It’s hard to compare eras. People refuse to acknowledge the elephant in the room when they do it. Warren Moon, who is in the Hall of Fame, would not have played in the NFL in the 30s because of his skin color. The level of play was not as dominating then as it is now. It’s why the modern era is the dominate era of pro football.
However, there are exceptions. Don Hutson is obviously one. Many regard him as the first modern era receiver in history. His speed was comparable with current NFL receivers. His hands were amazing. His size wasn’t bad. He’s the Jim Brown of receivers. In other words, the one receiver people must acknowledge regardless of the era he played in.
With that in mind, I find the Favre vs. Starr debate fascinating. Perhaps Starr was a better leader of men. Personally, I think that’s his only case, because if we takeaway our emotions stemming from the last few years, Favre is simply one of the greatest players to ever play the quarterback position. His combination of athleticism, arm strength, accuracy, size, and much more is truly off the charts. There is a reason why NFL scouts are looking for the next Brett Favre and not Bart Starr or Terry Bradshaw. Ironically, Packer fans used to overrate Favre, in my opinion. Now they underrated him.
For what it‘s worth, my pick would be Hutson with Favre a close No. 2.