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1958 Green Bay Packers season

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1958 Green Bay Packers season
OwnerDominic Olejniczak
(President)
General managerVerne Lewellen
Head coachRay McLean
Home fieldCity Stadium
Milwaukee County Stadium
Results
Record1–10–1
Division place6th NFL Western
Playoff finishdid not qualify

The 1958 Green Bay Packers season was their 39th season in the National Football League. The club posted a 1–10–1 record under first-year head coach Ray McLean for a last-place finish in the league in 1958 and the worst record ever posted by a Packers team.

In the immortal words of New York sportswriter and Green Bay native Red Smith: "they overwhelmed one opponent, under-whelmed ten, and whelmed one." [1] The tie came in week two and the three-point win in week five; during the seven-game losing streak to end the season the Packers lost by an average margin of over 22 points and got no closer than ten.

McLean was the top assistant on the coaching staff in 1957 and was given a one-year contract as head coach after Lisle Blackbourn was fired in early January 1958 with a year remaining ($25,000) on a five-year contract.[2][3][4] Following the final game of the 1958 season, McLean resigned on December 17,[5][6] which paved the way for the historic hiring of Vince Lombardi in January 1959.[7][8]

The underachieving 1958 team was loaded with talent, with future hall of famers Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, Jim Taylor, Ray Nitschke, Jim Ringo, and Forrest Gregg, as well as future All-Pros Jerry Kramer, Ron Kramer, Max McGee, Bill Forester, and Dan Currie.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Main article: 1958 NFL draft

The first four rounds of the 1958 Draft were conducted in early December 1957, when Blackbourn was head coach. The remaining 26 rounds were selected in late January. This draft by the Packers is among the best in NFL history.[9]

Round Pick Player Position School
1 3 Dan Currie Linebacker Michigan State
2 15 Jim Taylor Fullback LSU
3 27 Dick Christy Back North Carolina State
3 36 Ray Nitschke Linebacker Illinois
4 39 Jerry Kramer Guard Idaho
5 51 Joe Francis Quarterback Oregon State
6 62 Ken Gray Tackle Howard Payne
7 75 Doug Maison Back Hillsdale
8 86 Mike Bill Center Syracuse
9 99 Norm Jarock Back St. Norbert
10 110 Carl Johnson Tackle Illinois
11 123 Harry Horton End Wichita State
12 134 Wayne Miller End Baylor
13 147 Gene Cook End Toledo
13 153 Don Herndon Back Tampa
14 158 Harry Hauffe Tackle South Dakota
15 171 Tom Newell Back Drake
16 182 Arley Finley Tackle Georgia Tech
17 195 Joe Reese End Arkansas Tech
18 206 Chuck Strid Guard Syracuse
20 230 John DuBose Back Trinity (TX)
21 243 Jerry Kershner Tackle Oregon
22 264 Franklin Merlino Back Florida State
23 267 Jack Ashton Guard South Carolina
24 278 John Jereck Tackle Detroit
25 291 Larry Plenty Back Boston College
26 302 Esker Harris Guard UCLA
27 315 Neil Habig Center Purdue
28 326 Dave Crowell Guard Washington State
29 339 Bob Haynes Tackle Sam Houston State
30 350 John Peters Tackle Houston

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 28 Chicago Bears L 34–20 0–1–0 City Stadium
32,150
2 October 5 Detroit Lions T 13–13 0–1–1 City Stadium
32,053
3 October 12 Baltimore Colts L 24–17 0–2–1 Milwaukee County Stadium
24,553
4 October 19 at Washington Redskins L 37–21 0–3–1 Griffith Stadium
25,228
5 October 26 Philadelphia Eagles W 38–35 1–3–1 City Stadium
31,043
6 November 2 at Baltimore Colts L 56–0 1–4–1 Memorial Stadium
51,333
7 November 9 at Chicago Bears L 24–10 1–5–1 Wrigley Field
48,424
8 November 16 Los Angeles Rams L 20–7 1–6–1 City Stadium
28,051
9 November 23 San Francisco 49ers L 33–12 1–7–1 Milwaukee County Stadium
19,786
10 November 27 at Detroit Lions L 24–14 1–8–1 Briggs Stadium
50,971
11 December 7 at San Francisco 49ers L 48–21 1–9–1 Kezar Stadium
50,793
12 December 14 at Los Angeles Rams L 34–20 1–10–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
54,634

Standings

NFL Western Conference
W L T PCT CONF PF PA STK
Baltimore Colts 9 3 0 .750 8–2 381 203 L2
Los Angeles Rams 8 4 0 .667 7–3 344 278 W3
Chicago Bears 8 4 0 .667 7–3 298 230 W2
San Francisco 49ers 6 6 0 .500 4–6 257 324 W2
Detroit Lions 4 7 1 .364 3–6–1 261 276 L2
Green Bay Packers 1 10 1 .091 0–9–1 193 382 L7

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Roster

Green Bay Packers roster
Quarterbacks

Running Backs

Wide Receivers

Offensive Linemen

Defensive Linemen

Linebackers

Defensive Backs

Rookies and first-year players in italics

Awards, records, and honors

Milestones

  • Worst regular season record in franchise history

References

  1. ^ Maraniss, David (September 14, 1999). "In throes of winter, a team in disarray is reborn". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. book excerpt. p. 1A.
  2. ^ "Blackbourn is fired; McLean new coach". Milwaukee Journal. January 7, 1958. p. 13, part 2.
  3. ^ Lea, Bud (January 8, 1958). "McLean popular choice of fans and players alike". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 4, part 2.
  4. ^ "McLean is named new Packer coach". Reading Eagle. Pennsylvania. Associated Press. January 7, 1958. p. 17.
  5. ^ "Packers shake up front office; McLean quits, Detroit Lions next?". Milwaukee Journal. December 17, 1958. p. 18, part 2.
  6. ^ "McLean quits, joins Lions staff". Milwaukee Sentinel. December 18, 1958. p. 8, part 2.
  7. ^ Johnson, Chuck (January 29, 1959). "Packers name Vince Lombardi head coach, general manager". Milwaukee Journal. p. 11, part 2.
  8. ^ Johnson, Chuck (February 3, 1959). "Lombardi reception warm, despite cold". Milwaukee Journal. p. 14, part 2.
  9. ^ Wolf, Bob (May 3, 1979). "Packers' 1958 draft may have been greatest ever". Milwaukee Journal. p. 3, part 3.
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