The 10 best running backs in the history of the Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers remain one of the most iconic franchises in league history, as their tradition of winning goes back over 100 years. Some of the most iconic Packers teams in league history have favored a no-nonsense approach to offense, running the football as the primary method of attack.

Green Bay has multiple Hall of Famers who made their name as a member of their vaunted backfield, setting the stage for a tradition of powerful backs that has continued well into the next millennium. Even today, Green Bay takes pride in a strong running game.

These 10 backs, be they old-school fullbacks, ancient tailbacks, or modern halfbacks, are the best the Packers have ever seen. Perhaps a player like Josh Jacobs could find his way up this list with a few strong seasons carrying the load in Green Bay.

Criteria for selection

These running backs were chosen based on a combination of:

• Statistical achievements
• Impact on success
• Longevity
• Memorable moments

The top 10 running backs in Green Bay Packers history

10. Gerry Ellis

The 80s may not have been the most successful time in Packers history, but Bart Starr did manage to get the offense cooking when he was named head coach. As the primary backfield producer in a pass-happy offense led by veteran Lynn Dickey, Ellis showed his value as both a receiver and a runner.

Ellis had three 1,000-yard seasons from scrimmage in a four-year span, with the nine-game strike season being his only blemish. The 1981 season, when Ellis tallied 1,359 yards from scrimmage and 10 touchdowns, set a Packers single-season record for total offense by a back. Considering the names he passed, that means something.

9. Ryan Grant

A former undrafted free agent, Grant came to Green Bay in 2007 after a whopping zero career games played with the Giants. A bulky back capable of being an effective runner between the tackles, it took Grant no time at all to show the rest of the football world they made a mistake overlooking him.

His first three seasons in Green Bay were spectacular, as he ran for 3,400 yards and 24 touchdowns as the primary ball carrier. Had he not had the ankle injury that shortened his career, he would have been much further up the list. While James Starks performed well enough, it wouldn't be crazy to say a healthy Grant would have a genuinely game-changing impact on those early 2010s Packers teams.

8. Dorsey Levens

Mike Holmgren and Brett Favre conducted an amazing aerial circus that saw No. 4 take home three MVP awards, but Levens had as much impact on those offenses as any skill position player when he was in his prime. In both 1997 and 1999, Levens recorded over 1,600 yards from scrimmage, making a Pro Bowl in the first season.

Levens is a weird evaluation, as he never ran for 600 yards in any given season outside of '97 and '99. While his broken leg in 1998 and knee injuries in 2000 made it tough for him to sustain his success over a multi-year period, Levens' best years proved what kind of power back he was.

7. John Brockington

Brockington had the unfortunate distinction of being a Packers running back after the dissolution of Vince Lombardi's legendary backfield. Even at such impossible odds, Brockington used his raw muscle and power to bulldoze opposing backs early in his career. Brockington became the first player in NFL history to run for 1,000 yards in each of his first three seasons.

The Offensive Rookie of the Year in 1971, Brockington was named a Pro Bowler in each of his first three seasons. He and MacArthur Lane were one of the greatest backfield tandems of their era. However, the wear and tear of the position and trade of Lane led to Brockington being released at just 29 years old in 1977.

The prime was short, but Brockington was one of the finest backs in the NFL, putting up numbers comparable to Hall of Fame backs in the early 1970s.

6. Aaron Jones

One of the great crimes in recent NFL history was Jones having to split carries so often, as he has topped 205 carries in a season just twice. Having averaged an astounding 5.0 yards per carry in his Packers career, Jones carved out a solid career that puts him near the top of many Packers all-time lists.

Jones' four seasons between 2019 and 2022 may have only produced one Pro Bowl, but they did help him average over 1,400 yards and around 12 touchdowns per season. One of the best receiving backs in the league, Jones was integral to offenses that helped Aaron Rodgers win consecutive MVPs.

Jones may have left to join the rival Vikings, but his Packers career remains quite hallowed.

5. Ahman Green

The Packers have had nearly a half-dozen Hall of Fame players in their backfields, yet Green has become the franchise's all-time leader in rushing yards. The Seahawks are likely still ruing the day they cut the former Nebraska star, as he became a borderline legend in Green Bay.

Green's prime came between 2000 and 2004. In that time, he ran for 1,100 yards every single year, made four straight Pro Bowls, and only had one season without 1,600 yards from scrimmage. Green ran for more yards and amassed more total yards from scrimmage than any running back in that five-season span, and his 61 touchdowns in this span ranks fourth among all running backs in the league.

Injuries cut him down, and his Texans tenure was a nightmare, but Green's big-play potential was equaled by few across the league in the early 2000s.

4. Tony Canadeo

When Canadeo retired from football, he was regarded by many as one of the greatest Packers ever. One of a select few with a number retired by the Packers, Canadeo was simultaneously one of the game's best ball carriers, a quality defensive back, a fill-in quarterback, and a half-decent punter.

Canadeo's finest year was 1949, running for 1,000 yards despite the 12-game season and sluggish pace of the game. A three-time All-Pro and member of the 1940s All-Decade team, Canadeo had an even more remarkable career when you factor in World War II essentially wiping out two of his prime seasons.

3. Clark Hinkle

When you are considered the only player tough enough to go toe-to-toe with the great Bronko Nagurski (and you're the only one to ever knock him out of a game), you're tougher than a two-dollar steak. Hinkle is a Hall of Famer not for his gaudy statistical output, but his impact on the game in the 1930s.

Hinkle was named an All-Pro by various publications in each of his 10 seasons. A member of the 1930s All-Decade team and two champion Packers teams, the hard-nosed Hinkle smashed and dashed his way to the league's all-time rushing record when he retired. Players like Nagurski and writers of that era frequently call him one of the meanest, toughest, and greatest of his time.

2. Paul Hornung

Aaron Rodgers has just a few hundred fewer rushing yards than Hornung. Why is he here? Well, Vince Lombardi calling him "the greatest player I ever coached" has something to do with it, as does the fact his kicking duties helped him become the league's leading scorer between 1959 and 1961.

Hornung was NFL MVP in 1961 and was a few votes shy of winning it the year prior in 1960. Hornung, who led the league in touchdowns in 1960, is one of just nine players to win the Heisman Trophy and NFL MVP.

Lombardi's system deprived him of the touches he may have gotten elsewhere, but in terms of executing his role within that system to perfection, few in league history can equal "The Golden Boy."

1. Jim Taylor

Taylor was cursed with playing in the shadow of both Jim Brown and his own coach in Vince Lombardi. The accomplishments of Lombardi's team over overshadow individual stars like Taylor, and Brown was the best player and running back in the league during Taylor's prime.

Despite this, Taylor was able to both serve as Green Bay's primary offensive weapon and run stride-for-stride with Brown. Taylor would often beat out Brown for the league lead in rushing yards or touchdowns. Between 1960 and 1964, when Taylor made five Pro Bowls and twice led the NFL in rushing touchdowns, he ran for 1,000 yards in five straight seasons while scoring 71 touchdowns in 67 games.

Those numbers came while splitting carries with Hornung. The 1962 MVP, Taylor is one of the most feared power backs in league history, as he ran with a bruising style that became emblematic of Lombardi's teams.

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