
DOG COMMENTARY:
Francis Asbury “Fran” Tarkenton is a former National Football League (NFL) quarterback, television personality, and computer software executive. He played in the NFL for 18 seasons and spent the majority of his career with the Minnesota Vikings….spanning 14 non-consecutive seasons….first playing with the team for six seasons from 1961 to 1966….then after four years with the NY Giants…..for seven seasons from 1972 to 1978. At the time of his retirement, Tarkenton owned every major quarterback record….and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1986.
The Minnesota Vikings drafted Tarkenton in the third round of the 1961 NFL Draft….and he was picked in the fifth round of the 1961 AFL draft by the Boston Patriots. He signed with the Vikings and played his first NFL game (and the Vikings’ first game) on September 17 against the Chicago Bears….coming off the bench to lead the Vikings to a come-from-behind victory by passing for 250 yards and four touchdown passes and running for another as the Vikings defeated the Bears 37–13. He was the only player in NFL history to pass for four touchdowns in his first NFL game….until the feat was repeated by Marcus Mariota in the Tennessee Titans’ 2015 season opener versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Tarkenton was traded to the New York Giants in 1967….and in his first game of the 1969 season against his former team….when after trailing 23–10 in the fourth quarter,….he threw two touchdown passes to secure a 24–23 comeback victory. Tarkenton was traded back to Minnesota in 1972 for three players plus a first and second round draft choice.….where he led the Vikings to three Super Bowls in the 1970s….sadly, losingall of them.