# 1962 Green Bay Packers season

The 1962 Green Bay Packers season was their 44th season overall and their 42nd season in the National Football League. The team finished with a 13–1 record under coach Vince Lombardi, earning them a first-place finish in the Western Conference. The Packers ended the season by defeating the New York Giants 16–7 in the NFL Championship Game, the Packers second consecutive defeat of the Giants in the championship game. This marked the Packers' eighth NFL World Championship.
In 2007, ESPN.com ranked the 1962 Packers as the fifth-greatest defense in NFL history, noting, "The great 1962 Packers had a rock-solid defense front to back, with five Hall of Famers: defensive linemen Willie Davis and Henry Jordan, linebacker Ray Nitschke, cornerback Herb Adderley, and safety Willie Wood. (They also had 1962 All-Pro linebackers Dan Currie and Bill Forester.) Green Bay gave up just 10.8 points per game, shutting out opponents three times. The Packers held opposing QBs to a 43.5 rating, due, in part, to Wood's league-leading nine interceptions. The Packers' defense allowed the Giants 291 yards in the NFL championship game, but held the Giants offense scoreless as the Packers won, 16–7 (New York scored on a blocked punt)."
The Packers' +267 point differential (points scored vs. points against) in 1962 is the best total of any NFL team in the 1960s. Cold Hard Football Facts says that the 1962 Packers "may have been the best rushing team in the history of football. And that team etched in historic stone the image of Lombardi's three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust Packers that is still so powerful today."
The 1962 Packers ranked #9 on the 100 greatest teams of all time presented by the NFL on its 100th anniversary, the highest ranking of any Packers team. Other Green Bay teams coached by Vince Lombardi of the 100 greatest were in 1966 at #13 and 1967 at #56.

## Offseason
### NFL draft

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | School |
| 1 | 14 | Earl Gros | Running back | LSU |
| 2 | 28 | Ed Blaine | Guard | Missouri |
| 3 | 41 | Gary Barnes | Wide receiver | Clemson |
| 4 | 56 | Ron Gassert | Defensive tackle | Virginia |
| 5 | 65 | Chuck Morris | Back | Ole Miss |
| 5 | 70 | Jon Schopf | Guard | Michigan |
| 6 | 79 | John Sutro | Tackle | San Jose State |
| 6 | 84 | Oscar Donahue | End | San Jose State |
| 7 | 98 | Gary Cutsinger | Tackle | Oklahoma State |
| 8 | 112 | Jim Tullis | Back | Florida A&M |
| 9 | 126 | Peter Schenck | Back | Washington State |
| 10 | 140 | Gale Weidner | Quarterback | Colorado |
| 11 | 154 | Jim Thrush | Tackle | Xavier |
| 12 | 158 | Joe Thorne | Back | South Dakota State |
| 12 | 168 | Tom Pennington | Back | Georgia |
| 13 | 182 | Tom Kepner | Tackle | Villanova |
| 14 | 196 | Ernie Green | Back | Louisville |
| 15 | 210 | Roger Holdinsky | Back | West Virginia |
| 16 | 224 | Jimmy Field | Back | LSU |
| 17 | 238 | Buck Buchanan | Tackle | Grambling |
| 18 | 252 | Bob Joiner | Quarterback | Presbyterian |
| 19 | 266 | Jerry Scattini | Halfback | California |
| 20 | 280 | Mike Snodgrass | Center | Western Michigan |
* Yellow indicates a future Pro Bowl selection

## Preseason

| Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Score |

## Regular season

The team was 7–0 at home and 6–1 on the road. It was the first time since 1944 that the club went undefeated at home.

### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | September 16 | Minnesota Vikings | W 34–7 | 1–0 | City Stadium | 38,669 |
| 2 | September 23 | St. Louis Cardinals | W 17–0 | 2–0 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 44,885 |
| 3 | September 30 | Chicago Bears | W 49–0 | 3–0 | City Stadium | 38,669 |
| 4 | October 7 | Detroit Lions | W 9–7 | 4–0 | City Stadium | 38,669 |
| 5 | October 14 | at Minnesota Vikings | W 48–21 | 5–0 | Metropolitan Stadium | 41,475 |
| 6 | October 21 | San Francisco 49ers | W 31–13 | 6–0 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 46,010 |
| 7 | October 28 | at Baltimore Colts | W 17–6 | 7–0 | Memorial Stadium | 57,966 |
| 8 | November 4 | at Chicago Bears | W 38–7 | 8–0 | Wrigley Field | 48,753 |
| 9 | November 11 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 49–0 | 9–0 | Franklin Field | 60,671 |
| 10 | November 18 | Baltimore Colts | W 17–13 | 10–0 | City Stadium | 38,669 |
| 11 | November 22 | at Detroit Lions | L 14–26 | 10–1 | Tiger Stadium | 57,598 |
| 12 | December 2 | Los Angeles Rams | W 41–10 | 11–1 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 46,833 |
| 13 | December 9 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 31–21 | 12–1 | Kezar Stadium | 53,769 |
| 14 | December 16 | at Los Angeles Rams | W 20–17 | 13–1 | L.A. Memorial Coliseum | 60,353 |
| Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text. |||||||||

