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Originally Posted by BB73
Jim Hart wasn't bad, if a starting QB up until 1981 is considered 'modern'. He accounted for 225 TD's.
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Jim Hart wasn't "bad," but he wasn't necessarily "good" either. He was "there," for 199 games to be exact. The St. Louis/Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals have won a grand total of two
division titles since they last won an NFL championship 60 years ago. Hart led them to those two titles in 1974 and 1975. That's two division crowns in 18 years with the franchise.
Jim Hart's numbers are a product of his longevity, nothing more. Of his 225 total TDs, 16 of them were rushing; 213 career rushing yards with the Cards -- to go along with his 66 fumbles. He threw 209 TDs against 247 INTs. He owns a 51% overall career completion mark. The only time he ever led any single statistical category among his peers was in passing
attempts.
As far as the franchise recordbook is concerned, Hart doesn't have any single outstanding season or even a 'signature' game to hang his hat on. Some one-year QB rentals have arguably had more successful tenures with the Cardinals, such as Steve Beuerlein and Boomer Esiason.
It doesn't take much to cement yourself among the legends when the benchmark for your franchise doesn't even include winning your own division.
EDIT: This is actually pretty funny. QBs for the Cardinals franchise, going all the way back to their days in Chicago, hold a grand total of two NFL records:
Passes had intercepted in one game: 8, Jim Hardy vs. Philadelphia, 1950
Longest pass play not to result in TD: 98 yards, Jim Hart to Ahmad Rashad, 1972