List of Green Bay Packers NFL Anniversary All-Time Team selections
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers have competed in the National Football League (NFL) since 1921, two years after their original founding by Curly Lambeau and George Whitney Calhoun.[1] They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference (NFC) and play their home games at Lambeau Field in central Wisconsin.[2][3]
In 1969, the Pro Football Hall of Fame selected the NFL 50th Anniversary All-Time Team to celebrate the best players of the league's first 50 years. In addition to the 16 players named to the team, two runners-up were named for each of the 15 positions, for a total of 46 players.[4] Jim Thorpe was given a special distinction "as the star that never diminishes".[5] 25 years later, the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team was selected with the same purpose: to honor the best players of the league's first 75 years. Instead of the Pro Football Hall of Fame choosing the team, "a 15-person panel of NFL and Pro Football Hall of Fame officials, former players and media members" made the selections.[6] In addition to the main team, a special "two-way team" was selected to honor players who played significant time at both offensive and defensive positions.[7][8] In total, 48 players were named to the 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, with Gale Sayers being named to two positions (halfback and kick returner).[6] 19 players were named to the "two-way team", with six of these also named to the primary team.[7][8] In 2019, the Pro Football Hall of Fame continued the quadranscentennial tradition with the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team, again selected by a panel of league officials, players and members of the media.[9] 100 players were named to this team, which for the first time included head coaches; 10 head coaches were selected.[10]
The Packers have had 15 players and two head coaches named to at least one NFL All-Anniversary Team. Don Hutson and Forrest Gregg were the only Packers' players to be named to all three NFL All-Anniversary Teams, although six others were named to at least two.[5][11][10] The 50th NFL All-Anniversary Team included 10 Packers;[5] the 75th NFL All-Anniversary Team included six Packers on the primary team and three on the special "two-way team" (Hutson was named to both);[11][7][8] and the 100th NFL All-Anniversary Team included nine Packers.[10] Twelve of the Packers selections have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame. Three players (Len Ford, Ted Hendricks and Emlen Tunnell) were just inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, while another two (Boyd Dowler and Ron Kramer) were just inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame.[12][13]
Team selections
# | Inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame[13] |
† | Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame[12] |
‡ | Inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame |