15 all-time greatest draft picks in Arizona Cardinals history
The 3rd-best Arizona Cardinals draft pick ever: Jim Hart
Southern Illinois. 32. Career Stats. QB. JimHart. 3. player. Pick Analysis
Not many Arizona Cardinals fans born after 1990 are probably going to know who Jim Hart is and his significance to the Cardinals franchise. But, just like Bakken, Hart wasn’t technically picked by the Cardinals.
The Cardinals coach at the time was Don Shroyer, and he was the one who invited Hart to a tryout. As a result, Hart was signed after the 1966 NFL Draft. Hart would go on to become the Cardinals’ all-time leading passer, with 34,639 yards and 209 touchdowns.
Hart was the maestro of the “Air Coryell” and “Cardiac Cardinals” offenses of the mid-1970s, in which the Cardinals lit up the scoreboard during those years. From 1974 to 1977, Hart made four-straight Pro Bowl rosters while making it to the playoffs just twice in those four years.
Hart stayed on the roster and was with the team when they made the playoffs in 1982 and would remain through the end of the 1983 season. Hart then spent one year in Washington before retiring from the NFL for good in 1984.
Hart gets this spot because he’s untouchable. Adding Carson Palmer’s and Jake Plummer’s passing yards together still leaves space between them and Hart. Hart is currently 82 years old.