Age: 32
11th season in pro football & with Packers
College: Alabama
Height: 6’1” Weight: 200
Prelude:
An unheralded 17th-round draft pick of the Packers in 1956, Starr backed up veteran Tobin Rote as a rookie, became the starter for a poor team in ’57, and saw limited playing time in 1958 due to an ankle injury. In 1959, new Head Coach Vince Lombardi went with Lamar McHan as the starting QB, but when he ran into injury problems, Starr took over and held onto the job. In 1960, the Packers went to the postseason and Starr was picked for the Pro Bowl. He was better in ’61, achieving new personal highs in completion percentage (58.3), passing yards (2418), and TD passes (16) and again going to the Pro Bowl as the Packers won the NFL title. He led the league in passing (90.7 rating) and completion percentage (62.5) in 1962, another championship season for the team, and went to a third straight Pro Bowl. A broken wrist hindered Starr in ’63 but he was back on top of the passing standings (97.1) in 1964 as well as first in completion percentage (59.9) and threw 15 TDs to just 4 INTs. The Packers were champions once again in 1965, with Starr again directing the offense.
1966 Season Summary
Appeared in all 14 games
[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]
Passing
Attempts – 251 [11]
Most attempts, game – 31 at Minnesota 11/27
Completions – 156 [9]
Most completions, game – 20 at Cleveland 9/18, at Minnesota 11/27
Yards – 2257 [8]
Most yards, game – 287 at San Francisco 10/9
Completion percentage – 62.2 [1]
Yards per attempt – 9.0 [1]
TD passes – 14 [7]
Most TD passes, game – 2 on 5 occasions
Interceptions – 3
Most interceptions, game – 1 vs. Baltimore 9/10, at San Francisco 10/9, at Chicago 10/16
Passer rating – 105.0 [1]
200-yard passing games – 6
Rushing
Attempts – 21
Most attempts, game – 4 (for 17 yds.) at Cleveland 9/18
Yards – 104
Most yards, game – 36 yards (on 3 carries) vs. Baltimore 9/10
Yards per attempt – 5.0
TDs – 2
Scoring
TDs – 2
Points – 12
Postseason: 2 G
Pass attempts – 51
Most attempts, game - 28 at Dallas, NFL Championship
Pass completions – 35
Most completions, game - 19 at Dallas, NFL Championship
Passing yardage – 554
Most yards, game - 304 at Dallas, NFL Championship
TD passes – 6
Most TD passes, game - 4 at Dallas, NFL Championship
Interceptions – 1
Most interceptions, game - 1 vs. Kansas City, Super Bowl
Rushing attempts – 2
Most rushing attempts, game - 2 at Dallas, NFL Championship
Rushing yards – -1
Most rushing yards, game - -1 at Dallas, NFL Championship
Average gain rushing – -0.5
Rushing TDs – 0
Awards & Honors:
NFL MVP: AP, UPI, NEA, Sporting News
1st team All-NFL: AP, UPI, PFWA, NEA, NY Daily News
1st team All-Western Conference: Sporting News
Pro Bowl
The Packers went 12-2 to finish first in the Western Conference. Won NFL Championship over Dallas Cowboys (34-27) and Super Bowl over Kansas City Chiefs (35-10).
Aftermath:
Playing hurt to start the 1967 season, Starr threw more interceptions in the season-opening tie against Detroit than he had in all of ’66 (4). In the end, however, the Packers were champions for the third straight year and won Super Bowl II; Starr led the NFL in yards per attempt (8.7). With Lombardi gone as head coach and age setting in, the team’s performance dropped off and Starr, while still a solid QB, suffered through injury-plagued seasons before retiring in 1971. At his leaving, he was the fourth-rated passer of all-time (80.5) to go along with five championships. The Packers retired Starr’s #15 and he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Class of 1977.
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MVP Profiles feature players who were named MVP or Player of the Year in the NFL, AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press, Pro Football Writers Association, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, Maxwell Club – Bert Bell Award, or the league itself).
[Updated 2/15/14]