when I think of the Rams and Halloween, I always think of the Dickerson trade….
http://www.nytimes.com/1987/11/01/sports/dickerson-traded-to-colts.html
DICKERSON TRADED TO COLTS
By GERALD ESKENAZI
In an extraordinary three-team deal that could alter the balance of power in the American Conference East, the Los Angeles Rams sent Eric Dickerson to the Indianapolis Colts yesterday.
The Rams, who gave up the top runner in pro football, got plenty in return: three first-round and three second-round draft choices plus two accomplished players.
Sources familiar with the deal said Dickerson had signed a contract for three years worth about $1 million a year. He was activated and was expected to play today against the Jets at Giants Stadium.
Dickerson did not want to play in Los Angeles any more because he was distressed with his contract, which paid him a $682,000 salary, and which he insisted on renegotiating. Asked yesterday in Indianapolis whether he would attempt to renegotiate his new contract, Dickerson replied: ”Believe me, the contract I got, I won’t renegotiate. It’s very fat.”
The key for the Colts was to acquire enough draft choices to satisfy the Rams. To get them, the Colts traded the rights to Cornelius Bennett, the top defensive player taken in last spring’s National Football League college draft, to the Buffalo Bills. The Bills came to terms with Bennett late yesterday.
Bennett, the Alabama linebacker, was the second choice of the entire 1987 draft behind Vinny Testaverde. The Colts had been unwilling to sign Bennett because of his salary demand of more than $1 million a year.
In exchange for Bennett, a player expected to make an immediate impact on a suspect defense, Buffalo parted with first-round choices from 1988 and 1989 and a second-round choice from 1988, as well as Greg Bell, a fourth-year runner from Notre Dame. The Colts then added their No. 1 and No. 2 pick from next year’s draft, a No. 2 from 1989 plus Owen Gill, a third-year running back, and sent the entire package – six draft choices, Bell and Gill – to Los Angeles. ‘Deal of the Decade’
One N.F.L. official described it as ”the deal of the decade.”
”When was the last time you heard of the top runner, in his prime, being traded?” he said.
Dickerson, who is 27 years old, took an overnight plane ride from Los Angeles and arrived in Indianapolis yesterday in the pre-dawn hours to hammer out a contract.
”Number 29 will be on the field with me Sunday,” said the Colts’ coach Ron Meyer, who was reunited with Dickerson. Meyer coached Dickerson at Southern Methodist University.
”He may get in for a play or two; I don’t have any big plans for him,” said Meyer, who put Dickerson through a few simple plays before the club left for New Jersey.
For Dickerson, the trade ended more than four seasons with the Rams that were punctuated by bickering over his contract.
Even though the Rams have a 1-5 record this season, they soured on Dickerson, who has led the league in rushing three times in his first four seasons. John Robinson, the Rams’ coach, placed Dickerson on the inactive list Thursday, which meant he could not have played for the Rams against the San Francisco 49ers today. Time for a Change
”No one player is bigger than the team,” Robinson said yesterday in Los Angeles. ”When the contract begins to affect on-the-field activities, it’s time to make a move.”
Two years ago, Dickerson held out for 47 days, missing the first two games of the season, when he was unhappy with a contract and forced a renegotiation. Those are the only two games he has missed, other than strike games.
At 6 foot 3 inches and 220 pounds, Dickerson’s size, coupled with sprinter speed, enabled him to set the rookie mark of 1,808 yards. Then, in his second season, he averaged 5.6 yards a carry to set the single-season mark of 2,105 yards. In 14 games the next season, he produced 1,234 yards, and last year added 1,821. His three full seasons rank among the top eight ever.
Robinson did not allow him to start last Monday night’s game at Cleveland. But soon after he came in, he scored on a 27-yard run.
Bennett, meanwhile, would not sign with the Colts because they were unwilling to offer what his agent called ”Bosworth money” – $11 million for 10 years, which the Seahawks paid Brian Bosworth, the Oklahoma linebacker who was chosen in the supplemental draft.
With the Bills, Bennett has reportedly agreed to a five-year deal worth $4 million, including a bonus of $1.5 milllion. Beating the Deadline
The deals, which were structured quickly to beat next Tuesday’s trading deadline, bring new credibility and strength to two franchises, Indianapolis and Buffalo. In each of the last four seasons they were the bottom clubs in their division.
They have stirred this season with 3-3 records, and now each has gained an impact player. Bennett is a Lawrence Taylor type, a rushing outside linebacker and fierce tackler. He brings star quality to the Bills’ defense, complementing Jim Kelly, the quarterback who leads the offense.
The Colts, meanwhile, have not had a player of Dickerson’s magnitude since they traded their quarterback, Bert Jones, in 1981.
The Colts, with Jack Trudeau, are the only one of the A.F.C. East’s five clubs that doesn’t have a quarterback of star quality. The Dolphins have Dan Marino, the Bills Kelly, the Jets Ken O’Brien and the Patriots Tony Eason.
But with Dickerson, the Colts can offset a mediocre passing game. ”Obviously, this will cause the defense to key more on our running game and open the holes for passing,” said Trudeau.
The completion of the deal ended a fascinating few days of trade negotiations. The Rams insisted it would take at least a pair of first-round picks and a pair of second-round picks to land Dickerson.
The Colts then tried to swing a deal for Bennett with Tampa Bay. Coach Ray Perkins of the Bucs was Bennett’s coach at Alabama. But Perkins was unwilling to part with two draft choices, calling the deal ”too steep.”
Indianapolis then searched for other clubs who would be willing to give up the two picks, as well as a running back, to satisfy the Rams’ needs.
In Buffalo, they found a club that had grown dissatisfied with Bell, himself a first-round pick of 1984 out of Notre Dame. He rushed for 1,100 yards as a rookie. But Coach Marv Levy, who took over late last year, found Bell injured and unable to play. Levy was believed to be unhappy with Bell’s attitude, making the all-round runner expendable.
Diagram of Dickerson trade; Photo of Eric Dickerson at a news conference (NYT/Susan Farley) (Page 8)
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