On July 5, 1961, in a surprising move, he was sent to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for Halfback Prentice Gautt and rookie End Taz Anderson.
[3] Roach was the backup quarterback on the Packers' 1961 and 1962 NFL championship teams, backing up Bart Starr under head coach Vince Lombardi.
[2][4][5] The team was 4–1 with Starr sidelined and finished 11–2–1, but the 26–7 loss to the Chicago Bears in mid-November was critical;[6][7][8] keeping them a half game back in the Western Conference final standings and denied the Packers a chance to win an unprecedented third consecutive NFL championship game.
He was acquired after starting quarterback Don Meredith went down with a knee injury in the preseason game against the Green Bay Packers.
[1] At the time of his death, he was the only person to have played football for the Highland Park Scots, SMU Mustangs, and Dallas Cowboys.