Thomas Scott "Tim" Van Galder (May 26, 1944 – January 26, 2022) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) with the St. Louis Cardinals (1967, 1971–1972) and the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

(1973). He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

and baseball at Iowa State University and the New Mexico Military Institute. While at Iowa State he earned all Big Eight Conference honors in both sports. He was later a sportscaster on St. Louis television. Van Galder was born in

Racine, Wisconsin Racine ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located on the shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Root River. Racine is situated 22 miles (35 km) south of Milwaukee and approximately 60 ...

on May 26, 1944. Although drafted in 1966 by the Cardinals he spent most of his first 3 seasons on their taxi squad, only being briefly activated but not playing in 1967. His first NFL action came on opening day of 1972 when he started at quarterback for the Cardinals and led them to a 10–3 victory over the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from its founding in 1953 to 1984. The team now plays in Indianapolis, as the Indianapolis Colts. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breed ...

. He started 4 more games for the Cardinals that season but the Cardinals did not win any of them; he missed several games with a

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness (LOC); memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration, ...

suffered in game 3, and he ended the season with a 34.5 quarterback rating on 79 passes (with 7 interceptions). He was waived by the Cardinals and picked up by the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...

before the 1973 season to replace the injured

Virgil Carter Virgil R. Carter (born November 9, 1945) is a former professional American football quarterback who played in the National Football League and the World Football League from 1967 through 1976. College career Carter was the first notable passing q ...

as Ken Anderson's backup. The Bengals released him after an opening game loss in which Van Galder did not play and replaced him with

Mike Ernst Michael Paul Ernst (born October 12, 1950) is a former National Football League and World Football League quarterback who played professionally for the Denver Broncos, Cincinnati Bengals and Southern California Sun. He played college football at ...

. He was signed in October by the

to back up 3rd string quarterback Bill Demory after their top two quarterbacks,

Joe Namath Joseph William Namath (; ; born May 31, 1943) is a former American football quarterback who played in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the New York Jets. He played college foot ...

and Al Woodall, were hurt. The Jets released him after two games in which Van Galder did not play. In 1973, Van Galder became a sportscaster in St. Louis for KMOV, where he spent 13 years. Van Galder died from cancer in

St. Charles, Missouri Saint Charles (commonly abbreviated St. Charles) is a city in, and the county seat of, St. Charles County, Missouri, United States. The population was 65,794 at the 2010 census, making St. Charles the ninth-largest city in Missouri. Situated on t ...

, on January 26, 2022, at the age of 77.Former NFL Quarterback Has Died At 77
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Galder, Tim 1944 births 2022 deaths American football quarterbacks Iowa State Cyclones football players New York Jets players St. Louis Cardinals (football) players New Mexico Military Institute Broncos football players Sportspeople from Racine, Wisconsin Players of American football from Wisconsin Cincinnati Bengals players Madison West High School alumni Deaths from cancer in Missouri