# Jim Bakken

James LeRoy Bakken (born November 2, 1940) is an American former professional football player who was a kicker in the National Football League (NFL) for the St. Louis Cardinals, playing occasionally as a punter as well. He was a four-time Pro Bowl selection and was named to the NFL 1960s and 1970s All-Decade Team. Bakken is one of 29 individuals to be named to two All-Decade teams.

## Early life

Bakken was born on November 2, 1940, in Madison, Wisconsin. He attended Madison West High School in Madison, graduating in 1958. He was on the football, basketball and baseball teams. The 1957 football team went undefeated (8–0), and was considered the best high school team in Wisconsin that year. In the same year, Bakken was most valuable player (MVP) of the Big 8 Conference, and the All-State quarterback. He was All-State in baseball and basketball as well at Madison West.

## College football

He went on to play three seasons of varsity football at the University of Wisconsin (1959-61). He played football under coach Milt Bruhn. As a sophomore, Bakken shared the quarterback position with Dale Hackbart, and was also the team's kicker and punter. Bakken's 1959 Badger team was Big-Ten Conference champion, and played in the 1960 Rose Bowl. He was honorable mention All-Big Ten that year.
In 1960, he became the first punter in school history to average more than 40 yards per punt (41.9); and was seventh in the nation in punting average. In 1961, he was team co-captain. He led the Big Ten in punting average in 1960 and 1961. In a 1961 game against Northwestern, he had a 90-yard punt, 47-yard field goal, and returned an interception for a touchdown, in the Badgers' upset victory.
He also played one year of baseball for the Badgers.
He was named to the Madison (Wisconsin) Sports Hall of Fame in 1984, and was inducted into the UW Athletic Department-National W Club Hall of Fame in 2001.

## Professional career

Bakken was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the seventh round of the 1962 NFL draft. He did not make the team and was instead picked up by the St. Louis Cardinals, where he played his entire NFL career. He played 17 seasons, scoring a total of 1,380 points while never missing a game between 1963 and 1978; playing 234 consecutive games. Only Larry Fitzgerald has played more games for the Cardinals.
At the time he retired, his 1,380 points were second-most in AFL/NFL history (behind only George Blanda). He cracked the 100-point threshold in a season three times (1964, 1967, and 1973) and was selected to kick in the Pro Bowl four times. He led the NFL in made field goals in 1964 and 1967, as well as in scoring in 1967 (117 points). He remains the Cardinals all-time leading scorer (as of 2025). Bakken is the AFL/NFL's 39th leading scorer (as of 2025).
He was selected first-team All-Conference in 1975 and 1976, and first-team All-Pro by the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), Pro Football Writers, and Pro Football Weekly both of those years. In 1976, he was selected as the Cardinals' MVP. In 1969, he was president of the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA).
Bakken was the first NFL kicker to attempt nine field goals and successfully convert seven in a Week 2 28–14 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers at Pitt Stadium on September 24, 1967. That single-game field goal record was broken by Rob Bironas with eight in a game in 2007.
His nickname with the Cardinals was "Bags".

## Honors

Bakken was named by the voters of the Pro Football Hall of Fame to the Professional Football 1960s All Decade Team, which included both NFL and American Football League players. The voters of the Pro Football Hall of Fame also selected Bakken to the NFL 1970s All-Decade Team, second team, one vote behind Garo Yepremian.
He is a member of the St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame. The Missouri Athletic Club selected him Sportsman of the Year in 1976.
In December 2010, the annual trophy for the Big Ten's best kicker, the "Bakken-Andersen Kicker of the Year" award, was co-named in his honor.

## Personal life

Bakken was the Wisconsin State Masters Handball Doubles Champion seven times (1991-1997).

## Career regular season statistics

Career high/best bolded
Regular season statistics :
| Season | Team (record) | G | FGM | FGA | % | <20 | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50+ | LNG | BLK | XPM | XPA | % | PTS |
| 1962 | STL (4–9–1) | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
| 1963 | STL (9–5) | 14 | 11 | 21 | 52.4 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 45 | 0 | 44 | 44 | 100.0 | 77 |
| 1964 | STL (9–3–2) | 14 | 25 | 38 | 65.8 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 51 | 0 | 40 | 40 | 100.0 | 115 |
| 1965 | STL (5–9) | 14 | 21 | 31 | 67.7 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 45 | 0 | 33 | 33 | 100.0 | 96 |
| 1966 | STL (8–5–1) | 14 | 23 | 40 | 57.5 | 8–8 | 7–8 | 4–8 | 4–12 | 0–4 | 47 | 0 | 27 | 28 | 96.4 | 96 |
| 1967 | STL (6–7–1) | 14 | 27 | 39 | 69.2 | 8–8 | 8–9 | 8–11 | 3–10 | 0–1 | 47 | 0 | 36 | 36 | 100.0 | 117 |
| 1968 | STL (9–4–1) | 14 | 15 | 24 | 62.5 | 2–2 | 7–7 | 3–6 | 3–8 | 0–1 | 47 | 0 | 40 | 40 | 100.0 | 85 |
| 1969 | STL (4–9–1) | 14 | 12 | 24 | 50.0 | 2–2 | 4–8 | 3–4 | 3–7 | 0–3 | 46 | 0 | 38 | 40 | 95.0 | 74 |
| 1970 | STL (8–5–1) | 14 | 20 | 32 | 62.5 | 4–4 | 3–6 | 7–7 | 6–11 | 0–4 | 49 | 0 | 37 | 38 | 97.4 | 97 |
| 1971 | STL (4–9–1) | 14 | 21 | 32 | 65.6 | 5–5 | 8–13 | 5–6 | 3–8 | 0–0 | 45 | 0 | 24 | 24 | 100.0 | 87 |
| 1972 | STL (4–9–1) | 14 | 14 | 22 | 63.6 | 4–5 | 2–5 | 2–3 | 6–9 | 0–0 | 49 | 0 | 19 | 21 | 90.5 | 61 |
| 1973 | STL (4–9–1) | 14 | 23 | 32 | 71.9 | 4–4 | 6–7 | 10–12 | 3–8 | 0–1 | 46 | 0 | 31 | 31 | 100.0 | 100 |
| 1974 | STL (10–4) | 14 | 13 | 22 | 59.1 | 0–0 | 2–3 | 5–9 | 6–10 | 0–0 | 47 | 0 | 30 | 36 | 83.3 | 69 |
| 1975 | STL (11–3) | 14 | 19 | 24 | 79.2 | 0–0 | 10–11 | 5–7 | 4–6 | 0–0 | 48 | 0 | 40 | 41 | 97.6 | 97 |
| 1976 | STL (10–4) | 14 | 20 | 27 | 74.1 | 0–0 | 10–11 | 6–8 | 4–8 | 0–0 | 43 | 0 | 33 | 35 | 94.3 | 93 |
| 1977 | STL (7–7) | 14 | 7 | 16 | 43.8 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 3–5 | 2–8 | 0–1 | 49 | 0 | 35 | 36 | 97.2 | 56 |
| 1978 | STL (6–10) | 16 | 11 | 22 | 50.0 | 0–0 | 4–5 | 4–7 | 3–10 | 0–0 | 45 | 0 | 27 | 30 | 90.0 | 60 |
| Career (17 seasons) | Career (17 seasons) | 234 | 282 | 447 | 63.1 | 37–38 | 73–95 | 65–93 | 50–115 | 0–15 | 51 | 0 | 534 | 553 | 96.6 | 1380 |