Welcome once again to our 100-piece series covering the greatest Green Bay Packers players to wear every jersey number from No. 0 to No. 99.
As we inch closer to the midway point of the 60s, we've got a special entry here at No. 63 that features a player who doesn't often get mentioned among the all-time greats to suit up for Vince Lombardi's title-winning teams in the 1960s but undoubtedly deserves his flowers for the things he accomplished during his decorated career.
But before we get to the reveal, those who've followed this series long enough know that we first need to take a quick look at everyone who's sported No. 63 for the Green & Gold over the years.
- Al Barry, G
- Ray Bray, G
- James Campen, C
- Jaden Crumedy, DT
- Jamie Dukes, C
- Bill Ferrario, G
- Perry Hartnett, G
- Ernie Janet, G
- Terry Jones, DT
- Corey Linsley, C
- Marv Matuszak, LB
- Raleigh McKenzie, G
- Mike Michalske, OL/LB
- Urban Odson, OT
- Jeff Saturday, C
- Joe Skibinski, G
- Don Stansauk, OT
- Ben Starret, B
- Fuzzy Thurston, G
- Adam Timmerman, G
- Rasheed Walker, OT
- Scott Wells, C
- Randy Winkler, G
- Gust Zarnas, G
Outside of our official selection, several others from this list deserve to be mentioned, including Packers Hall of Famer Mike Machalske, who's also enshrined in Canton. A three-time NFL champ and three-time First-Team All-Pro during his eight-season run with Green Bay from 1929 to 1937 (he sat out the 1936 season), Michalske only wore No. 63 for one year in 1934, which took him out of the running for this slot.
One-time Pro Bowl center Scott Wells gets a shoutout, as he started 108 games between the regular season and postseason in the later years of the Brett Favre era and into the Aaron Rodgers era from 2004 to 2011. And getting into the middle and later years of the Rodgers era, you've got another center in Corey Linsley, who started each of the 110 total games in which he appeared for Green Bay from 2014 to 2020, earning First-Team All-Pro honors in his final year with the club.
At the end of the day, though, we opted to roll with Fuzzy Thurston.
Fuzzy Thurston is one of just four players to win six titles in the NFL
A native of Altoona, Wisconsin, Thurston, whose given name is Frederick, by the way, didn't play a single down of football in high school, as his school simply didn't have a team. Instead, he played basketball and did so well enough that he was able to take his talents to the collegiate level to play for Valparaiso.
Just 190 pounds as a freshman in 1952, he packed on 40 pounds ahead of his sophomore year and joined the football team. And the move obviously paid off in the long run. Playing in the platoon era, Thurston played both tackle and guard on offense and linebacker and middle guard on defense and ultimately earned both all-conference and All-American honors in 1954 and 1955. But it took him a while to play his first NFL game.
Taken by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fifth round of the 1956 NFL Draft with the 54th overall selection, he was cut nine days ahead of the regular season, at which point he joined the Army and played service ball in 1957. While doing so, he was signed by the Chicago Bears, who placed him on the Reserve/Military list. But just five days after activating him ahead of the 1958 season, the Bears cut him, at which point he re-signed with the Eagles, who then cut him again just over three weeks later, three days before the season was set to begin.
Thurston heavily considered going to the CFL, but he instead signed with the Baltimore Colts and finally made his NFL debut in that '58 campaign, appearing in four regular-season outings as well as the Colts' victory over the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
The 1959 season marked Vince Lombardi's first year in Green Bay, and he clearly saw something he liked in Thurston, trading veteran linebacker Mark Matuszak to acquire him.
Thurston won the starting job at left guard, and with future Hall of Famer Jerry Kramer playing right guard, Lombardi could run his famous sweep with Paul Hornung and Jim Taylor to either side without hesitation. While Kramer certainly always got more press, which was undoubtedly deserved, of course, Thurston was unquestionably one of the top players at his position, earning First-Team All-Pro honors in 1961 and Second-Team honors in 1962. As every Cheesehead well knows, those two seasons resulted in Green Bay winning back-to-back NFL Championships.
The Packers, of course, won back-to-back-to-back NFL titles from 1965 to 1967, with the last two giving them the right to represent the league in the first two editions of what we now call the Super Bowl, which they obviously won as well, with that second victory in what was then called the AFL-NFL World Championship Game serving as Thurston's final game.
With his one title with the Colts and then his five with the Packers (you don't double count '66 and '67), Thurston was the first player ever to win six NFL championships and is still one of only four players to hit that number.
A pair of his Packers teammates, fellow offensive lineman Forrest Gregg and defensive back Herb Adderley, won all five titles with Lombardi as well and were both with the Dallas Cowboys when they won Super Bowl 6. And then, of course, you've got Tom Brady and his seven Super Bowl rings, but that's literally the list.
Now, some might come at me (looking at you, Browns fans) about the eight titles won by offensive tackle/kicker Lou Groza and center Frank Gatski or the seven won by quarterback Otto Graham. But let's get this straight; the first four for all three of those guys came with Cleveland in the pre-merged AAFC from 1946 to 1949, with the rest coming in the NFL.
All three won three NFL Championships for the Browns in 1950, 1954, and 1955, with Gatski adding a fourth in 1957 with the Detroit Lions and Groza adding a fourth with Cleveland in 1964. Now, while AAFC statistics were incorporated into NFL history books in April 2025, championships are listed separately.
As such, once again, Thurston, who was inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame in 1975, was the first player ever to win six NFL titles. That's our story, and we're sticking to it.
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
- No. 50: The Packers' all-time leading tackler
- No. 51: Is a member of three Halls of Fame
- No. 52: Is a member of a royal NFL family
- No. 53: Didn't miss a single game for a decade
- No. 54: Was 'The Rock' way before Dwayne Johnson
- No. 55: Had a solid career after going undrafted
- No. 56: Was a steady presence during the 2000s
- No. 57: Put on a gutsy Super Bowl performance
- No. 58: Kicked off the Packers' greatest draft class
- No. 59: Received a special Hall of Fame honor
- No. 60: Was involved in two famous trades
- No. 61: Was a reliable specialist for a decade
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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