Wow, I doubt that he was faster than Hornung, who was amazingly fast for a guy his size. Abe Woodson was considered the fastest player in college football in 1956, but Hornung beat him by 5 yards in a 100-yard during a practice for the 1957 College All-Star Game. Hornung's speed often didn't show because he was so patient waiting for his blocks, but once he got into the secondary, nobody ever caught him from behind.SixtiesFan wrote:A lot of good comments on this thread. I saw Jim Taylor play on TV many times. I've seen internet pieces and comments (by people who weren't around in the 60's) expressing puzzlement about Hornung being rated ahead of Taylor despite Taylor's rushing stats being way better. For example, Paul Hornung was considered the Packers' premier touchdown maker despite Jim Taylor scoring 83 rushing TDs in his career to Paul Hornung's 50.
Hornung was a much better media personality to say the least and was considered the team leader. The writers always went to him for quotes.
There was a Sport Special on Jim Taylor in 1962. It pointed out Taylor was faster than Hornung, faster than most of the fullbacks in the NFL at the time. Weeb Ewbank, then the Colt HC, was quoted saying something like "As big as he (Taylor) is, he reminds me of Lenny Moore. He has some of the same wiggly, little moves."
Here's what Lombardi said about Taylor in "Run to Daylight": "Jimmy Taylor does not have exceptional speed, and he seldom scores long for us because they catch him..."
As for TDs, Taylor was the guy who got the ball when the Packers were a yard or two out; Hornung was more likely to score from 5-7 yards out. Hornung was also an all-around player; an outstanding blocker, an exceptional pass receiver, a threat to throw on the halfback option pass, and a placekicker. Lombardi thought he was the best all-around player in football history. I'm not sure he was considered the team's premier touchdown-maker, but he was certainly a premier points-maker. After all, he set a record with 176 points in 1960, and he also threw TD passes that season.
If I had to choose between the two, I'd take Hornung, but it wouldn't be an easy decision.