Former Packers linebacker Phil Vandersea dies at 83

Phil Vandersea, a linebacker on the 1966 Green Bay Packers Super Bowl team, died Oct. 24 in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts. He was 83. Vandersea was drafted in the 16th round of the 1965 NFL draft by the Green Bay Packers and in the 10th round by the Denver Broncos of the American Football League. He opted to play with the Packers and was on the Super Bowl I championship team. He played for the New Orleans Saints in 1967, then returned to the Packers in 1968-69, where he moved to defensive end. He finished his professional career with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. Vandersea was a star athlete at Northbridge High School in Whitinsville, Massachusetts, and at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he was named to the 1965 All-Yankee Conference team. At UMass, Vandersea played defense, punted and excelled at fullback. He helped the Minutemen to an 8-0-1 record in 1963. He is included in the Northbridge High School and UMass halls of fame and was named to the UMass All-Time Anniversary team as the starting fullback. After his football career ended, Vandersea was a counselor and community release supervisor for 20 years for the Massachusetts Department of Corrections. He participated in research on the long-term effects of concussions in football and donated his brain to CTE study at Boston University. Contact Richard Ryman at  rryman@usatodayco.com . Follow him on X at  @RichRymanPG  and on Instagram at  @rrymanPG .