Welcome back to Lombardi Ave's series covering the greatest Green Bay Packers players to wear every jersey number from No. 0 to No. 99.
Well, we've officially reached the halfway point of our journey, as this marks the 50th of 100 entries. But we're going to be real with you right here at the get-go by saying that No. 49 simply doesn't have the greatest history in Green Bay.
That's not meant to disrespect any player who has worn it for the Green & Gold over the years, as getting to the NFL at all to wear any number is obviously a great accomplishment. But the fact is that this particular jersey just hasn't been worn by any high-profile players or franchise legends.
If you've followed this series, then you know that in the majority of our entries, we see at least one member of the Packers Hall of Fame on the list of those who've worn that number. But as you'll see below, this list of those to wear No. 49 doesn't feature a single one.
- Zac Alcorn, TE
- Deslin Alexandre, DL
- Drake Dabney, TE
- Dominique Dafney, TE
- Rob Francois, LB
- Todd Franz, DB
- David Greenwood, S
- Lamont Hall, TE
- John Howell, HB
- Tory Humphrey, TE
- Kobe Jones, LB
- Walt Kiesling, G
- Dan Orlich, DE/E
- Al Rose, E
- Kevin Smith, TE
- Mickey Sutton, CB
- Ed West, TE
- Bob Wicks, WR
- Jeff Wilner, TE
See what we mean? Not a lot of recognizable names to the common fan, right? When we had to seriously consider rolling with linebacker Rob Francois, who started three games for Green Bay in four seasons from 2010 to 2013 and tallied 41 total tackles in 45 total games between the regular season and postseason, that says quite a bit, don't you think?
As such, basically by default, our selection here is Pro Football Hall of Famer Walt Kiesling.
Hall of Fame offensive lineman Walt Kiesling spent two seasons with the Packers toward the end of his career
A standout at the University of St. Thomas in his home state of Minnesota, Kiesling began his NFL career with the Duluth Eskimos, teaming with future Packers legend Johnny Blood. While he started at tackle on the offensive side of the ball as a rookie, he moved to guard in 1927 and remained in that position for most of the remainder of his career.
Like pretty much everyone did back then, he also played defense and played it very well, but the 6-foot-3, 260-pounder was mostly recognized for his play on the offensive line.
After those two years with Duluth, Kiesling spent the 1928 season with the Pottsville Maroons before joining the Chicago Cardinals in 1929. The St. Paul native spent five seasons with the Cards and remained in the Windy City for a sixth season to play a year with the Bears.
It was in 1935 that the four-time All-Pro signed with the Packers, and it was during that first season with the club that he wore No. 49, switching to No. 60 in 1936, with that second season resulting in Green Bay winning its fourth NFL Championship. Kiesling then spent two seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates (who became the Steelers) to close out his career.
Now, it's not as if PFF was around back in those days, so it's hard to know exactly how well Kiesling played in his two seasons with the Packers. But from the little information we were able to find on O-line play from 90 years ago, it seems as if he still played at a high level.
And as the Green Bay offense gained the second-most yards in the league in 1935 and the third-most in 1936, that also obviously bodes well, as does the fact that Curly Lambeau brought Kiesling in to be the Packers' line coach from 1945 to 1948. Like Lambeau, Kiesling served as a player-coach in his later years in Pittsburgh before becoming the team's full-time head coach after he retired from playing ahead of the 1939 season. He returned to the Steelers for a second run after his coaching days in Green Bay came to an end.
Kiesling, who passed away in 1962 at the age of 58, was posthumously inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1966.
Other Green Bay Packers jersey honorees
- No. 0: There's literally only one choice here
- No. 1: Micah Parsons isn't the pick just yet
- No. 2: The Packers' all-time leading scorer
- No. 3: The second player in franchise history to have his jersey retired
- No. 4: There's no introduction needed here
- No. 5: This player should have been the last to wear the number but wasn't
- No. 6: A genuine ironman
- No. 7: This player was straight magic (until he wasn't)
- No. 8: This player has the second-most points in Packers history
- No. 9: The winner here has an extremely famous relative
- No. 10: A star on the rise
- No. 11: Packers' first title-winning QB
- No. 12: Obviously isn't up for debate
- No. 13: Had 'no weakness'
- No. 14: The first to have his jersey retired by the Packers
- No. 15: Owns a special piece of NFL history
- No. 16: Shares his name with an MLB legend
- No. 17: Had to beat out several Hall of Famers
- No. 18: Was one of the NFL's first dual-threat quarterbacks
- No. 19: Had his career cut short by the Bears
- No. 20: Has held a record for nearly 100 years
- No. 21: Has the most defensive TDs in NFL history
- No. 22: Also served in the U.S. Congress
- No. 23: Holds several NFL kick-return records
- No. 24: Owns a unique piece of Super Bowl history
- No. 25: Might not be who you think
- No. 26: Holds a historic place in NFL history
- No. 27: Started hot but fizzled fast
- No. 28: A good defender on some bad teams
- No. 29: Still holds an unofficial team record
- No. 30: It's not the one who's the Packers' all-time leading rusher
- No. 31: Had his jersey retired by another team
- No. 32: Is a member of another team's Ring of Honor
- No. 33: Did so much more than people may realize
- No. 34: An underrated dual-threat back
- No. 35: Gave the Packers a unique win over the Bears
- No. 36: Invented the Lambeau Leap
- No. 37: Suited up for the Packers at the wrong time
- No. 38: Left the Packers as the NFL's all-time passing leader
- No. 39: Was taken in three different MLB drafts
- No. 40: The only man in both the Baseball and Pro Football Hall of Fame
- No. 41: Made a big impact in a little time
- No. 42: Was the charter member of an elite club
- No. 43: Inadvertently created a new play
- No. 44: Made the Hall of Fame despite only having one eye
- No. 45: Left the NFL with the most TDs in history
- No. 46: Was underappreciated in the Lombardi era
- No. 47: Later played on the PGA Tour
- No. 48: Just missed out on the Lombardi era
This list will be updated daily until all 100 entries are complete, so be sure to check back in with Lombardi Ave for updates.
Add us as a preferred source on Google