The Green Bay Packers official Twitter page announced that legendary quarterback Bart Starr passed away on Sunday. He was 85.
It is with deep sadness that we announce Green Bay Packers legend Bart Starr has passed away at age 85: https://t.co/Qgv5o6FP3D pic.twitter.com/mIqu5hGyMt
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) May 26, 2019
Green Bay Packers Hall of Famer Bart Starr Passes Away
Starr, a native of Montgomery, Alabama, is one of the best quarterbacks in league history. Starr’s success is often forgotten, however, given how long ago he played. Starr became a quarterback on the Packers in 1956, where he was the backup to Tobin Rote. Starr would remain a backup until Vince Lombardi‘s first year as head coach, in 1959. Lombardi pulled then starter Lamar McHan in favor of Starr that year, and Starr never lost the starting job. Starr and Lombardi would lead the Packers to the NFL Championship Game the next year in 1960 but fell short in a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. The 1960 playoff loss would be the Lombardi-Starr duo’s only loss in the postseason.
The Packers returned to the NFL Championship Game the next two seasons in 1961 and 1962, respectively. Green Bay defeated the New York Giants in both of those games. Starr’s best NFL season, however, would come in 1966 when he was named to the Pro Bowl and earned First-Team All-Pro and NFL MVP honors. In that 1966 season, Starr went 11-2 in 13 games, throwing for 2,257 yards, 14 touchdowns to just three interceptions. The 1966 season would easily be Starr’s peak, as the following year in 1967 would be his last season with a record of over .500. Starr’s Packers went 4-5 in each of the next two seasons in 1968 and 1969. In 1970, Green Bay posted a 6-7 record. The 1971 season would be Starr’s last in the NFL, a season in which the Packers legend did not win a game. Green Bay went 0-2-1 with Starr at the helm that year.
Packers Continue to Use Starr as Example of QB Success
Following Starr’s retirement, the Packers were not sure of where to go at quarterback. Green Bay went from Scott Hunter to Lynn Dickey, until in 1993, when they landed a new legend in Brett Favre. Favre had his fair share of successful days, like Starr, in Green Bay. Immediately after Favre’s departure, Green Bay turned to 2005 first-round pick Aaron Rodgers, who still owns their starting quarterback job today.
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