Nerf football inventor, ex-Vikings kicker Fred Cox dies at age 80
Millions of childhood backyard football memories can be credited to a former NFL kicker who helped create one of the most lasting and beloved toys ever invented.
Fred Cox, who kicked 15 years for the Minnesota Vikings in the 1960s and 1970s and is the franchise’s all-time leading scorer, died on Wednesday just a few weeks before his 81st birthday.
Cox also brought the idea of a softer backyard football for kids to play with to Parker Brothers while he was still with the Vikings in 1969. Eventually, the toy football became known as Nerf, and the rest is history. It would go on to become one of the most popular toys of all time and gain international recognition, with annual revenues still in the hundreds of millions to this day.