The NFL staff at Bleacher Report recently rolled out its annual rankings of the top 99 quarterbacks in NFL history, and the Minnesota Vikings were certainly well-represented, as an even dozen signal-callers on the list rocked the Purple & Gold at one point or another during their respective careers.
Many of the names you'll see below, of course, made their way into these rankings with the success they found with other franchises. I mean, does anyone actually consider Archie Manning or Jim McMahon to be an all-time Vikings great? Certainly not. But again, every name you'll see below called Minnesota home at some point.
- No. 87, Norm Snead (1971)
- No. 86, Archie Manning (1983-1984)
- No. 85, Brad Johnson (1994-1998, 2005-2006)
- No. 81, Jim McMahon (1993)
- No. 78, Daunte Culpepper (1999-2005)
- No. 71, Kirk Cousins (2018-2023)
- No. 50, Rich Gannon (1987-1992)
- No. 42, Donovan McNabb (2011)
- No. 39, Randall Cunningham (1997-1999)
- No. 21, Warren Moon (1994-1996)
- No. 7, Brett Favre (2009-2010)
You've undoubtedly noticed that we only listed 11 names there, as we wanted to give some special attention to the undeniable greatest quarterback in Vikings history, that being none other than the legendary Fran Tarkenton, who landed at No. 13.
Just being considered one of the 13 best QBs of all time is obviously a tremendous honor, as it clearly recognizes everything he accomplished. But when you take a closer look at the top of the list, Tarkenton's placement looks even better because of the big thing he didn't do.
Fran Tarkenton took the Minnesota Vikings to three Super Bowls but never won one
Before we go any further, I want you to take a quick look at the top 20 on the B/R list and pinpoint the one big thing that most of these quarterbacks have in common.
- Tom Brady
- Joe Montana
- Peyton Manning
- Patrick Mahomes
- Aaron Rodgers
- John Elway
- Brett Favre
- Drew Brees
- Steve Young
- Dan Marino
- Johnny Unitas
- Otto Graham
- Fran Tarkenton
- Bart Starr
- Terry Bradshaw
- Ben Roethlisberger
- Roger Staubach
- Kurt Warner
- Troy Aikman
- Matthew Stafford
As you likely guessed, the answer is that the vast majority of these 20 won at least one Super Bowl or NFL Championship, with more than half doing so on multiple occasions.
In fact, Tarkenton is one of only two in this top 20 not to have won a title, the only other being Miami Dolphins legend Dan Marino, who came in at No. 10. And that's what makes their inclusion so special, as championships clearly had a significant impact on the top of the list, which certainly makes plenty of sense.
But again, that's why Tarkenton's placement is extraordinary, as the impact he had on the game as a whole and his overall talent were rightfully recognized.
And make no mistake about it; his talent was undeniable. While dual-threat quarterbacks are everywhere now, that wasn't the case back in Tarkenton's day in the '60s and '70s. And the fact that his 3,674 rushing yards still rank ninth among every QB in NFL history is nothing short of remarkable.
But don't think he was all legs, as his 47,003 passing yards over 18 years with the Vikings and New York Giants still rank 15th all-time, with his 342 touchdown passes still good for 13th.
And as Vikings fans well know, Tarkenton did get close to bringing a Lombardi Trophy to the Twin Cities, leading Minnesota to three Super Bowl appearances in the four-season stretch from 1973 to 1976, unfortunately losing all three.