Best Green Bay Packers player to wear No. 33 did so much more than some may realize

Welcome back to our series on the greatest Green Bay Packers players to wear every jersey number from No. 0 to No. 99.

While we obviously don't enjoy making such statements, there's no getting around the fact that our last entry certainly wasn't the most intriguing, as No. 32 is one of the least-decorated digits we've had on our journey thus far. In fact, it was one of the few numbers in the series up to this point that hasn't been worn by at least one member of the Packers Hall of Fame.

But that's not the case here, as four such players have sported No. 33. Oddly enough, however, our selection for this slot does not come from that group. We'll break down why momentarily, but let's first have a look at everyone who's worn the number for the Green & Gold over the years.

Lloyd Baxter, C
Mike Bucchianeri, G
Buddy Burris, G
Lew Carpenter, B
Jessie Clark, RB
Bob Clemens, FB
Cal Clemens, B
Wuert Engelmann, HB
Doug Evans, DB
Bobby Jack Floyd, RB
Les Gatewood, C
Jim Grabowski, RB
William Henderson, FB
Clarke Hinkle, HB/FB/LB
Micah Hyde, DB
Jim Jensen, RB
Aaron Jones, RB
Bill Kern, OT
Mike Michalske, OL
Ray Nitschke, LB
Ray Peterson, B
Frank Purnell, FB
Ken Radick, OL
Brandon Saine, RB
Ade Schwammel, OT
Barty Smith, RB
Glen Sorenson, G
John Sterling, RB
Brandon Underwood, CB
Dick Weisgerber, B
Evan Williams, S
Keith Woodside, RB

From the Curly Lambeau era, we've got Clarke Hinkle and Mike Michalske, both of whom, like just about every player back in the early days of the league, wore several different numbers, sometimes even during the same season. Either would obviously be a strong choice here, but as each only wore No. 33 for one year, Hinkle in 1932 and Michalske in 1935, we took them out of the running.

From the Vince Lombardi era, we've got the great Ray Nitschke, who wore No. 33 for his rookie season in 1958 before donning his famous (and retired) No. 66 for the final 14 years of his career. So, he's out as well.

Getting into more modern times, we seriously considered William Henderson, who served as Green Bay's fullback for a large portion of what we'll call the Brett Favre era, lining up behind No. 4 from 1995 to 2006, although we should note that he wore No. 30 for the first three years of his career. That's not the reason he didn't get the nod, but we just wanted you to have all the facts.

At the end of the day, we just felt we had to roll with Aaron Jones, who may not be viewed by many as an all-time Packers great but put up much bigger numbers than people probably realize.

Aaron Jones racked up more than 8,000 total yards and 63 total TDs for the Green Bay Packers

After a solid career at UTEP, Jones was taken by Green Bay in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft with the 182nd overall selection.

He entered his rookie campaign as the third-string back behind Ty Montgomery and fellow rookie Jamaal Williams, but injuries to both allowed Jones to get some touches, and he ultimately finished that first season with 448 rushing yards and a team-leading four rushing scores in a dozen appearances.

He tacked on 728 rushing yards and eight TDs in his second season, adding another 206 yards and a score on 26 receptions, but it was his third year when he had his true breakout season.

He started all 16 regular-season games in 2019 and rushed for 1,084 yards and a league-leading 16 touchdowns, the second-most in a single season by any Packers player behind only Jim Taylor's 19 in 1962, and tacked on 474 yards and three TDs on 49 receptions.

While he somehow failed to earn a trip to the Pro Bowl that season, he did earn the accolade in 2020 after amassing 1,459 total yards from scrimmage (1,104 rushing, 355 receiving) and 11 total touchdowns (nine rushing, two receiving). The 5-foot-10, 210-pounder also failed to make the Pro Bowl in 2022 when he rushed for a then-career-high 1,121 yards and finished ninth in the NFL in total yards from scrimmage with 1,516.

Jones was released following the 2023 season after refusing to take a pay cut, at which point he signed with the rival Minnesota Vikings and promptly set a new career high with 1,138 rushing yards in 2024.

In his seven seasons in Green Bay, Jones rushed for 5,940 yards, good for the third-most in franchise history, and his 45 rushing touchdowns are good for fourth. Tack on his 2,076 receiving yards, and his 8,016 total yards from scrimmage are good for the eighth-most in team history, and with 18 scores through the air, his 63 total touchdowns are good for seventh.

And that's only what he did during the regular season, as his 511 rushing yards in the playoffs are the fifth-most by a Packers player, and his seven rushing scores are the most by any Packers player in history.

The last three of those scores came in the Wild Card Round win over the Dallas Cowboys following the 2023 regular season, tying a team record, and with 118 yards on the ground in that game, 108 yards the following week in a Divisional Round loss to the San Francisco 49ers, and 127, 120, and 111 yards, respectively, in the final three games of the regular season, Jones became the first Packers player ever to hit at least 100 rushing yards in five straight games.

Is it really any wonder why he didn't want to take a pay cut? Or, to close things out here, why we made him our choice here at No. 33?

Other Green Bay Packers jersey honorees

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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Aaron Jones racked up more than 8,000 total yards and 63 total TDs for the Green Bay Packers

Other Green Bay Packers jersey honorees

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