Marino Has a Pass Left in Him

He licked his fingers, a trademark of his 17 seasons as the NFL’s most prolific quarterback, then turned to one of his favorite receivers, Mark Clayton, in the audience.

“Go deep, Mark,” Dan Marino commanded.

Clayton sauntered up the aisle, turned and latched onto -- what else? -- a perfect spiral.

“Of course, in the end, every quarterback wants one more Sunday with a football in his hands and going deep,” Marino said.

And that’s exactly what he did this Sunday, wrapping up his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the best way possible: with a long completion.

Thousands of fans clad in No. 13 Dolphin jerseys shook Fawcett Stadium with cheers, remembering how sweet it was to see Marino setting all his records.

“I’ll remember this day for the rest of my life,” Marino said.

Marino joined Steve Young, Fritz Pollard and Benny Friedman in the shrine.

Paying tribute to his Western Pennsylvania roots, Marino noted that John Unitas, Joe Namath, Joe Montana and Jim Kelly all came from the region. All are Hall of Famers.

“When I was younger, there’s no doubt I thought about being Joe Namath,” Marino said, adding that joining them in the Hall “definitely makes an impact on you. I’ve accomplished many things, but what I cherish more than any record I hold, fourth-quarter comebacks or any wins I was involved in, is the relationships.”

Young suggested it was the first time only quarterbacks entered the Hall in one class, and he was partly right. Pollard was a running back who sometimes played quarterback.

“I’m proud to be part of this with Dan and the Pollard and Friedman families,” Young said. “We are quarterbacks and that’s what is neat about this position.”

While Marino and Young had diverse styles, they spent years at the top of their profession. Marino set NFL marks of 4,967 completions, 8,358 passes, 61,361 yards and 420 touchdowns. His record of 48 touchdown passes in the 1984 season, when he was MVP, was broken by Peyton Manning last year.

The only achievement Marino didn’t reach that Young did was winning a title. Young, the 1992 and ’94 league MVP after taking over for Montana in San Francisco, and the career passing efficiency leader, guided the 49ers to the ’94 championship. He also is the first left-handed quarterback in the Hall.

“I can taste the pride I felt to be able to put on a 49ers jersey and represent the great city of San Francisco,” Young said. “In San Francisco, I found football in its newly enlightened form. I found heaven on Earth for football.”

Pollard, like Friedman, was a pro football pioneer and the first black NFL head coach. After a sensational college career at Brown, where he became the first black to play in the Rose Bowl, the running back led the Akron Pros to the 1920 championship. They went undefeated.

He organized the Chicago Brown Bombers, an independent team of black players that barnstormed the country from 1927-33. Pollard died in 1986.

Friedman, who died in 1982, probably was the first great pro passer, and his 20 touchdown throws in 1929 were considered phenomenal because the ball he threw barely resembled the modern football. The record stood for 14 years.

He played for four teams from 1927-34 and helped the New York Giants become a solvent operation in those early NFL days.