The Green Bay Packers have one of the richest histories in professional football. Originally founded in 1919 by Curly Lambeau, the team officially joined the National Football League during its inception in 1921.
Boasting 13 championships, including four Super Bowls, the Packers have enjoyed enormous success for decades. The early Packers teams of the 1920s, 30s, and 40s won an astounding six championships.
If that wasn’t impressive enough, Vince Lombardi’s Packers won five championships, including two Super Bowls. They’ve also added two more Super Bowls since.
Such prodigious success doesn’t come without hardship, though. Green Bay entered a severe drought of prosperity during the mid-late 1970s and into the 80s. It wasn’t until Hall of Fame general manager Ron Wolf traded for the savior of the franchise – Brett Favre – that turned their fortunes around; not to mention the acquisition of the late, great Reggie White.
As much as we like to complain, fans have been spoiled ever since Favre’s arrival. In fact, the Packers have racked up 261 wins since 1992 (the year he arrived), and have had only three losing seasons.
The three-time MVP, Favre, led his team to two Super Bowls, winning one in the process. If that wasn’t enough, the Packers found themselves with another Hall of Fame-caliber quarterback – Aaron Rodgers – immediately after Favre’s departure.
Of course, Rodgers brought the team to another Super Bowl in 2010, while also earning two MVP awards along the way. He also guided the team to eight straight postseason appearances, which ended last season when the team finished 7-9.
The current state of the Packers looks to be on the up-and-up though. After a poor finish last year, Green Bay announced a new general manager this past January in Brian Gutekunst, who hasn’t shied away from putting his stamp on the team’s foundation.
Green Bay Packers Mount Rushmore: Breaking Down the Four Available Spots
So after reading the totally complete, 100 percent perfectly-told story about the franchise, who are some considerations for the Packers Mount Rushmore?
You’d have to think it’d be a disgrace not to include original founder, player, and coach (not to mention the name of the Packers’ current stadium) Curly Lambeau. The same goes for Vince Lombardi, who brought the franchise back from the ashes after a decline in the 1950s – and oh by the way, has the Super Bowl trophy named after him.
That’s two spots down, with a bevy of viable candidates remaining. One might include Don Hutson, who many consider being the greatest Packers receiver of all-time. Maybe Ron Wolf, who holds much of the responsibility for turning around the franchise in the early 90s.
What about James Lofton, one of the more underrated receivers in NFL history? Or Reggie White, who’s considered the most unblockable lineman ever. And you can’t forget Ray Nitschke, one of the original tough guys in the league.
Then you have the big three quarterbacks – Bart Starr, Favre, and Rodgers. It’s hard enough trying to pick one of those three, let alone four spots total.
We haven’t even gotten to names like Paul Hornung, Jim Taylor, Willie Davis, Forrest Gregg, Dave Robinson and many more. The list goes on and on.
The truth is, there is no Packers Mount Rushmore.
Not only is it too difficult to select four of the most influential players, coaches, and executives, but it’d also be a disservice to all the extraordinary men who might’ve missed out on the list.
Bleacher Report wrote a piece on every NFL team’s Mount Rushmore a year ago. Curly Lambeau and Vince Lombardi made the list of course, with Starr and Favre filling in after. Is this a fair assessment?
Arguments could certainly be made for that list. Another combination could be Lambeau, Lombardi, Favre, and Rodgers. Or maybe Lambeau, Hutson, Lombardi, and Starr. Possibly even Lambeau, Lombardi, White, and Rodgers. However it shakes out though, everyone’s Packers Mount Rushmore is likely to reflect their own personal bias.
Last Word
It’s hard to rate a player who you’ve never watched during critical moments – like a Bart Starr touchdown pass or a Reggie White sack in the Super Bowl. It’s also difficult to categorize how you’re measuring success. Warranting one player’s placement may raise questions about how another was left out.
Personal biases also affect perceptions of players. As humans, we like to play favorites and choosing NFL players is no different.
The debate could go on and on, with no end in sight. If you ask me, it’s essentially impossible to compile.
So let me ask the question: could you pick out four Packers icons?
