Any discussion of the most influential names of NFL history is certain to include Vince Lombardi and George Halas.
The two men were the legendary head coaches in the most ancient – and bitter – rivalry in NFL history, the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears. Their animosity on the field, however, shadowed a deeply respectful relationship off it.
Lombardi arrived in Green Bay in 1959. By then, Halas was in another successful stint as the Bears’ head coach, a role in which he served intermittently between 1920-68. During, and after, that time, he ran the Bears’ front office. Under his watch in Chicago, the Bears collected eight NFL titles.
Their relationship, at least indirectly, dated to Lombardi’s time as a New York Giants’ offensive assistant from 1954-58.
In the 1956 NFL title game, Lombardi’s power sweep ran over the Bears all afternoon in a 47-7 New York rout. In that era, Lombardi ran the sweep from a T-formation that he had actually, in part, learned from a brochure co-written by Halas. Lombardi later brought the sweep the Green Bay, and the play helped define the “Titletown” era.
Both Halas and Lombardi also had an ally who, today, is an unsung figure in the rise of the Packers in the 1960s. Jack Vanisi was a Green Bay scout who landed seven future NFL Hall of Fame players, including Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, and Ray Nitschke.
Vanisi, who had been a grammar school classmate of Halas’ son in Chicago, urged the Green Bay board to hire Lombardi. Many believe Halas had recommended Lombardi for the job. Halas later hired Jack’s younger brother, Jerry, as the Bears’ general manager.
Jack Vainisi, who played a vastly underrated role in building the Green Bay dynasty, died of a chronic rheumatic illness at age 33 in 1960. That same year, Halas urged Lombardi to remain in Green Bay and turn down an offer to return to New York as head coach.
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Lombardi’s last season as Green Bay head coach was 1967 – the same year that Halas finally stepped away from the Bears’ sideline for good. In their nine years of opposition, they played eighteen times, with Lombardi holding a 13-5 advantage.
The teams even played in the preseason during those years, and Lombardi went 7-2 against Halas. Each of the games was played in Milwaukee, the Packers’ former part-time home.
In that era, the Green Bay franchise was in the ascent, winning five NFL championships between 1961-67. Chicago, meanwhile, was tailing off slightly from the golden years under Halas, particularly the sparkling run of four titles from 1940-46.
Lombardi’s first game in Green Bay was a 9-6 win at home over Halas’ Bears on Sept. 27, 1959. With his Packers at the height of their power, they blasted Chicago 49-0 on Sept. 30, 1962, the largest margin of victory for Green Bay in their all-time series with Chicago, which now spans 208 games. It is also tied for the second-largest margin of any Green Bay win in franchise history.
Halas, though, still had plenty of tricks up his sleeve. In 1963, he led Chicago to his eighth and final NFL title as head coach, knocking out Green Bay, the two-time defending league champion.
Not surprisingly, the games with the Packers decided the outcome. Chicago won 10-3 in Green Bay in the season opener, then easily beat the Packers 26-7 on November 17. The Bears finished 11-1-2, while the Packers were 11-2-1.
In a time when ties did not could in the league standings, Chicago won the Western Conference. Had Green Bay had a better result in either of its meetings with the Bears, the outcome would have been different. Chicago proceeded to beat the Giants 14-10 in the title game.
Chicago was a collective 26-27-3 in the last four years of the Lombardi-Halas era from 1964-67, Green Bay won seven of the eight meetings in those years on the way to three straight NFL titles from 1965-67, though Halas still found a way to stick it to his old rivals. The lone Chicago win in those years was a 31-10 rout at Wrigley Field on the last day of October 1965, which certainly would have riled Lombardi.
Including the postseason, Lombardi fashioned a sparkling record of 98-30-4 in his nine years in Green Bay. Five of those losses came at the hands of Halas, more than any other coach.
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The games between the Bears and the Packers were bloodbaths, reflective of their head coaches, two of the most fiery competitors the league has ever known. The actual relationship between Halas and Lombardi, though, was far different.
