On This Date: Jim Bakken Kicks 7 Field Goals and Outscores the Steelers by Himself (Sept. 24, 1967)
Sept. 24, 1967: Cardinals kicker Jim Bakken made 7 field goals on 9 tries at Pitt Stadium, an NFL record, and scored 22 points to the Steelers' 14.
On Sept. 24, 1967, a St. Louis Cardinals kicker walked into Pitt Stadium and scored more points than the entire Pittsburgh Steelers team.
Jim Bakken kicked 7 field goals that afternoon, an NFL record, and tried 9. The Cardinals won 28-14. Bakken scored 22 of those points.
The kicker nobody wanted
A 7th-round pick the Rams cut.
Bakken grew up in Madison, Wis., played quarterback and punted at the University of Wisconsin, and was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the 7th round in 1962. The Rams let him go. The Cardinals picked him up that same year.
He kicked straight-ahead, toe first, the way nearly everyone had since the leather-helmet days. Soccer-style kickers were just starting to show up in pro football. Bakken never switched.
An underdog on a windy day
The Cardinals were 10-point underdogs.
It was week 2. St. Louis had lost its opener to the Giants, and its starting quarterback, Charley Johnson, was on military duty. Jim Hart started instead. The wind at Pitt Stadium was blowing hard.
Hart ran 23 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter, the only one St. Louis scored all day. After that, it was Bakken.
7 for 9
18, 24, 33, 29, 24, 32 and 23 yards.
He kicked 2 in the first quarter, 18 and 24 yards. Then 2 more in the second, from 33 and 29. Then 3 in the fourth, from 24, 32 and 23. He missed from 50 and 45.
The 7th nearly didn't happen. Bakken's regular holder, safety Larry Wilson, hurt his hand late in the game, and flanker Bobby Joe Conrad took over. Bakken said afterward that he knew about the record, and on the 7th kick he looked up too early to see if it was good and almost missed the ball.
Final: Cardinals 28, Steelers 14. Bakken: 7 field goals and 1 extra point, 22 points. Pittsburgh: 14.
The next morning's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette couldn't resist: "Steelers Lose to Cards 'Bakken' Up, 28-14." The Steelers had also fumbled 5 times and thrown 3 interceptions, which gave Bakken plenty of chances.
A record that lasted 40 years
Tied 3 times, not broken until 2007.
Rich Karlis of the Vikings tied it in 1989. Chris Boniol of the Cowboys tied it in 1996, and Billy Cundiff of the Cowboys did it again in 2003. Nobody made 8 until Rob Bironas of the Titans on Oct. 21, 2007, 40 years later.
Bakken is still the only straight-ahead kicker to make 7 in a game.
The kicker still waiting on Canton
17 seasons, 234 straight games, 1,380 points.
Bakken led the NFL in scoring in 1967 with 117 points. He kicked for the Cardinals through 1978, played 234 consecutive games, went to 4 Pro Bowls and was named to the NFL's All-Decade teams for both the 1960s and the 1970s. When he retired, only George Blanda had scored more points in NFL history.
He's not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. His holder that day, Larry Wilson, went in in 1978.
Should Jim Bakken be in Canton? Tell us in the comments.
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