Green Bay Packers: 15 best first-round draft picks of all-time

Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
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Green Bay Packers. (Photo by Darren Hauck/Getty Images /

Best first-round draft picks in Green Bay Packers history: 2. Paul Hornung

During the 1950s and 1960s, there might not have been a more all-around dynamic offensive weapon that running back Paul Hornung. Hornung won the 1956 Heisman Trophy for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, despite playing for a losing team. Green Bay would take him No. 1 overall in the 1957 NFL Draft.

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Hornung would play all nine of his NFL seasons for the Packers over a 10-year window. Keep in mind that he was suspended by the league for gambling in 1963.

As a Packer, played in 104 games, rushing the ball 893 times for 3,711 yards and 50 touchdowns. Hornung was an adept receiver in his NFL career, as he had 130 catches for 1,480 yards and 12 touchdowns out of the backfield.

Four times was Hornung an NFL champion. He was part of the first-ever Super Bowl winning team in 1966, which would prove to be his final NFL season. Hornung made two trips to the Pro Bowl and made two All-Pro teams in his nine-year NFL career.

He was the 1961 NFL MVP. Hornung is a member of three hall of fames: the College Football Hall of Fame, the Packers Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Playing in an era where pounding the rock was most paramount, Hornung was an elite running back for Green Bay and is easily one of the best first-round picks the Packers have ever made. Hornung earned Canton enshrinement in 1986 alongside players like Fran Tarkenton and Doak Walker.