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| Position | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1942-03-07)March 7, 1942 (age 83) Hermosa Beach, California, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 200 lb (91 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||||
| High school | El Segundo (CA) | ||||||||||||||||||
| College | USC | ||||||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1964: 1st round, 5th overall pick | ||||||||||||||||||
| AFL draft | 1964: 1st round, 2nd overall pick | ||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||||||
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Peter Falconer Beathard (/ˈbɛθərd/BETH-ərd;[1] born March 7, 1942) is an American former professionalfootball player who was aquarterback in theAmerican Football League (AFL),National Football League (NFL), andWorld Football League (WFL). He is the younger brother of former NFL executiveBobby Beathard[2] and isDetroit Lions quarterbackC. J. Beathard’s great-uncle.
Born and raised insouthernCalifornia, Beathard graduated fromEl Segundo High School in 1960 and playedcollege football in Los Angeles atUSC.
As a junior, he led theTrojans to thenational championship in1962. Both he andRon Vander Kelen, theWisconsin quarterback were named the Players Of The Game in the1963 Rose Bowl, which USC won, 42–37.[3]
Beathard was the fifth overall selection in1964 NFL draft (Detroit Lions) and the second overall pick in theAFL draft by theKansas City Chiefs,[4] where he signed and backed upLen Dawson.[5]
On October 30,1966, Beathard set an NFL record for the most passing yards in a game with a perfect completion percentage, until it was surpassed in 2024 by Jared Goff with 292 yards on 18-for-18 passing in a 42–29 win over the Seattle Seahawks. In that game against theHouston Oilers, Beathard threw for 141 yards, completing all five of his pass attempts.[6]
In October1967, Beathard was traded during his fourth season to the Houston Oilers in exchange for defensive tackleErnie Ladd and quarterbackJacky Lee.[7] He led the Oilers to the Eastern division title, but lost 40–7 to theOakland Raiders in theAFL championship game. Beathard's playing time in1968 was curtailed due toappendicitis,[8] and in1969 he took the Oilers to the four-teamAFL playoffs.
Beathard was traded to theCardinals in 1970,[9] theRams in August 1972,[10] and returned to theChiefs in 1973.[11]
In March 1974, he was selected by theHouston Texans in the first round (10th overall) of theWFL Pro Draft. He was waived by the Chiefs in September 1974, he finished his pro career in the short-livedWorld Football League (WFL), with thePortland Storm in1974,[12][13] and theChicago Winds in1975.[14] He was briefly on the roster of theOakland Raiders in October 1975.[15]