Honor the Heroes of the Game, Preserve Its History, Promote its Values & Celebrate Excellence Together!
At the time of his retirement in 1973, Johnny Unitas, the superstar quarterback of the Baltimore Colts, held virtually every career passing record that existed in the National Football League. Since that time, some of those records have been surpassed.
One record, however, stood out among the many. He threw a touchdown pass in 47 straight games, a string that stood unchallenged for a half century until Drew Brees of the New Orleans Saints broke it.
TOP 5 TD STREAKS
1. Drew Brees (54) 2. Tom Brady (52) 3. Johnny Unitas (47) 4. Brett Favre (36) 5. Dan Marino (30)
By completing 697 passes for 10,645 yards and 102 touchdowns during the 47-game string, Unitas quickly became recognized as one of the greatest quarterbacks to play the game. Seven different Colts were on the receiving end of his scoring passes, but Hall of Famers Raymond Berry with 38 TD catches, and Lenny Moore with 27, were Unitas' favorite targets.
After a record-filled 18-year career, and three championships, Unitas himself was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1979. His full uniform is on display at the Hall as well as the football he threw to surpass 40,000 passing yards.