Darrell Green had uncanny longevity, playing a position premised on speed and quickness well beyond his 40th birthday.
In 2002, he appeared in every game, at the ripe old football age of 42. (Which still sounds really old, even though I’m starting down the barrel of 46.)
Green was part of two Super Bowl teams. A punt return for a touchdown in 1987 against the Bears, during which he injured a rib and finished the play holding his side, helping propel the team to an unexpected NFL title.
Also, Green was one of the fastest players in the league for most if not all of his career. He made it
into the Hall of Fame on the first try.
Green was a once-in-a-century player, and we hope that every guy who receives the award named for Green will do justice to his NFL legacy.
This year, two guys receive the award named for Green. And both play in Green Bay.
Charles Woodson and Tramon Williams provided the league’s best one-two punch at the position in 2010. Woodson provided strong leadership while still displaying a high level of ability. Williams, in his first season as a full-time starter, showed up big in the postseason, with a game-saving pick in the wild-card round and a backbreaking pick six in the divisional playoff.
PFT Planet agrees. Williams received more than 28 percent of the reader vote and Woodson grabbed 22, giving them half of the 11,672 ballots cast as of this posting for six candidates.
The other finalists were Raiders cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha, Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis, Patriots cornerback Devin McCourty, and Eagles cornerback Asante Samuel.