#45
FRAN TARKENTON
Fran Tarkenton was drafted in the third round out of the University of Georgia during the Minnesota Vikings’ initial draft in 1961. Even for that era, Tarkenton was considered small for the quarterback position. At an even 6 feet and 185 pounds (numbers that were likely overstated), Tarkenton had a difficult time seeing over bigger defensive linemen when protection started to break down. So he did the only logical thing. He took matters into his own hands and left the pocket when it was necessary.
Sometimes Tarkenton would scramble left and throw, sometimes he would scramble right and throw, and sometimes he would take off and run. The style was effective and thrilling to the fans, but it annoyed Vikings head coach Norm Van Brocklin, who himself had been a Hall of Fame quarterback with the Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles. Van Brocklin thought a quarterback needed to stay in the pocket to be effective and never truly appreciated Tarkenton’s gifts. These gifts were plentiful, and Tarkenton put them on display immediately. His first game was the team’s debut against George Halas’s powerful Chicago Bears in 1961. Instead of playing tentatively and getting pounded by their legendary opponent, Tarkenton relieved ineffective starting quarterback George Shaw early in the game and threw four touchdown passes and ran for a another to lead the Vikings to a stunning 37–13 win. No expansion team had ever had such an impressive performance in its first game, before or since.
Tarkenton was a great leader who helped make the Vikings an exciting team in their early years, even if they did suffer the normal growing pains of an expansion team. His ability to escape pressure and buy time to throw gave his receivers the chance to break containment and get open. Tarkenton made huge plays that would sometimes take 10 to 15 seconds to develop. NFL Films has reels and reels of such Tarkenton highlights at its disposal.
Tarkenton was nearly indestructible despite his small frame. He played nearly every game from 1961 through 1976 despite a slew of painful injuries that began to take their toll. However, the only serious injury he suffered in his career was a broken ankle in the 1977 season when he was hit by Cincinnati’s Gary Burley. Tarkenton came back the following year, but his career came to an unceremonious end when Minnesota dropped a 34–10 decision to the Rams in the divisional playoffs.
But between his brilliant opening act and quiet finale was a brilliant 18-year career that included 13 seasons with the Vikings and five with the New York Giants. When he retired, the 1975 league MVP left holding several notable records, including most games played by a quarterback (246), most passing yards (47,003), most touchdown passes (342), most completions (3,686), most attempts (6,647), and most rushing yards by a quarterback (3,674). While Miami’s Dan Marino went on to break most of these marks, all of Tarkenton’s records lasted at least a decade. More than 30 years after his retirement, he still stands third all-time in touchdown passes, fifth in passing yards, eighth in completions, and fourth in rushing yards by a quarterback.
Tarkenton’s style that was criticized by Van Brocklin was appreciated by his successor, Bud Grant. When Tarkenton came back to the Vikings for the final third of his career in 1972, he was a respected veteran who had suffered with some very bad Giants teams. He compiled a 33–37 record over five seasons in New York, and the team’s failure to manage even one spot in the postseason frustrated Tarkenton. However, if not for his presence on the team, the Giants would have been far worse. The Giants had few other stars besides Tarkenton in those days and he earned every one of those 33 wins in New York.
By 1972, the Vikings were a full-fledged NFL power. Quarterback Gary Cuozzo had led them to 12–2 and 11–3 records in 1970 and 1971, but the Vikes had been bounced out of the playoffs in the first round by the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys, respectively. Cuozzo was an effective quarterback, but when it came to rallying his teams and making a statement in the postseason, he simply lacked that ability. The Vikings went back to their roots and traded Norm Snead, Bob Grim, Vince Clements, and a first-round draft pick to re-acquire Tarkenton from the Giants.
It was a great move for Tarkenton, who was going from one of the saddest teams in the league to one of the most powerful. While the 1972 season was nothing special at 7–7, the Vikings would go to the playoffs the following six years with Tarkenton.
Chicago Bears linebacker Doug Buffone faced Tarkenton twice a year after his trade back to Minnesota, and the experience always left him drained. “You were never so tired after a game as when you were playing against Tarkenton,” Buffone said. “He was so quick you couldn’t catch him. Normally with a pocket passer, you have to cover a back or tight end two or three seconds before he gets rid of the ball. But with Tarkenton, you had to cover a guy, I don’t know, five seconds or more. That’s because he was running around and you could never catch him.”
By buying an extraordinary amount of time, Tarkenton didn’t necessarily have to zip the ball to his receiver. “He would be running around back there and you didn’t know whether to stay with your guy or go after Tarkenton,” Buffone said. “Enough time goes by and you go after him. He sees an open running back and he shot puts the ball over your head and he’s got another completion. It was so frustrating.”
The Vikings went to three Super Bowls with Tarkenton but did not win any of them. Tarkenton did not distinguish himself with his play in those games, but all three of the opponents the Vikings lost to—the Pittsburgh Steelers, Miami Dolphins, and Oakland Raiders—were legendary teams that earned a spot in NFL folklore for their accomplishments. It would have taken superhuman efforts to beat the Dolphins or Raiders, and moving the ball against Pittsburgh’s “Steel Curtain” defense was nearly impossible.
Tarkenton’s legacy is not one of a quarterback who started and lost three Super Bowls. It is one of innovation and creativity. His style launched a new philosophy in the NFL that is still the norm and likely to remain so for a long time. Most quarterbacks may not be able to run like Tarkenton, but they all have to buy time with their feet in order to give their receivers time to make a play.