Minnesota acquired kicking specialist Don Martin from the Los…
Minnesota acquired kicking specialist Don Martin from the Los Angeles Rams on August 4, 1969 for a conditional draft choice. Contemporary reporting establishes that structure, while the condition, draft round, selection and whether the choice ultimately conveyed are not identified. With no securely documented long-term Minnesota impact or Rams draft payoff, the exchange is best treated as a modest preseason gamble.
Los Angeles Rams Received
- pick conditional draft choice (exact conditions and selection not identified)
Minnesota Vikings Received
- player Don Martin
Trade Analysis
The Exchange
Minnesota acquired kicking specialist Don Martin from the Los Angeles Rams on August 4, 1969 for a conditional draft choice. Contemporary reporting is specific about the conditional nature of the compensation, which is the key fact. The surviving material does not establish the condition, draft year, round, selection or whether the choice ultimately conveyed, so those details should remain open.
Minnesota Vikings Return
The Vikings were coming off a playoff season and were evaluating specialists before a 1969 campaign that would end in Super Bowl IV. Martin gave Minnesota another kicking option during that process. The available history does not establish a substantial regular-season Vikings career for him, so the player side of the deal is best understood as a low-cost preseason evaluation rather than a lasting acquisition.
Los Angeles Rams Return
Los Angeles received conditional draft compensation rather than a guaranteed, clearly identified pick. That distinction matters. If the condition was not met, the Rams may have received little or nothing; if it was met, the exact selection still is not securely identified. The historical verdict therefore cannot assign the Rams a downstream player or treat the pick as certain.
Value in Hindsight
Conditional trades are naturally harder to grade decades later when the trigger is lost. The safest hindsight approach is to value what is known: Minnesota obtained a specialist to evaluate, and Los Angeles secured the possibility of future draft compensation. Neither side has a documented outcome strong enough to move this minor transaction far from neutral.
Final Verdict
Both clubs receive C grades and an Even Trade verdict. Minnesota gained a preseason roster option without a clearly established guaranteed cost, while the Rams gained conditional future value. Because the condition and downstream selection are not identified and Martin did not create a notable Vikings legacy, neither return supports a clear winner.