Jim Zorn
Seattle Seahawks
James
Zorn played college football at tiny Cal Poly Pomona. Zorn was one of
the free agents in the Seahawks initial training camp. He battled his
way through the competition and was rewarded by being designated the
team's starting quarterback. He started for the Seattle Seahawks for the
franchise’s first seven seasons.
In his rookie season, Zorn passed for 2,571 yards, breaking both former
Buffalo quarterback Dennis Shaw's 1970 rookie passing record of 2,507
yards and Fran Tarkenton's expansion team passing yardage record of
1,997 set with Minnesota in 1961. Zorn also threw for 12 touchdowns, had
five 200 yard-plus days, and finished in a tie with running back Don
Testerman as the club's second-leading rusher with 246 yards on 52
carries (a 4.7 yard average) and four touchdowns. Despite Seattle's 2-12
finish, Zorn was named AFC Offensive Rookie of the Year after the
1976-77 season.
He was Seattle’s only starter until being replaced by Dave Krieg midway
through the 1983 season, the Seahawks' first playoff campaign. After
playing for the Seahawks, Zorn played one season with the Green Bay
Packers (1985), another with the Canadian Football League's Winnipeg
Blue Bombers (1986), and one with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1987).
Zorn became only the third quarterback in NFL history to pass for more
than 10,000 yards in his first four seasons, joining Joe Namath and Norm
Snead. He passed for 20,122 yards during his nine years with the club,
and had 107 touchdown passes.