## Standings

NFL Western Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Green Bay Packers | 13 | 1 | 0 | .929 | 11–1 | 415 | 148 | W3 |
| Detroit Lions | 11 | 3 | 0 | .786 | 10–2 | 315 | 177 | L1 |
| Chicago Bears | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 8–4 | 321 | 287 | W2 |
| Baltimore Colts | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 5–7 | 293 | 288 | W2 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 5–7 | 282 | 331 | L2 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 2 | 11 | 1 | .154 | 1–10–1 | 254 | 410 | L3 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 1 | 12 | 1 | .077 | 1–10–1 | 220 | 334 | L3 |
       Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
NFL Eastern Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| New York Giants | 12 | 2 | 0 | .857 | 10–2 | 398 | 283 | W9 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 8–4 | 312 | 363 | W3 |
| Cleveland Browns | 7 | 6 | 1 | .538 | 6–5–1 | 291 | 257 | W1 |
| Washington Redskins | 5 | 7 | 2 | .417 | 4–6–2 | 305 | 376 | L1 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 5 | 8 | 1 | .385 | 4–7–1 | 398 | 402 | L2 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 4 | 9 | 1 | .308 | 4–7–1 | 287 | 361 | W2 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 3 | 10 | 1 | .231 | 3–8–1 | 282 | 356 | L2 |
       Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

### Season summary
#### Week 4 vs. Lions

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Lions | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Packers | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
at City Stadium • Green Bay, Wisconsin
* Date: October 7
* Game weather: 56 °F (13 °C) • Wind 8
* Game attendance: 38,669
* Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information :
Lions
Milt Plum 11/26, 107 yards, INT 7 rush, 58 yards
Jim Gibbons 3 rec, 41 yards
Packers
Bart Starr 18/26, 198 yards
Jim Taylor 20 rush, 95 yards
Max McGee 5 rec, 69 yards
This game provides the backdrop for the Vince Lombardi book Run to Daylight!, which chronicles the week's preparation leading to the contest. :
Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | DET | GB |
| 1 | | | | | Packers | 13-yard field goal by Hornung | 0 | 3 |
| 2 | | | | | Lions | Lewis 6-yard touchdown run, Walker kick good | 7 | 3 |
| 3 | | | | | Packers | 15-yard field goal by Hornung | 7 | 6 |
| 4 | | | | | Packers | 26-yard field goal by Hornung | 7 | 9 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 7 | 9 |

#### Week 11 vs. Lions

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Packers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
| Lions | 7 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 26 |
at Tiger Stadium • Detroit, Michigan
* Date: November 22
* Game weather: 37 °F (3 °C) • Wind 15
* Game attendance: 57,598
* Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information :
Packers
Bart Starr 11/19, 142 yards, 2 INT
Jim Taylor 13 rush, 47 yards
Ron Kramer 4 rec, 62 yards
Lions
Milt Plum 8/16, 137 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
Ken Webb 11 rush, 62 yards
Gail Cogdill 3 rec, 79 yards, 2 TD :
Thanksgiving Day game
Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | GB | DET |
| 1 | | | | | Lions | Cogdill 33-yard touchdown reception from Plum, Walker kick good | 0 | 7 |
| 2 | | | | | Lions | Cogdill 27-yard touchdown reception from Plum, Walker kick good | 0 | 14 |
| 2 | | | | | Lions | Fumble recovery returned 6 yards for touchdown by Williams, Walker kick good | 0 | 21 |
| 2 | | | | | Lions | Starr tackled in end zone for a safety by Brown | 0 | 23 |
| 3 | | | | | Lions | 47-yard field goal by Plum | 0 | 26 |
| 4 | | | | | Packers | Fumble recovery in end zone for touchdown by Davis, Kramer kick good | 7 | 26 |
| 4 | | | | | Packers | Taylor 4-yard touchdown run, Kramer kick good | 14 | 26 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 14 | 26 |

## Playoffs

| Round | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| NFL Championship | December 30 | at New York Giants | W 16–7 | 1-0 | Yankee Stadium | 64,892 |

## Game summary
### 1962 NFL Championship Game at New York

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Packers | 3 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 16 |
| Giants | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
Source:

## Awards and records

* Led NFL, points scored, 415
* Bart Starr, NFL leader, passing yards, (2,438 yards)
* Jim Taylor, NFL rushing leader, (1,474 yards)
* Willie Wood, NFL leader, interceptions (9)
* Ray Nitschke, MVP of 1962 NFL Championship Game