Green Bay Packers: Who wore #83 best?

John Martinkovic 

Here is how John Maxymuk describes Martinkovic:

"John Martinkovic was one of the better defensive ends in the league in the 1950s, twice being selected to play in the Pro Bowl. He was noted for his quickness and notorious for his toughness. In its Oct. 24, 1955, issue, Life ran an expose of pro football violence with the catchy title, “Savagery on Sunday.” Martinkovic was the only Packer included among the roughtest players in the game – although former Packer Paul Lipscomb was called “just about the dirtiest player in the game.” In response, Bucko Kilroy and Wayne Robinson of the Eagles brought a libel suit against the magazine and won the case in a Philadelphia court in 1958. Nonetheless, the 1950s were filled with brutal hits and ferocious tackling. Martinkovic could dish it out with the best, but was a handsome, popular player and a successful car dealer in town when he was traded to the Giants. He spent his final 1958 season in New York and was elected to the Packers Hall of Fame in 1974. The 6-3, 241-pound defensive end played six years in Green Bay and though statistics for defensive players up through the 1970s are inconsistent, one could see that Martinkovic was around the ball – take a look at his fumble recovery stats. In addition, the defensive end never missed a game during his time in Green Bay – nor in his time in New York."

The following are Martinkovic’s career statistics as provided by Pro Football Reference:

Next: Who wore #84 best?

The following are all the players who wore #83 for the Packers since 1950 as provided by Pro Football Reference: