Two players of the Lombardi era have left this mortal coil recently — Lew Carpenter (#33, above left) and Ken Iman (#53, above right). While not household names as some other players of those 1960’s teams, they contributed nonetheless to the glory years in Green Bay.
Carpenter, a versatile role player on Vince Lombardi’s earliest Green Bay Packers teams and later an assistant coach for the Packers, died Sunday. He was 78. He visited Green Bay during the team’s annual alumni weekend in September, played in 66 games for the Packers from 1959 to 1963. Wearing No. 33, the 6-foot-2, 215-pounder played both wide receiver positions, tight end, halfback and fullback. Lombardi traded for Carpenter, a five-year NFL veteran, as he started to rebuild the Packers after being hired as coach in 1959. Carpenter and defensive end Bill Quinlan came to Green Bay in a trade that sent end Billy Howton to the Cleveland Browns. Carpenter was brought to Green Bay because he knew how to win. He was a rookie with the Detroit Lions when they won the NFL title in 1953. He won titles with the Packers in 1961 and 1962. He also played in NFL championship games in 1954 with the Lions, in 1957 with the Browns and in 1960 with the Packers. Carpenter played in the NFL for 10 seasons, starting with three seasons in Detroit (1953-55) and two seasons with the Browns (1957-58). He was in the Army during the 1956 season. His statistics with the Packers were modest. He had 64 carries for 359 yards and a touchdown, along with 17 receptions for 213 yards. He also had 28 punt returns for 339 yards and 18 kickoff returns for 348 yards. After retiring as a player, Carpenter immediately became an assistant coach in the NFL, starting with three seasons with the Minnesota Vikings. He was on Lombardi’s staff with the Washington Redskins in 1969. When Bart Starr became the Packers’ coach in 1975, he hired his former teammate as receivers coach. Carpenter also was in charge of the Packers’ passing game from 1975 to 1979, overseeing a powerful passing attack that included James Lofton, a future Pro Football Hall of Fame player. Carpenter coached the Packers’ receivers for 11 seasons, from 1975 to 1983 under Starr and in 1984 and 1985 under coach Forrest Gregg, another former teammate. He also was an assistant with the Atlanta Falcons, St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Oilers, Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles, retiring in 1994. An Arkansas native, Carpenter starred in football at the University of Arkansas and was drafted by the Lions in the eighth round of the 1953 draft. Survivors include his wife, Beverly Ann; four daughters and other family members. Services will be Wednesday night at Pennington Funeral Home in San Marcos, Texas.
Iman, the backup center for the Green Bay Packers on their first two NFL championship teams under coach Vince Lombardi, died Saturday at his home in Springfield, Pa. He was 71. Iman was signed in 1960 as an undrafted rookie out of Southeast Missouri State. Wearing No. 53, the 6-foot-1, 230-pounder played in 54 games for the Packers over four seasons, backing up starter Jim Ringo. In 1964, Iman was traded to the Los Angeles Rams for quarterback Zeke Bratkowski. He spent the rest of his 15-year NFL career with the Rams and was their starting center for 10 years, retiring after the 1974 season. Iman was offensive line coach for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1976 to 1986, then worked in sales for the Eagles. He had a serious heart attack about 10 years ago and had speech and mobility issues after that. Survivors include his wife, Joyce, who is an accountant with the Eagles. Funeral arrangements are pending.
