On September 4th, 1990, the Minnesota Vikings took an extremely low-risk gamble, placing a $100 waiver claim on wide receiver Cris Carter, who was released by the Philadelphia Eagles the day before, primarily due to ongoing substance abuse issues.
Carter had played three seasons in Philadelphia, starting 31 games and totaling 89 receptions for 1,450 yards and 19 touchdowns–including 11 touchdowns in 1989.
Head coach Buddy Ryan didn’t think he fit in their plans for 1990 though:
“I felt he didn’t have the kind of speed we need. He made some big plays for us last year inside the 20 but he didn’t make some others that we needed. He wasn’t doing the job in the preseason. He wasn’t running his routes correctly. I just felt that he wasn’t in my plans.”
Carter famously cleaned up his act in Minnesota–and after waiting in the wings in 1990, he started to break out in 1991 with 72 catches for 962 yards. After missing four games in 1992, he went on a stretch of 8 straight years of over 1,000 yards receiving from 1993-2000 (and Pro Bowl appearances), leading the league in targets (188) and catches (122) in 1994, and leading the league in touchdowns in 1995 (17), 1997 (13) and 1999 (13).
After one more full season for the Vikings in 2001, in which he failed to cross the 1,000 yard mark, he finished his Hall of Fame career in 2002 with 5 games for the Miami Dolphins.
For their $100 waiver wire investment, the Vikings netted 12 years, 1,004 receptions, 12,383 yards and 110 touchdowns.