Steve Walsh, the Supplemental Draft Pick who Helped Build the Cowboys' 1990s Dynasty

Now that former Indiana, Cincinnati, and Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby is preparing for the supplemental draft, it's a good time to remember one of the oddest such picks in NFL history. Yes, even odder than Sorsby, whose exit from the NCAA came with all kinds of drama.

In 1989, the Dallas Cowboys were an absolute mess. One of the first moves that new owner Jerry Jones made was to fire Tom Landry, the only head coach the franchise had ever known since its inception in 1960. To replace Landry, Jones tagged Miami head coach Jimmy Johnson, who had played football with Jones at Arkansas in the 1960s, and was a hot commodity when Jones got him.

The 1989 Cowboys needed a quarterback, as the 1988 Cowboys tried to get things done with Steve Pelluer, Kevin Sweeney, and the 36-year-old version of Danny White. The 3-13 Cowboys had the first overall pick in the '89 draft, and they took UCLA's Troy Aikman with that selection.

Still, that wasn't enough for the Cowboys' new blood. When the 1989 supplemental draft rolled around in July, Dallas also took Miami's Steve Walsh in the first round of that draft, and since teams had to (and have to) give up an equivalent pick in the 1990 draft, which turned out to be the first overall pick.

"We did not make this pick thinking trade," Johnson said at the time. Instead, he wanted an open competition between what turned out to be two VERY high picks at the same position - one can only imagine the furor if a team did that in the era of social media. Johnson had won the 1987 national championship with Walsh as his quarterback, so that part made sense.

But imagine if the Las Vegas Raiders took Sorsby in the first round of the supplemental draft after selecting Fernando Mendoza first overall in the actual draft. Even without Sorsby's gambling history, people would (quite justifiably) lose their minds over that one.

In the end, it was Aikman's job to lose. Walsh started five games in the 1989 season while Aikman recovered from a broken finger, but once Aikman was back under center, that was that - and Walsh became an expensive benchwarmer.

The New Orleans Saints, who had their own quarterback issues, came calling in September, 1990 with an offer: Their first- and third-round picks in 1991, plus a second-round pick in 1992 for Walsh's services. The deal was done, and the Saints now had their quarterback of the future.

Or so they thought.

"He's a good young player," head coach Jim Mora said of Walsh. "He proved it in college. He was one of the top young players coming out of college. We think, because we made the trade, he has a chance to be an outstanding player."

That didn't happen. Walsh spent most of four seasons with the Saints, completing 54.2% of his passes, and throwing 25 touchdowns to 22 interceptions. He lasted in the NFL until 1999, but never lived up to his promise.

The Cowboys, on the other hand, were able to parlay those draft picks into part of their dynasty of the early 1990s, when they won three Super Bowls in four years from 1992-1995. They selected Miami defensive tackle Russell Maryland with the first overall pick in 1991 after a trade up with the New England Patriots, and also Central State offensive tackle Erik Williams in the third round. Maryland and Williams became fixtures on those 1990s teams, and though it's the Herschel Walker trade that's more commonly cited as the move that propelled Dallas to those big seasons, this trade - which made the most out of a situation that could have been untenable - didn't hurt.

So, no matter where Brendan Sorsby lands in the NFL - and there should be some suitors - it probably won't be as weird as the Steve Walsh Experience.

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This story was originally published June 18, 2026 at 12:15 PM.