The Green Bay Packers are one of the most decorated NFL franchises to date thanks to their dominance during the pre-1970 era of professional football. So, in order to make a top 10 greatest Packers list, we have to go way back in the history books to give credit to some of the team’s ground-breaking,b playmakers.
But that doesn’t mean some of Green Bay’s modern-era players didn’t make their marks as all-time great Packers as well.
Let’s look at the top 10 greatest Packers of all time, starting at No. 10.
10. Charles Woodson, CB
Years as a Packer: 2006-2012
Championships & awards:
4-time First-Team All-Pro (2 with GB)
9-time Pro Bowler (4 with GB)
Super Bowl champion (2011)
2-time NFL interceptions leader
NFL Defensive Player of the Year
NFL 2000s All-Decade Team
Career regular season stats:
1,220 tackles
65 interceptions
54 tackles for loss
33 forced fumbles
20 sacks
11 pick-sixes
Career postseason stats:
76 tackles
2 tackles for loss
1 interception
1 sack
1 fumble recovery
Iconic performance: November 15, 2009 vs. Dallas Cowboys
9 tackles
2 forced fumbles
2 tackles for loss
1 sack (strip-sack
Charles Woodson’s impact in a Packers uniform makes him an all-time great for the organization despite not starting nor finishing his NFL career with the team. He had 38 interceptions and 9 pick-sixes during his time in Green Bay, and that’s just scratching the surface of clutch plays he made as a Packer. He was a turnover machine and one of the most feared secondary players in the NFL during the late 2000s/early 2010s
9. Donald Driver, WR
Years as a Packer: 1999-2012
Championships & awards:
4-time Pro Bowler
Super Bowl champion (2011)
Career regular season stats:
743 receptions
10,137 yards
61 touchdowns
Career postseason stats:
49 receptions
675 yards
3 touchdowns
Iconic performance: November 12, 2006 @ Minnesota Vikings
6 receptions
191 yards
1 touchdown
Donald Driver’s consistency over his 14-year career with the Packers puts him on this list. He had seven 1,000-yard seasons and is Green Bay’s all-time receiving yardage and receptions leader and is fifth all-time for the franchise in receiving touchdowns. He’s also only behind Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers in games played (205) — an average of 14.6 games played per season — which speaks to his incredible durability
8. Willie Davis, DE
Years as a Packer: 1960-1969
Championships & awards:
5-time First-Team All Pro
5-time Pro Bowler
5-time NFL champion
2-time Super Bowl champion
NFL 1960s All-Decade Team
Pro Football Hall of Fame selection (1981)
Career regular season stats:
99.5 sacks (unofficial)
22 fumble recoveries
2 touchdowns
Career postseason stats:
5.5 sacks
Iconic performance: 1968 Super Bowl vs. Oakland Raiders
3 sacks (unofficial)
Willie Davis is the unofficial all-time sack leader of the Packers and has the second-most fumble recoveries by a Green Bay defender all-time. His durability was evident in him playing in all of a possible 162 games during his 12-year professional career. His ferocity and
7. Ray Nitschke
LBplaymaking ability inside the defensive interior created many problems for opposing offenses during the Packers’ dynasty run in the 1960s.
Years as a Packer: 1958-1972
Championships & awards:
2-time First-Team All Pro
Pro Bowler (1964)
5-time NFL champion
2-time Super Bowl champion (1967, 1968)
NFL 1960s All-Decade Team
NFL 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team
Pro Football Hall of Fame selection (1978)
Career regular season stats:
25 interceptions
23 fumble recoveries
16 sacks
Ray Nitschke, who has the most fumble recoveries by a Green Bay defender in franchise history (23), was a ferocious middle linebacker that frequently sniffed the play out and punished any and all ball carriers and blockers that got in his way. He had a high motor and was an unquestioned defensive catalyst for the Packers during Green Bay’s dynasty run in the 1960s. As his Pro Football Hall of Fame bio puts it, Nitschke had all of the traits you look for in a linebacker: “strength, speed, quickness, toughness, and leadership.”
6. Forrest Gregg
Years as a Packer: 1956-1970
Championships & awards:
7-time First-Team All Pro
9-time Pro Bowler
5-time NFL champion
3-time Super Bowl champion (1967, 1968, 1971)
NFL 1960s All-Decade Team
NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team
Pro Football Hall of Fame selection (1977)
Forrest Gregg overcame his 6-foot-4, 249-pound frame by using his intellect to outmaneuver opposing pass rushers, which helped him become one of the greatest offensive tackles of his generation. When he retired, he held the league record for most consecutive games played (188) and was touted by then-Packers head coach Vince Lombardi as “the best player I have ever coached.”
