The NFL world was hit with some tragic news on Tuesday morning as news broke that legendary quarterback Joe Kapp had passed away at the age of 85 years old.
Kapp suffered from Alzheimer’s disease in recent years and his son, J.J. Kapp, wrote in an email to the San Francisco Chronicle that his father died “after a 15-year battle with dementia,” which his family speculates was due in part to the extremely physical way he played the game of football – even as a quarterback.
It’s safe to say that Kapp had quite a successful career wherever he went, leading the B.C. Lions to a Grey Cup title in the CFL before taking the Minnesota Vikings to a Super Bowl appearance where his team fell to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl IV.
Kapp even has an NFL passing record that still stands today, throwing seven touchdown passes in one game back in 1969. Nobody has ever eclipsed that record, but it is currently shared by seven others, including Peyton Manning, Nick Foles, and Drew Brees.
He had a legendary football career, and plenty of people took to social media to mourn his passing.
RIP, Joe Kapp. The Toughest Chicano.
His parents were lettuce pickers in Salinas. Before he was a Super Bowl quarterback, he learned to throw by tossing lettuce in those fields.
2 years after Super Bowl season where he finished 2nd in MVP, the NFL essentially black balled him. pic.twitter.com/5dWeVYReho
— Roberto José Andrade Franco (@R_AndradeFranco) May 9, 2023
Kapp left a lasting legacy and will certainly never be forgotten.
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