Fran Tarkenton on Jim Marshall: "He was the greatest leader . . . I've ever played with"

Vikings legend Jim Marshall died on Tuesday, at the age of 87. In a video posted earlier today, Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton remembered Marshall and his impact on the franchise.

“My great friend and teammate Jim Marshall died yesterday,” Tarkenton said. “1961 was the first year of the Minnesota Vikings, long time ago. And on that team was Jim Marshall and Fran Tarkenton. He was the greatest leader in football that I’ve ever played with. In all the years of the Vikings, from 1961 to now, there’s never been a player-leader like Jim Marshall.

“He’s the face of the Vikings. He’s the soul of the Vikings. He played in Minnesota eighteen . . . years. He never missed a practice. He never missed a game. He was the ultimate defensive end. He played with strength and smarts. . . . He never had a bad day. I never saw him angry. He just made his teammates better. . . . He’s the ultimate role model.

“I didn’t think that he would ever die. I guess I was wrong. But he will be alive in the heart and soul of everybody who’s come by him. Rest in peace, my friend. You set the standards. The Vikings would never be anything like they are without you.”

For those of us who discovered football in the ‘70s, Marshall was a god among men. A man who seemed to be indestructible.

It’s easy to understand why Fran didn’t think Marshall would ever die. He seemed larger than life. He was larger than life, especially for kids like me who were indoctrinated into the game by the slow-motion images captured by NFL Films and presented with striking and memorable voices belonging to the likes of John Facenda and Harry Kalas.

Fifty years ago, the NFL sold itself as modern-day mythology. And it worked, incredibly well.

Especially as to Jim Marshall and the rest of the Purple People Eaters defense.

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