5. Reggie White, DE
Years as a Packer: 1993-1998
Championships & awards:
8-time First-Team All Pro (2 with GB)
13-time Pro Bowler (6 with GB)
Super Bowl champion (1997)
2-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year (1 with GB)
NFL 1980s All-Decade Team
NFL 1990s All-Decade Team
NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team
Career regular season stats:
1,111 tackles
198 sacks
175 tackles for loss
33 forced fumbles
Career postseason stats:
18 tackles
12 sacks
1 safety
Iconic performance: 1997 Super Bowl vs. New England Patriots
3 sacks
Reggie White’s time with the Packers wasn’t long, but his impact was undoubtedly felt. His three sacks in the 1997 Super Bowl were the most in NFL history at that point, and he is second all-time in career sacks (198), which speaks to him being one of the most productive defenders in NFL history. Few NFL players have made an impact on the defensive side of the ball like White did, let alone those that donned a Packers jersey.
4. Don Hutson, LE
Years as a Packer: 1935-1945
Championships & awards:
8-time First-Team All Pro
4-time Pro Bowler
7-time NFL receiving yards leader
8-time NFL receptions leader
9-time NFL receiving touchdowns leader
5-time NFL scoring leader
3-time Super Bowl champion
2-time NFL Most Valuable Player
NFL 1930s All-Decade Team
NFL 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team
Career regular season stats:
488 receptions
7,991 yards
99 touchdowns
30 interceptions
172-of-183 PATs made
7-of-17 field goals made
Career postseason stats:
10 receptions
163 yards
1 touchdown
4-of-4 PATs made
Iconic performance: October 7, 1945 vs. Detroit Lions
6 receptions
144 yards
4 touchdowns
7 PATs made
You name it, Don Hutson most likely did it on a football field. He is the all-time Packers receiving touchdowns leader and is fifth all-time for the franchise in receiving yards. Hutson played a large part in the team’s championship runs during the mid-to-late 1930s and mid-1940s. His 1942 season, in which he had 74 receptions, 1,211 yards and 17 touchdowns — all of which were NFL records at the time — showed how truly exceptional he was compared to his peers. Tack on the fact that he was effective as a kicker and defender as well, and it’s no surprise that Hutson made this list.
3. Bart Starr, QB
Years as a Packer: 1956-1971
Championships & awards:
First-Team All Pro (1966)
4-time Pro Bowler
4-time NFL passer rating leader
4-time NFL completion percentage leader
5-time NFL champion
2-time Super Bowl champion (1967, 1968)
2-time Super Bowl MVP
NFL Most Valuable Player (1966)
NFL 1960s All-Decade Team
Career regular season stats:
24,718 passing yards
152 touchdowns
138 interceptions
1,308 rushing yards
15 rushing touchdowns
Career postseason stats:
1,753 passing yards
15 touchdowns
3 interceptions
Iconic performance: January 1, 1967 NFC Championship vs. Dallas Cowboys
304 passing yards
4 touchdowns
0 turnovers
Bart Starr dominated the NFL in the 1960s, as he won nine straight playoff games after losing in the first round of the playoffs during the 1960 season. His 9.0 adjusted yards gained per pass attempt during the postseason is still the best in NFL history, which is one of many examples of how he raised his level of play when it mattered the most.
2. Brett Favre, QB
Years as a Packer: 1992-2007
Championships & awards:
3-time First-Team All Pro
11-time Pro Bowler (9 with GB)
4-time NFL passing touchdowns leader
2-time NFL passing yards leader
Super Bowl champion (1997)
3-time NFL Most Valuable Player
NFL Offensive Player of the Year (1995)
NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 1990s All-Decade Team
Career regular season stats:
71,838 passing yards
508 touchdowns
336 interceptions
1,844 rushing yards
14 rushing touchdowns
Career postseason stats:
5,855 passing yards
44 touchdowns
30 interceptions
Iconic performance: 1997 Super Bowl vs. New England Patriots
246 passing yards
2 passing touchdowns
12 rushing yards
1 rushing touchdown
0 turnovers
Brett Favre is the definition of “gunslinger.” He has the fourth most passing yards and passing touchdowns in NFL history, and he helped end a 29-year championship drought for the Packers when he guided them to a Super Bowl victory in 1997. Favre holds the NFL record for most consecutive starts at 297 — 321 if you count playoff games — which is truly exceptional when considering the number of injuries — some of which were substantial — during his time in Green Bay.
1. Aaron Rodgers, QB
Years as a Packer: 2005-2022
Championships & awards:
4-time First-Team All Pro
10-time Pro Bowler
Super Bowl champion (2011)
Super Bowl MVP
2-time NFL passing touchdowns leader
4-time NFL MVP
NFL 2010s All-Decade Team
Career regular season stats:
56,679 passing yards
480 touchdowns
106 interceptions
3,484 rushing yards
35 rushing touchdowns
Career postseason stats:
5,894 passing yards
45 touchdowns
13 interceptions
285 rushing yards
4 rushing touchdowns
Iconic performance: October 2, 2011 vs. Denver Broncos
408 passing yards
4 touchdowns
36 rushing yards
2 rushing touchdowns
Aaron Rodgers was the most efficient quarterback of all time during his tenure with the Packers. He has the lowest career interception percentage of all time (1.4%) among those who threw a minimum of 1,500 career pass attempts, and that’s while averaging 7.7 yards per attempt, which is tied for 14th highest of all time. As a player that was elite inside the pocket and on the run, there are very few quarterbacks that possess(ed) the arm talent and athleticism that Rodgers did while he was a Packer.
