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Green Bay Packers |
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The incredible saga of the Green Bay Packers began in August 1919, when the Indian Packing Company agreed to sponsor a local pro football team under the direction of Earl (Curly) Lambeau. In 1921, the Packers were granted a membership in the new National Football League. Today, they rank as the third-oldest team in pro football. In its storied existence, the franchise has enjoyed both periods of great success and terrible failure. There have been many great Green Bay football players, but it is two of the team's coaches, Lambeau and Vince Lombardi, who rank as the most dominant figures in the Packers's history. Together, Lambeau and Lombardi brought the Packers 11 NFL championships (including three straight twice, in 1929, 1930 and 1931 and 1965, 1966 and 1967). The last three titles came at the end of the Packers's domination in the 1960's, which began with Green Bay winning championships in 1961 and 1962. Lambeau and Lombardi and 17 other long-time Packers players are enshrined in the Hall of Fame. Among them is Don Hutson, the game's first great receiver, as well as Arnie Herber, Clarke Hinkle, Cal Hubbard, John (Blood) McNally, Mike Michalske and Tony Canadeo. The great Packers teams of the 1960's produced Hall of Famers like Jim Taylor, Forrest Gregg, Bart Starr, Ray Nitschke, Herb Adderley, Willie Davis, Jim Ringo, Paul Hornung, Willie Wood and Henry Jordan. Green Bay is a city of less than 100,000 and is viewed as a relative sports dinosaur because it is the last remaining small city in the big-city world of major professional sports. Green Bay is unique in another way—the team is the only community-owned, non-profit organization in the NFL. The Green Bay Packers boast 20 individuals who spent the majority of their careers with the club in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. The Packers' total is second only to that of the Chicago Bears, who have 26. The Pittsburgh Steelers (17) and New York Giants (16) are next, while the Washington Redskins (15) round out the top five. In addition, five other players who played briefly for Green Bay - defensive end Len Ford, linebacker Ted Hendricks, guard/coach Walt Kiesling, kicker Jan Stenerud and safety Emlen Tunnell - have their busts displayed in the Hall of Fame. Jim Taylor 1963 - Earl L. (Curly) Lambeau 1963 - Robert (Cal) Hubbard 1963 - Don Hutson 1963 - Johnny (Blood) McNally 1964 - Clarke Hinkle 1964 - Mike Michalske 1966 - Arnie Herber 1971 - Vince Lombardi 1974 - Tony Canadeo 1976 - Jim Taylor 1977 - Forrest Gregg 1977 - Bart Starr 1978 - Ray Nitschke 1980 - Herb Adderley 1981 - Willie Davis 1981 - Jim Ringo 1986 - Paul Hornung 1989 - Willie Wood 1995 - Henry Jordan 2003 - James Lofton
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