Though Zeke Bratkowski is best known as Starr’s backup with the Packers, he also played for the Bears from 1954-60. He is one of just two men who both played under Halas with Chicago and Lombardi with Green Bay.
The other was linebacker Tom Bettis (Green Bay 1955-61, Chicago 1963). Bettis later said he shared Lombardi’s offensive secrets with Halas during his lone season with the Bears.
In an interview decades later, Bratkowski recalled that “Coach Halas and Coach Lombardi were good friends. At least until they played each other.
“But they had great respect for one another,” continued Bratkowski. “They had the same character. Both were devout Christians.”
Lee Remmel, the longtime, famed Green Bay public-relations director, quoted Lombardi as saying “Papa George, I love that man.” Halas was supposedly the lone individual whom Lombardi would call “Coach.”
Virginia McCaskey, Halas’ daughter, said her father’s respect for Lombardi was seen in “just the way [Halas] greeted him before a game.” She added that one of her favorite pictures was a shot of her father and Lombardi, talking on the field before a game.
Following his first NFL title in 1961, Lombardi took Halas to dinner and even poured the old coach’s wine. During the evening, Lombardi told Halas repeatedly, “you’re the greatest coach in history!”
On April 30, 1962, Lombardi was honored at an Elks Lodge in Green Bay in a star-studded affair that included some of the luminaries of American football history. Among them was Halas, who told the crowd, “we’re delighted to be a part of this richly deserved tribute to Vince Lombardi.”
He then paid homage to his rival, who was deeply moved. Biographer David Maraniss wrote that “Lombardi could imagine no greater compliment than to be toasted by George Halas.”
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In some ways, Halas himself was responsible for the rise of the Titletown-era Packers. Not only had he recommended Lombardi, but he also advocated for a new stadium in Green Bay, which opened in 1957 and stemmed a demise in the Packers’ franchise that threatened their existence.
Today, that stadium is Lambeau Field, one of the iconic venues in American sports. Halas may have loved beating the Packers, but he also recognized their importance to the league.
He also saw the greatness in Lombardi, though he never admitted it to his players. For his part, Lombardi never let on about his respect for Halas, either.
Willie Davis, the stalwart Green Bay defensive end from 1960-69, once remarked that “Lombardi said you had to dislike everything about the Bears, including Halas as he stood on the goal line during warm-ups.”
Defensive back Willie Wood, a star Packer safety from 1960-71, said that “all of our games with the Bears were thrilling…we accepted the fact that we would be bruised, hurting, battered and sore after Bears games.”
In one instance, Lombardi painted the words “Beat the Bears” on all the team’s blocking bags. He also changed the players’ jersey numbers and positions during practices, to prevent Halas from spying.
Down in Chicago, the view was much the same. During film sessions when Lombardi was seen on the sideline, Halas would growl, “Look at that son of a b----.”
Moments before one of their games, Halas knocked on the Packers’ training room and told the equipment manager that he wanted to talk to Lombardi.
Lombardi then came to the door. “Coach, I hope you have your team ready,” snapped Halas, “because we’re going to kick you’re a--.”
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George Halas formally announced his final retirement as Bears head coach on May 27, 1968. One of his highest tributes came from Lombardi, who said that “we are all indebted to George Halas – coaches, players, and fans – for the contribution he has made to pro football. With Halas, football is more than a game. It is a way of life. And as in life, the essence of the game is to win.
“He taught us all to win,” continued Lombardi. “And he taught us the principles of courage, stamina, and teamwork which make football such a great game.”
Vince Lombardi died of colon cancer at age 57 on Sept. 3, 1970. The Chicago Tribune ran a lengthy obituary that quoted his old rival, Halas.
“The right words to not come easily when I try to express my deep sorrow at the passing of Vince Lombardi,” said Halas. “All too few men are around to match his forceful leadership and competitive qualities. I regret that I really became close to Vince only within the last five years – all too short a time to enjoy and admire his unforgettable personality.
“We understood each other,” remarked Halas. “I loved him as a friend and a man.”
• Tom Emery is a freelance writer and historical researcher from Carlinville, Illinois. He may be reached at 217-710-8392 or ilcivilwar@yahoo.com.