In 1979, Red Cochran, the Packers’ Midwest scout, pleaded with Starr to draft Montana in the second round. Instead, Starr selected Maryland running back Steve Atkins. When Starr chose nose tackle Charles Johnson of Maryland in the third round ahead of Montana, Cochran stormed out of the draft room in a huff. “He was the guy who watched him all those years,” a club official who was in the room that year told me in 1986. “He (Cochran) said, I don’t care what the score is in the fourth quarter, he (Montana) is going to win for you.”

Two years later, Dick Corrick, the Packers’ director of player personnel, tried to convince Starr to take Lott with the sixth pick. Arrangements were made to bring Lott to Green Bay for a visit, which included dinner with Starr and Corrick at the old Town & Country Club in nearby Allouez. Pleased with how the dinner had gone, Corrick made one last pitch to Starr the night before the draft and went home thinking he had convinced him to take Lott. Early the next morning, Starr informed Corrick when he showed up at the office that he couldn’t ignore the input of some of his assistant coaches and planned to draft Campbell, the California quarterback.

The Packers chose Campbell and the 49ers took Lott two picks later. When Starr announced his decision in the Packers’ draft room, Lloyd Eaton, the team’s West Coast scout, turned to Bob Harlan, who was sitting next to him, and whispered, “That’s a mistake. He (Campbell) can’t play.” Eaton was a respected scout and had a reputation for being a straight shooter. Plus, he probably spent more time than anyone in the organization studying Campbell and Lott, who had both played college ball in California. Harlan asked Eaton at that point, “Then why didn’t you speak up and say something?” Eaton responded, “They don’t listen to me anyway.” Five years later, after the Packers had been whipped by the 49ers in Milwaukee, Lott, his voice dripping with sarcasm, said in the locker room, “I remember I flew up there before the draft. Coach Starr was there and coach (John) Marshall had been my coach at USC. I had a feeling I was coming here. But they took Rich Campbell and had a lot of success with Rich.”

http://www.packers.com/news-and-events/article-cliffs-notes/article-1/Packers-could-have-had-Joe-Montana-Ronnie-Lott-if-only/6a83302c-7739-463a-b746-ed6330dc7162#ixzz4Bm6E8Hnw 

Cliff Christl wrote: