I think we can say this without much thought — most of you probably have no idea who Jesse Whittenton was. You’re young, you’re hip, you’ve got no time for anything prior to 1970 that doesn’t involve The Doors or free love and a devil may care attitude.
We know.
That being said, the Green Bay Packers lost a member of the family this week — cornerback Jesse Whittenton. Whittenton played for the Packers from 1958-64, was a two-time Pro Bowler, a first-team All Pro in 1961, and a two-time NFL champion.
Yeah, we’re talking about what the oldsters refer to as “The Glory Years.” We weren’t around then either. We’ve only heard about them when we were sitting through “The Shit Years,” where the Packers tried to trot out Randy Wright at quarterback and Walter Stanley was supposedly Mr. Fucking Excitement.
That being said, we’re students of the game. We’re students of history — especially Green Bay Packers history — and Jesse Whittenton was one badass dude.
There are several video segments with Whittenton we published today on PackersHallofFame.com, but this is my favorite. To me, it summarizes what I love about the 1960s Packers — they were all a bunch of drunks, but kicked ass anyway.
Does it get anymore Wisconsin than that?
1 Comment
Yeah, I know who he was. He was a part time golf partner and
I liked him.