The Game Before the Money Radio Show shared outstanding football records. In this post, we talk about the NFL Quarterback with the most interceptions in a single game.
NFL Quarterback with Most Interceptions in Single Game
One record that stood out to me is a record that was set in 1950, and that’s most interceptions in an NFL game. Who threw the most interceptions in a game? The quarterback’s name is Jim Hardy. He threw eight interceptions as the Chicago Cardinals quarterback against Philadelphia. That was in Week Two of the 1950 NFL season. As you can imagine, the Eagles crushed the Cardinals that day, 45-7, only a couple of years after those teams had met in back-to-back NFL championship games.
According to the New York Times summary of the game, Hardy also fumbled a couple of times. Just not a good day for Jim Hardy.
1950s Browns vs. Eagles Game
Now for all of you NFL history majors out there, that Eagles vs. Cardinals game was the week after the famous Cleveland Browns vs. Philadelphia game that opened up the 1950 NFL season. The Eagles were embarrassed by the Browns, 35-10.
Embed from Getty ImagesThat Browns vs. Eagles game was a huge deal because the Browns came over to the NFL from a league called the All-American Conference. A lot of people didn’t think it was as good as the National Football League, and the Browns had won the championship every year in the All-American Conference. People didn’t expect Cleveland to do very well against the reigning NFL champion Eagles. However, the Browns came out and crushed them.
Jim Hardy Rebounds with 6 Touchdowns
As Hall of Famer Charley Trippi told me, there’s an old saying in football that “you don’t want to play against a team that was upset the week before because they’re going to come out angry and with a vengeance, and things like this can happen.” The week following that embarrassing loss to the Browns, the angry Eagles had eight interceptions on the day against Jim Hardy at quarterback for the Chicago Cardinals.
Embed from Getty ImagesSo that’s how the Eagles rebounded from that loss to the Browns in Week One. How did Jim Hardy respond to his game against the Eagles? He was still the Cardinals starting quarterback the next week when they faced the Baltimore Colts. And you know what? Jim Hardy threw six touchdowns against the Colts after setting the record for most interceptions the week before!
Jim Hardy’s six touchdown passes set a Cardinals team record for most passing TDs in a single game. His record has since been tied twice, both times by Cardinals quarterback Charley Johnson.
From Lowest Interception Percentage to Most Interceptions
It is ironic that Jim Hardy holds the NFL’s all-time record for most interceptions in a single game because, according to pro football reference, in 1948, he had the lowest interception percentage of all NFL quarterbacks. He only threw seven that entire season. So he threw more in one game than he did in that 1948 season when he led the National Football League with the lowest interception percentage.
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