Craig Morton
| Craig Morton | |
|---|---|
| Position(s): Quarterback |
Jersey #: 7 (Denver),14 (Dallas/NYG) |
| Date of birth: February 5 1943 | |
Place of birth:  Flint, Michigan |
|
| Career information | |
| NFL Draft: 1965 / Round: 1 / Pick 5 | |
| College: California | |
| Career highlights | |
| Awards | 1977 NFL Comeback POY |
| Teams | |
| 1965-1974 1974-1976 1977-1982 |
Dallas Cowboys New York Giants Denver Broncos |
| Stats at DatabaseFootball.com | |
| College Football Hall of Fame | |
Larry Craig Morton (born February 5, 1943 in Flint, Michigan) was an American football quarterback in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, and the Denver Broncos. Morton played college football at University of California, Berkeley.
Morton is the only quarterback in NFL history to lead two different teams to the Super Bowl (Dallas in 1970 and Denver in 1977).[citation needed] He would later serve as head coach of the USFL's Denver Gold.
Morton was a downfield passer not known for his mobility, and is one of the all time leaders in yards per completion. He also briefly held the record for the most passes completed in a row.
Morton's best statistical season came in his 17th season (1981) when he threw for over 3,000 yards and 20 Touchdowns, compiling an excellent 90.5 Passer Rating. Craig was selected All-AFC after the 1977 season by The Sporting News.
Morton was an All-American his Senior season (1964) at Cal and selected by Dallas in the
first round of the 1965 NFL Draft. He was also inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1992. Morton is a notable
graduate of Campbell High School.
Morton is currently a voter in the Harris Interactive College Poll, a component of college football's Bowl Championship Series.
Morton was inducted into the Denver Broncos Ring of Fame in 1988. To most football fans outside of Denver, he is perhaps best known to younger fans for wearing no. 7 in Denver just before John Elway's arrival in 1983, the year after Morton retired.
Career statistics
Regular season
| Year | Team | Passing | Rushing | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Att | Comp | Yds | TD | Int | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | ||
| 1965 | dal | 34 | 17 | 173 | 2 | 4 | 3 | -8 | -2.67 | 0 |
| 1966 | dal | 27 | 13 | 225 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 50 | 7.14 | 0 |
| 1967 | dal | 137 | 69 | 978 | 10 | 10 | 15 | 42 | 2.8 | 0 |
| 1968 | dal | 85 | 44 | 752 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 28 | 7 | 2 |
| 1969 | dal | 302 | 162 | 2619 | 21 | 15 | 16 | 62 | 3.88 | 1 |
| 1970 | dal | 207 | 102 | 1819 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 37 | 2.31 | 0 |
| 1971 | dal | 143 | 78 | 1131 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 9 | 2.25 | 1 |
| 1972 | dal | 339 | 185 | 2396 | 15 | 21 | 8 | 26 | 3.25 | 2 |
| 1973 | dal | 32 | 13 | 174 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1974 | dal | 2 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1974 | nyg | 237 | 122 | 1510 | 9 | 13 | 4 | 5 | 1.25 | 0 |
| 1975 | nyg | 363 | 186 | 2359 | 11 | 16 | 22 | 72 | 3.27 | 0 |
| 1976 | nyg | 284 | 153 | 1865 | 9 | 20 | 15 | 48 | 3.2 | 0 |
| 1977 | den | 254 | 131 | 1929 | 14 | 8 | 31 | 125 | 4.03 | 4 |
| 1978 | den | 267 | 146 | 1802 | 11 | 8 | 17 | 71 | 4.18 | 0 |
| 1979 | den | 370 | 204 | 2626 | 16 | 19 | 23 | 13 | 0.57 | 1 |
| 1980 | den | 301 | 183 | 2150 | 12 | 13 | 21 | 29 | 1.38 | 1 |
| 1981 | den | 376 | 225 | 3195 | 21 | 14 | 8 | 18 | 2.25 | 0 |
| 1982 | den | 26 | 18 | 193 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 3786 | 2053 | 27908 | 183 | 187 | 215 | 627 | 2.92 | 12 | |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | Opp | Result | Comp | Att | Yds | TD | Int | Rusing Att | Yds | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Dallas | Cleveland | L,14-38 | 24 | 8 | 95 | 0 | 2 | -- | -- | -- |
| 1970 | Dallas | Detroit | W,5-0 | 18 | 4 | 38 | 0 | 1 | -- | -- | -- |
| 1970 | Dallas | San Francisco | W,17-0 | 22 | 7 | 101 | 1 | 0 | -- | -- | -- |
| *1970 | Dallas | Baltimore | L,13-16 | 12 | 26 | 127 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 1972 | Dallas | San Francisco | W,30-28 | 8 | 21 | 96 | 1 | 2 | -- | -- | -- |
| 1972 | Dallas | Washington | L,3-26 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1977 | Denver | Pittsburgh | W,34-21 | 11 | 23 | 164 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 1977 | Denver | Oakland | W,20-17 | 10 | 20 | 224 | 2 | 1 | 2 | -4 | 0 |
| *1977 | Denver | Dallas | L,10-27 | 4 | 15 | 39 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1978 | Denver | Pittsburgh | L,10-33 | 3 | 5 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1979 | Denver | Houston | L,7-13 | 14 | 27 | 144 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Preceded by Don Meredith |
Dallas Cowboys Starting Quarterbacks 1969-1970 |
Succeeded by Roger Staubach |
| Preceded by Norm Snead |
New York Giants Starting Quarterbacks 1974-76 |
Succeeded by Joe Pisarcik |
| Preceded by Steve Ramsey (football player) |
Denver Broncos Starting Quarterbacks 1977-1982 |
Succeeded by Steve Deberg |
| Preceded by Greg Landry |
NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award 1977 |
Succeeded by John Riggins |
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