MINNEAPOLIS — Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Tommy Kramer announced on social media that he has been diagnosed with dementia.
The 69-year-old Kramer, who played 13 of his 14 seasons in the NFL with the Vikings and led the league in passer rating in 1986 before making the Pro Bowl, Posted on his X account on Wednesday He was formally diagnosed with cognitive decline about a year ago as part of a health and wellness program for former NFL players at the Cleveland Clinic.
Kramer said he was prompted to share his condition after Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre revealed in a congressional hearing Tuesday that he has Parkinson’s disease.
Kramer said doctors told him at his one-year checkup that his dementia had not progressed, and he had quit drinking to better cope with it.
“Please, no pity,” Kramer wrote. “I’ve had a great life and I wouldn’t change anything. No one wanted to win more than I did and I never gave up. That’s how I’m going to fight this fight.”
Kramer, a native of San Antonio, Texas, was drafted in the first round by the Vikings out of Rice in 1977. He earned the nickname “Two Minute Tommy” for his late-game success, most notably a 46-yard Hail Mary pass in 1980 that Ahmad Rashad tipped and caught with one hand to secure Minnesota’s division title comeback win over the Cleveland Browns. Kramer threw for 456 yards and four touchdowns in that game.
Kramer ranks second in Vikings history in passing yards behind Hall of Fame member Fran Tarkenton, but most of his career was interrupted by injuries. He became a starter in 1979, the only season in which he played all 16 games.
He played his final NFL season with the New Orleans Saints in 1990.
