The NFL lost one of its all-time greats late last month when Bart Starr died at the age of 85.

While the former Green Bay quarterback put up solid stats in his 16-year Hall of Fame career — 24,718 passing yards and 152 touchdown passes — it was what the Packers accomplished with him under center that he will be most remembered for. He led Green Bay to five NFL championships in a seven-year span and was named MVP of the first two Super Bowls.

Starr was not viewed as the savior to a struggling franchise, evidenced by his selection in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft. He started 32 games over his first five years, sharing the role with the likes of Tobin Rote, Babe Parilli and Lamar McHan.

By 1961, coach Vince Lombardi had given the reins of Green Bay's offense to Starr full-time and the rest is history.

Lombardi had been the offensive coordinator for the New York Giants prior to becoming the head man in Green Bay in 1959. He was a tough, demanding coach who had no problem unleashing his criticism on players in front of their teammates.

This did not sit well with Starr, who was the target of many tirades early in Lombardi's tenure. Starr demanded from Lombardi that if he deserved being chewed out, it must be done behind closed doors. Lombardi obliged and gained a new-found respect for Starr that never wavered for the duration of the coach's time in Green Bay.

These days, Starr is often overlooked. Ask a current NFL fan to name great Green Bay quarterbacks and the vast majority will be quick to highlight Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers, while Starr may get mentioned third, if at all.

Favre and Rodgers' stats dwarf what Starr amassed, but when it comes to the most important stat for a quarterback — winning — Starr is still king in Green Bay. As good as Favre was and Rodgers is, they both have one Super Bowl victory to their credit.

Sure, Starr benefitted from playing on a team full of future Hall of Famers, but that is the case for many quarterbacks enshrined in Canton. How many Super Bowls would Terry Bradshaw have won if he didn't have names like Harris, Swann, Stallworth and Webster in the same huddle ... or a defense with similar greatness wearing the same uniform?

Would Troy Aikman have won three Super Bowls without Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin at his disposal? Maybe, maybe not.

You get the point. Starr was surrounded with incredible talent, but it takes similar talent to make the most of those abilities.

Starr was 9-1 in postseason games, throwing 15 touchdowns and just three interceptions in the process.

In a day when 400-yard games and 40-touchdown seasons are commonplace, those numbers still translate as great.

Derek Pyda is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle