1970 Team Photo Calendar

MEARS Auctions in Milwaukee sold this 1971 calendar a few years ago.

Lot #188: 1971 Green Bay Packers team photo calendar

At first glance this piece looks like a very impressive calendar issued by Production Steel of Illinois, featuring the 1970 Green Bay Packers squad. But, this may hold closer to a Packers fan's heart due to the fact that Hall of Famer Tony Canadeo, and former Packers head coach Gene Ronzani were sales reps for the company. Measuring at 18" by 27 1/2", this NM promo is in virtually unimprovable condition and preserved between foam board and shrink wrap.

This calendar is interesting to me for the look at the 1970 squad, a team often overlooked.

This was a time of great turmoil and transition for the Packers, one year after the departure of Vince Lombardi for Washington. They still had Lombardi-era greats such as Ray Nitschke and Bart Starr in uniform (second row, fourth and fifth from the left, respectively). That's Forrest Gregg, in the front row right. Lombardi himself had passed away during his second training camp in Washington.

1970 was Phil Bengtson's third year as head coach, and his last; by the time this calendar was printed he had been fired and replaced with former Notre Dame coach Dan Devine.

The uniforms were the same, and the coaches dressed much the way they were when Lombardi was at the helm—the "GB" caps make another appearance here—but these weren't the Packers of old.