Who is better, Hutson or Olsen?
Merlin Olsen leads with a GOAT score of 87.7 against 87.6 for Don Hutson — a gap of 0.1 points on GOAT Rank's weighted model.
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Quick answer
GOAT Rank currently ranks Merlin Olsen above Don Hutson: 87.7 vs 87.6. Merlin Olsen leads on Longevity. Don Hutson leads on Dominance, Peak, Honours.
How the GOAT Score is calculated →Olsen wins: Longevity
Hutson wins: Dominance, Peak, Honours, Statistics
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Showing full careers. Pick a window to recalculate the selected period.
Olsen leads in 1 of 5 weighted categories.
Cumulative output season by season — the shape of each career against the other.
| Ghost race · career day | 30 | 100 | 365 | 1000 | 1825 | 3650 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🇺🇸 Hutson | 0 | 0 | 6 | 14 | 36 | 81 |
| 🇺🇸 Olsen | 0 | 0 | 60 | 127 | 372 | 719 |
Careers are aligned from debut; the first 5 season periods are measured against the same career window.
| Metric | HutsonRetired | OlsenRetired |
|---|---|---|
| MVP awards | 2 | — |
| NFL championships | 3 | — |
| Receiving titles | 8 | — |
| Receiving touchdowns | 99 | — |
| Receptions | 488 | — |
| Scoring titles | 5 | — |
| Pro Bowl selections | — | 14 |
| First-team All-Pro selections | — | 5 |
| Defensive Player of the Year awards | — | 1 |
| Career games | — | 208 |
| Seasons played | — | 15 |
| Dominance w25% | 92 | 84 |
| Peak w20% | 94 | 92 |
| Longevity w20% | 72 | 88 |
| Honours w20% | 88 | 86 |
| Statistics w15% | 92 | 90 |
Merlin Olsen leads with a GOAT score of 87.7 against 87.6 for Don Hutson — a gap of 0.1 points on GOAT Rank's weighted model.
Hutson scores higher on peak, dominance, honours, statistics. Olsen leads on longevity.
Both are scored on peak, dominance, honours, statistics, longevity within their sport. Hutson: 87.6, Olsen: 87.7.
Make your case for Hutson vs Olsen. The scoring is published in full — if you can point at the pillar or the weight you disagree with, we read it. Read the methodology paper.