Green Bay Packers: Still Undisputed All Time NFL Champions
While many NFL football fans croon over the long time accomplishments of the San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys, or Pittsburgh Steelers, they pale in comparison to the history of championships that have been put up by the often overlooked Green Bay Packers. The Packers still have far more than any over team, with over double the championships of every other franchise other than the Chicago Bears.
In their long and illustrious history the Green Bay Packers have won 12 NFL championships (including 3 in the Super Bowl era). To put in perspective how amazing a streak that is, the team with the second most is the Chicago Bears, with 9. The New York Giants claim 6, while the modern favorites of the Cowboys, 49ers, and Steelers all have 5, as do the Washington Redskins. The Browns, Lions, and Indianapolis/Baltimore Colts all have 4, with the Patriots hot on the trail to adding themselves to that list.
The Packers have a long tradition that is even older than the NFL itself, and so it’s no surprise they are first, but the margin of difference is impressive, as well as the fact that Green Bay has won many championships in both the pre and post Super Bowl era, as well as the pre and post play-off era. Many of the top teams on this list have never been to the Super Bowl, which makes Green Bay’s large accomplishment all the more impressive, since they have won championships in five of eight possible decades.
The first three championships were won by league standing, in the pre-play-off days, when Green Bay won three in a row: 1929, 1930, and 1931. The play-off system was instituted in 1933, and Green Bay has won 6 in the post play-off, pre-Super Bowl era: claiming the title in 1936, 1939, 1944, 1961, 1962, and 1965. The first Super Bowl was in 1966, which the Packers won, and again in 1967.
So though no team has ever won three Super Bowls in NFL history, the Packers have won three championships in a row twice (the only team to do so), with that second streak including the first two Vince Lombardi Super Bowl teams. Green Bay also won the Super Bowl in 1996 when a young legend-to-be at quarterback named Brett Favre shredded everyone and changed how the game was played.
The Packers have played for the title 12 times, so they are 9-12 in championship games, an amazing percentage. The Giants have played in more, appearing in 17, but only winning 6 championships.
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Amazingly enough, only three coaches have won a championship with Green Bay. Curly Lambeau won 6, Vince Lombardi won 5, and Mike Holmgren won 1. While there are some extremely good teams around now, it’s hard to see even a team like the Patriots catching up any time soon. They would have to win 9 MORE Super Bowls during Brady’s career just to tie the record.
Here are the seasons of Green Bay’s 12 Championships:
Year:Record:
1929 12-0-1
1930 10-3-1
1931 12-2-0
1936 10-1-1* First play-off championship
1939 9-2-0
1944 8-2-0
1961 11-3-0
1962 13-1-0
1965 10-3-1
1966 12-2-0** First Super Bowl
1967 9-4-1
1996 13-3-0
List of Sources:
“12 Time World Champions” http://www.packers.com/history/super_bowls_and_championships/
“Green Bay Packers,” Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Bay_Packers
