Question

Forrest Gregg passed away at 85 on Friday. He was a Hall of Fame offensive tackle with the Packers, and he also coached that team for four years in the ‘80s. Who are the only other four men who were Hall of Fame players for teams during the Super Bowl era, then later spent at least a season as head coaches for those same franchises?

Answer

Mike Ditka (Bears), Bart Starr (Packers), Art Shell (Raiders) and Mike Munchak (Oilers/Titans). Larry Wilson was a great defensive back for the St. Louis Cardinals and later was a head coach for that team – but only as a interim coach for three games in 1979. Joe Schmidt is also a member of this club, but his 13th and final year with the Lions came in 1965 (the season before they started playing Super Bowls).