Jerry Jones thanks Herschel Walker in Hall of Fame speech

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones speaks next to a bust of him during inductions at the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, Aug. 5, 2017, in Canton, Ohio.

Credit: Ron Schwane

Credit: Ron Schwane

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones speaks next to a bust of him during inductions at the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, Aug. 5, 2017, in Canton, Ohio.

Herschel Walker played a big role in the Dallas Cowboys' Super Bowl heydays of the 1990s.

And Hall of Fame owner Jerry Jones knows it.

Jones, in his induction speech into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Saturday in Canton, Ohio, acknowledged Walker in a big way.

"I want to mention Herschel Walker. Herschel did not have to accept the trade that sent him to Minnesota for the draft picks that allowed us to really build the Dallas Cowboys. But he did. We worked it out. He later returned to the Cowboys. But the thing I want to thank him for — and why I'm so indebted to him — is the willingness to help us have ammo to build a great team. Herschel, I'll always thank you very much."

The Georgia football legend was a centerpiece of a trade that on Oct. 12, 1989, sent the star running back and four picks to Minnesota in exchange for five players and eight draft picks. The Cowboys, in turn, used those picks to draft dynasty cornerstones Emmitt Smith, Darren Woodson and Alvin Harper.

Without Walker’s approval of the trade, the Super Bowl wins that brought Jones to Canton may have never happened.

Walker returned to the Cowboys in the 1995 season

See the portion of the speech here.