Former Vikings Alan Page and John Randle Named to NFL 100 All-Time Team
In honor of the 100th season of its existence, the NFL is in the process of releasing its “NFL 100 All-Time Team,” which consists of 100 players and ten coaches determined to be the greatest in the league’s history. On Friday, the league announced the selections for linebackers, defensive ends, and defensive tackles. Included among the seven defensive tackles are two legendary former Vikings: Alan Page and John Randle.
Page was part of the famed Purple People Eaters defensive line in Minnesota in the late 1960s and the 1970s, along with Gary Larsen, Jim Marshall, and Carl Eller (who was a semifinalist for the All-Time Team). He made nine straight Pro Bowls from 1968 to 1976 and won NFL MVP in 1971 — one of only two defensive players to ever win that award.
Randle played for the Vikings from 1990 to 2000 and is the franchise’s all-time leader in sacks with 114. He was named a First Team All-Pro in every year from 1993 to 1998. Both Randle and Page are members of the Vikings Ring of Honor and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Along with Randle and Page, the other defensive tackles named to the All-Time Team are Buck Buchanan, Joe Greene, Bob Lilly, Merlin Olsen, and Randy White.
The only other position that has been announced so far is running back. Offensive linemen, quarterbacks, wide receivers, defensive backs, and special teams players are still to come. The selection process began back in 2018, with a “26-person panel made up of coaches, team and front-office executives, former players and members of the media,” according to ESPN.
