Welcome back to Lombardi Ave's series on the greatest Green Bay Packers players to wear every jersey number from No. 0 to No. 99.
With the first half of our journey officially in the books, we're ready to kick off the second half, and we've got plenty of players from which to choose here at No. 50. So, without further ado, let's get things rolling by looking at everyone who's donned the digit for the Green & Gold over the years.
- Mike Arthur, C
- Jim Carter, LB
- Bill Curry, C
- Anthony Davis, LB
- Tipa Galeai, LB
- A.J. Hawk, LB
- Johnny Holland, LB
- Bob Hyland, C
- Bill Johnson, DE
- Blake Martinez, LB
- Whitney Mercilus, DE/LB
- Bob Monnett, HB
- Hannibal Navies, LB
- Jim Nelson, LB
- Claude Perry, OL
- Vince Rafferty, C
- Jay Rhodemyre, C/LB
- Ken Roskie, FB
- Ade Schwammel, OT
- Tuffy Thompson, B
- Zach Tom, OL
- K.D. Williams, LB
- Rich Wingo, LB
There are two members of the Packers Hall of Fame on this list, one being Bob Monnett, who wore No. 50 in his sixth and final season with Green Bay in 1938. The other is linebacker Johnny Holland, who was a pivotal part of the Packers' defense from 1987 to 1993 and very well could have taken this title had a herniated disc not cut his career short at the age of 29.
Linebacker is the call here, but it's not Holland. While our selection isn't currently enshrined in the team HOF, one would assume that day will come in the near future. And that selection is none other than A.J. Hawk.
A.J. Hawk missed just two games for the Green Bay Packers in nine years
A three-time First-Team All-Big Ten selection and a two-time All-American at Ohio State, with whom he also won a national title as a freshman in 2002 and was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year as a senior in 2005, Hawk was taken by Green Bay in the first round of the 2006 NFL Draft with the fifth overall selection, making him the first linebacker off the board that year.
There's naturally a lot of pressure that comes with being taken that high, but Hawk certainly lived up to his status, as he started all 16 games and finished third in the Defensive Rookie of the Year voting behind only the Houston Texans' DeMeco Ryans and the Chicago Bears' Mark Anderson.
Now, while Hawk may not have earned the All-Pro selections that many thought he might after such a strong start to his career, his versatility and durability can never be questioned.
After spending his first few seasons at outside linebacker, the 6-foot-1, 240-pounder transitioned to the inside when Dom Capers was brought on as defensive coordinator in 2009 and installed a 3-4 base scheme. But the change didn't affect his play, and in helping the Packers to a Super Bowl title in 2010, Hawk had one of the best overall seasons of his career, earning his lone trip to the Pro Bowl after tallying a team-high 134 tackles.
In his nine seasons with Green Bay, the Ohio native ultimately became the franchise's all-time leading tackler, with the team's official website crediting him with 1,118. He also racked up 19.0 sacks, three forced fumbles, 34 passes defended, and nine interceptions. And as far as his durability goes, he only missed two games out of a possible 157 between the regular season and the postseason, both coming during the 2011 campaign due to a calf injury.
Released after the 2014 season, Hawk closed his career playing one year for the Cincinnati Bengals in 2015 and one game for the Atlanta Falcons in 2016.
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
- No. 49: Was one of the best O-linemen of his 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.
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