EAGAN, Minn. — The Vikings are mourning the loss of 1980 first-round pick Doug Martin, who passed away Monday at age 68, days before the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Martin was selected by Minnesota with the No. 9 overall pick after playing college football for the University of Washington.
He helped the Huskies corral the Texas Longhorns 14-7 in the Sun Bowl, to earn most valuable lineman honors by recording 10 tackles and a sack and forcing an intentional grounding penalty to conclude his college career.
During his time with the Huskies, Martin formed a friendship with Washington teammate Warren Moon, who later quarterbacked the Vikings during his Pro Football Hall of Fame career.
"I'll always remember his big chuckle, his laugh, and I will miss him calling me 'Moony,' Moon said. "He was a loyal and honest friend."
The native of Fairfield, California, followed in the footsteps of his brother George Martin by playing in the NFL. George was drafted by the Giants in the 11th round of the 1975 NFL Draft, and his career included helping New York win Super Bowl XXI and garnering what is now known as the NFLPA Alan Page Community Award that same 1986 season.
Upon his selection, Doug (the family is unrelated to former Buccaneers RB Doug Martin, who lived from 1989-2025), told Twin Cities media members he had hoped to team with George but was excited for the opportunity as a top 10 NFL draft pick.
"At one time, I was hoping that I'd get a chance to play on the same team with my brother," Martin said. "But I can't complain after the Vikings thought enough of me to select me in the first round."
Martin's time with the Vikings overlapped with a transitional period in franchise history.
Jim Marshall's retirement the previous December had capped the run of the original Purple People Eaters, and just two more seasons at Metropolitan Stadium remained before the Vikings headed indoors, opening the Metrodome in 1982.
Negotiations between Martin's agent and former Vikings General Manager Mike Lynn delayed Martin's foray into pro football, but he eventually developed into a quiet leader that helped usher in a new era of dominance by Vikings defensive linemen.
He wound up playing 11 games and making one start as a rookie, recording 5.0 sacks, and followed by starting nine of 16 games played and notching 6.0 sacks in 1981.
Despite 1982 being reduced to nine regular-season games because of a work stoppage, Martin made the moments count, leading the NFL with 11.5 sacks, celebrating the first year the league officially counted the statistic. He recorded his lone career interception, one of two forced fumbles on the season and 3.0 sacks in a 34-31 win at Detroit on Dec. 19, to help the Vikings make the playoffs, which used a modified format because of the shortened season.
London Logistics
In August 1983, Martin and the Vikings met the St. Louis Cardinals in London for the NFL's first international exhibition game. Martin encountered logistical hurdles after accidentally leaving his passport at training camp. Although Mankato served as a great "summer home" for the Vikings from 1966-2017, it was not near as quick of a trek as Minnesota's current headquarters, which reside in the flightpath for MSP.
While teammates and the Cardinals charter flights arrived Friday in London, Martin purchased his own commercial ticket for "a little over $500" and departed MSP Friday evening. He arrived in the United Kingdom about 9:30 a.m. British Summer Time, roughly eight hours before kickoff at Wembley Stadium.
Jet lag compounded the experience for Martin when he suffered a sprained ankle in the game. He told Doug Grow of the Star Tribune, "When I turned it, I was thinking to myself, 'Why did I come all the way here to do this?' I'll just be glad when this whole weekend is over and I can get back to Mankato where it's safe."
Asked if Martin would be fined for missing the charter, Hall of Fame Head Coach Bud Grant quipped, "I don't have passports covered."
Recalibrating
Martin had a much better experience two weeks later when Minnesota visited Seattle to continue its preseason slate, returning Martin to the Pacific Northwest, an area he grew to love while in college. Martin fished the waters for salmon and enjoyed spending time in the 1983 offseason rebuilding classic Chevy trucks from the late '40s and early '50s.
He followed by trucking QBs with a career-best 13 sacks in 1983 in the final season of Grant's first tenure with Minnesota.
Martin and others endured the 1984 season under first-year Head Coach Les Steckel, universally viewed as the roughest in franchise history with a 3-13 mark, and helped Grant return for one more campaign in 1985. What appeared to be helping restore order to the franchise in that season wound up being an important step toward a flourishing run under Head Coach Jerry Burns and Defensive Coordinator Floyd Peters for Martin's final four NFL seasons.
Martin won NFC Player of the Month honors in September 1986, recording 3.0 sacks, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery across four games in which the Vikings went 3-1 and outscored opponents 106-37.
"It's nice to be recognized, but being honored really doesn't mean anything until the season is over," Martin was quoted in the Duluth News Tribune in October 1986. "I think I'm playing better than ever. I know the game better, and I'm more aggressive. But down the road, when there's nothing else to think about, that's when the awards mean something."
Peters, who played defensive tackle for more than a decade in the NFL and coached George in 1975, said the following of Martin in that story: "Doug is a leader in a quiet way. Some guys are rah-rah guys. Some, like Doug Martin, work hard to show people how things should be done. He's an active man, and you can tell he's enjoying himself."
Martin combined with Chris Doleman and bookended Keith Millard and Henry Thomas for the 1987 squad that made its way to the NFC Championship Game.
Vikings Ring of Honor linebacker Scott Studwell teamed with Martin for the defensive end's entire NFL career (1980-89). Studwell described Martin as a "solid, tough, really talented guy."
"Tough to hear about Doug — he's a great guy," Studwell said. "He was a huge part of any success we had, and you could count on him. He was a great player and a better man. We will miss him."
Martin concluded the '80s in Purple, finishing his career with 61.5 sacks across 94 starts in 126 regular-season games. He also started six of his seven playoff games for Minnesota.
His 61.5 sacks ranked fourth in franchise history when Martin retired, trailing only Carl Eller, Marshall and Page, and the total still ranks ninth all-time.
View 2026 Free Agency Tracker.
See the Vikings 2026 Opponents.
Check out the Vikings 2026 Draft Picks.
View future opponents for the Vikings.
Buy single game tickets.
Download the official Vikings App.
