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Jim Taylor, who played for the Green Bay Packers from 1958 to 1966, died early Saturday morning.
Taylor was 83 years old.
Taylor ran with a football as he was determined to turn every match into a human demolition derby. His style was neither extraordinary nor pretty. He ran with ferocity. He ran with the power. He ran with grain. In summary: he played as a man possessed, a step back at a time when football looked more like a trench warfare and the only mission of each player was apparently to distribute more punishment than he did. had taken some.
Taylor crossed the 1,000-yard mark in five consecutive seasons from 1960 to 1964, including 1,474 yards at the top of the league when the Packers scored 13-1 to win the NFL championship in 1962. The Associated Press said Taylor was the league's most valuable player that year, although he kept his best for last.
In the 1962 NFL championship game, played 17 days after being voted Most Valuable Player, Taylor delivered the most memorable performance of his career. In a brutal defensive battle, played by cold temperatures, strong winds and on Yankee Stadium pitch no softer than concrete, Taylor wore 31 times and gained 85 yards while the Packers survived the New York Giants , 16-7. "Taylor is not human," said Giants linebacker Sam Huff, amazed after the game. "No human being could have suffered the punishment that he had today."
As Taylor finished his career as the NFL's second all-time leading scorer, he was playing virtually at the same time as Cleveland Browns record holder Jim Brown. Brown was tough, too, but also a faster, more elusive runner and, therefore, generally considered the best of both and perhaps the biggest return of the match history. In nine seasons, Brown has led the NFL eight times.
But Taylor tackled each of their clashes as a personal affront and led the Packers to victory in their three duel fights. Taylor has also beaten Brown in two of the three games.
In the 1965 NFL championship game, Taylor racked up 27 rushing yards and was named MVP. In what turned out to be Brown's last game, the Packers held him to 50 out of 12 races. The two men met for the first time on October 15, 1961, when the Packers crushed the Browns, 49-17, as Taylor rushed for 158 yards in 21 attempts. Brown won 72 out of 16 carries.
In total, Taylor started halfback on six of Vince Lombardi's NFL championship teams and led the Packers to rush seven times. "Taylor may not be as big as some backs, but he has balance and determination," Lombardi said after Taylor was named the league's most valuable player. "It's hard to break your feet and he's fighting for every yard."
Taylor held the Packers career record for 43 years. His club record in a 1,474-yard season lasted 41 years. His record of 186 yards in a game, set in a victorious victory of the West Conference against the Giants in 1961, has survived for 36 years.
Taylor also had one of the lowest fumble rates in the history of the NFL. He had just 34 times in 2,166 assists, or once every 63.7 times he touched the ball.
Taylor was inducted into the Professional Football Hall of Fame in 1976, the first of the Lombardi Packers to be honored in this way.
"This pigeon is the hardest pigeon in the league," said one of his teammates, Paul Hornung, to Taylor. "I saw him crush guys bigger than him (30 or 40 pounds) (snapping his finger). Jimmy Brown is perhaps the best full athlete I've seen, but he does not have Taylor's desire. "
Taylor was selected in the second round of the 1958 NFL project. He spent the first 10 weeks of his rookie season behind veterans Howie Ferguson and Hornung, who was in his second year. It's only in the last two games on the west coast that McLean Scooter has given Taylor a chance. Until then, McLean claimed that Taylor did not know the system.
In retrospect, McLean was probably guilty of misjudging his own player in his one and only season as head coach. Taylor knew the system well enough to accumulate 137 yards on 22 attempts against San Francisco and 99 of 22 runs in the Los Angeles Rams final, although the Packers lost both games to finish 1-10. 1.
It is clear, however, that both games impressed Lombardi during his in-depth study of the film before his first season as a coach. Taylor was named the back half and held the position until he played his option in 1966. He signed with the Saints of New Orleans on July 6, 1967 and played his last season in the NFL for the first year expansion team. In exchange, the Packers received a first-round pick and a player to name later, who turned out to be linebacker Phil Vandersea, in compensation.
In nine years with the Packers, Taylor won 8,20 207 yards on 1,811 races for an average of 4.5. He also scored 91 touchdowns, second while Don Hutson had a record 105 in the club. As strong as solid, Taylor missed only five games. He missed three in 1959 when he suffered burns on his right foot and left hand in a cooking accident following the second game, then an injury in 1964 and 65 ''. In all, Taylor has played in 115 games and has started 103.
Born September 20, 1935 in Baton Rouge, The First Name James Charles Taylor.
Jim Taylor
- Fullback: 1958-1966
- Height: 6-0; Weight: 214
- College: State of Louisiana, 1956-1957
HONORS
- Inducted into the Professional Football Hall of Fame: 1976
- NFL's Last Ten Years Team: 1960s
- Associated Press NFL MVP: 1962
- Associated Press All-Pro Team (chosen since 1940): 1962
- Other years selected in a first team composed exclusively of professionals: 1961
- Pro Bowl Selection (game played since 1950): 1960, & # 39; 61, & # 39; 62, & # 39; 63, & quot; 64
- Packers 50 year old team: 1969
- Team Packers All-Modern Era: 1976
- Centennial Team Press Release: 1999
* (After the official tally sheets of the National Football League, Taylor missed three matches in 1959. Taylor was not registered as playing on October 11 and 18 and on October 25. However, "National Football League: Handbook of Rules and Regulations 1960" Falsely, Taylor played in the 12 matches in 1959 and, therefore, wrongly in 12 games of "Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League. "The fact is that Taylor has played 115 games with packers, not the 118 listed in the registers.)
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