1. Jim Taylor
Jim Taylor was the Thunder to Paul Hornung’s Lightning out of the Packer backfield. On the chalkboard, Coach Lombardi would drill his troops upon his bread-and-butter running play, with
a “seal here and a seal there.” On game day, Taylor would rumble through the “alley” of a perfectly executed power sweep en route to picking up big chunks of yardage, a straight-line runner that never shied away from contact.
For years, Taylor was second only to Jim Brown, as the best running back in the NFL. In 1962, he
lead the league with 1,474 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns, upon 272 carries. Besides Brown, Taylor was the only back to claim the rushing title between 1957 and 1965. For the Packers, Taylor racked up 8,207 rushing yards and 91 total touchdowns in nine years of service, helping to bring four titles back to Green Bay, including a 35-10 blowout victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl I.
2. Don Hutson
Don Hutson may be largely credited for introducing the idea of the forward pass to the game of football. At end, or wide receiver, Hutson first worked timing patterns that would evolve into the slants, square-ins, deep outs, and post corners of today’s route tree. Prior to Hutson, NFL offense was mostly relegated to “three yards and a cloud of dust” out of the Wing-Tee formation.
As a specialist, Don Hutson dominated his position like no other athlete in all of sports. In 1942, Hutson
hauled in 74 receptions, for 1,211 yards, and 17 touchdowns during the 11-game season. That year, Pop Ivy of the Chicago Cardinals was the second-most prolific receiver in the NFL, with a mere 27 catches to his credit. Over the course of his 11-year career, Hutson led the league in receptions, yards, and touchdowns (concurrently), through five separate seasons. Don Hutson also claimed three NFL Championships and was enshrined as a charter member of the Hall of Fame.
3. Forrest Gregg
Lauded by Vince Lombardi as as
the finest player that he ever coached, offensive tackle Forrest Gregg was part of five championship clubs in Green Bay before moving on to claim one more Super Bowl trophy with the Dallas Cowboys.
Prior to Brett Favre, Gregg was the ultimate Iron Man, as he appeared in 188 straight games
from 1956 to 1971. During this stretch, Gregg made nine trips to the Pro Bowl and was named First-Team All-Pro on seven separate occasions. At right tackle, Gregg helped to popularize Lombadi’s zone blocking scheme, where a lineman would block out a space rather than honing in upon one particular man. From there, Packer ball carriers would “run to daylight.”
4. Brett Favre
Brett Favre, despite his stints for Atlanta, New York [Jets], and archrival Minnesota, will always be immortalized as a Green Bay Packer. Vintage Favre would spin out of pressure behind the line of scrimmage, stumble to collect himself, and somehow manage to set his feet, before firing a laser to the back corner of the end zone for six.
Brett Favre has largely been credited with revitalizing Green Bay football. Favre led the Packers to back-to-back Super Bowl appearances in 1996 and 1997, winning Super Bowl XXXI against the New England Patriots.
In 1996, he torched defenses through the air for 3,899 yards and 39 touchdowns, completing 60% of his passes.
At 41, the Iron Man retired after making 297 consecutive starts and having owned every significant passing record. In all, Favre completed 6,300 passes for 71,838 yards and 508 touchdowns through 20 years of NFL service.
5. Bart Starr
As a player, Bart Starr was the greatest winner to ever put on a Packer uniform. At quarterback, Bart Starr led the Packer Dynasty to five NFL titles between 1961 and 1967. Starr won Super Bowls I and II during this run, as part of an NFL title three-peat. In all, Bart Starr went 9-1 through the playoffs, while also carrying a record
104.8 postseason passer rating. As a throwback and clutch performer, Bart Starr may come in second only to Otto Graham, who won seven league titles for the Browns.
Bart Starr led the league in completion percentage upon three separate occasions during the Packer Dynasty run. Coach Lombardi, of course, praised Starr for his precision passing and decision making. As such, Starr was tasked with calling his own plays. In 1967, Starr ran a quarterback sneak to dive into the end zone and claim the NFL Championship 21-17 over the Dallas Cowboys in -15 degrees Fahrenheit temperatures.
