Former Vikings Linebacker Matt Blair to be Inducted Into the Vikings Ring of Honor

The Minnesota Vikings announced this week they will be inducting former linebacker Matt Blair as the 20th member of the Vikings Ring of Honor in a ceremony this fall.

Blair was drafted at #51 overall in the second round of the 1974 NFL Draft. During his career, he started 130 games and played in a total of 160 games through his career. He ranks second all-time in Vikings history with 1,454 career tackles. He also holds the distinction of most interceptions (16) and most sacks (23) for any Vikings linebacker.

Reflecting on his career, Blair was asked about the most memorable moment in his career. He responded by saying the following:

There are a lot of memories, what about this (broken) finger here (laughs). There are a lot of them, just making the team was the main thing. The one, I think, is in the Super Bowl, which didn’t hit me until after I retired, I blocked a kick for our only points in the Super Bowl. Now people are saying, you’re the one who gave us the score, and that’s one of my things that I think about and just think, “Wow, I was able to do that.”

Since retiring, the All-Pro linebacker has taken up another sport. He explained that he has participated in a number of golf events, and golfing tends to occupy a lot of his time lately.

Blair will join many Vikings greats, including Randall McDaniel, Carl Eller, and Bud Grant. Here is the full list of Ring of Honor inductees:

• Fran Tarkenton 1998
• Alan Page 1998
• Jim Finks 1998
• Bud Grant 1998
• Paul Krause 1998
• Fred Zamberletti 1998
• Jim Marshall 1999
• Ron Yary 2001
• Korey Stringer 2001
• Mick Tinglehoff 2001
• Carl Eller 2002
• Cris Carter 2003
• Bill Brown 2004
• Jerry Burns 2005
• Randall McDaniel 2006
• Chuck Foreman 2007
• John Randle 2008
• Scott Studwell 2009
• Chris Doleman 2011
• Matt Blair 2012

The ceremony inducting Blair into the Vikings Ring of Honor will take place on Thursday, October 25 at halftime during the Vikings-Buccaneers game at the Metrodome.