Minnesota Vikings: 15 best first-round draft picks of all time
By Adam Carlson
After playing his college ball at the University of Minnesota, Carl Eller didn’t have to travel very far to play in the NFL. The defensive end was also drafted by the AFL’s Buffalo Bills in 1964, but he opted to stay in the Twin Cities and play for the Vikings instead.
And was Minnesota sure glad he made that decision.
Eller ended up spending 15 years with the Vikings, where he was a part of the franchise’s most talented defensive line known as the “Purple People Eaters”. The ferocious pass-rusher only missed two games in his first 14 seasons with Minnesota.
Sacks were not a statistic that was regularly kept during the time Eller played in the league, but the Vikings do credit him as the franchise’s all-time career sack leader with 130. His play on the field led to the defensive end earning six invites to the Pro Bowl and five All-Pro First-Team selections from 1968 to 1974.
Eller was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2004.
– AP