a cleaner return than Minnesota received from Briggs, who was gone before playing a regular-season game for the Vikings.
Value in Hindsight
This was not a franchise-changing deal, so the grade gap should remain modest. Minnesota did receive a draft asset along with Briggs, and the uncertain later routing of that selection makes it inappropriate to assign all downstream value to either club. The direct player evidence is clearer: New York received two veterans who started games, while Minnesota received a player it moved again before he appeared in its regular-season record.
Final Verdict
New York Giants Win. The Giants receive a B- for obtaining immediate depth and seven-plus starts from both incoming players combined. Minnesota receives a C because the draft choice preserved some value, but Briggs never contributed in a Vikings regular-season game. The outcome favors New York without turning a modest 1960s roster transaction into something larger than the evidence supports.