Best Green Bay Packers player to wear No. 66 wildly wanted to play for the Bears

Welcome back once again to Lombardi Ave's series covering the greatest Green Bay Packers players to wear every jersey number from No. 0 to No. 99.

This entry has been a long time coming, as we've had more than 50 now since we last saw a number that's no longer in circulation for the Green & Gold. For those who may not be aware, the Packers have only retired six numbers over the course of their storied history, and we saw four of those in our first 16 entries at No. 3 (Tony Canadeo), No. 4 (Brett Favre), No. 14 (Don Hutson), and No. 15 (Bart Starr), with another set to come near the end of our journey at No. 92 (Reggie White).

But our focus here, of course, is No. 66 and the great Ray Nitschke. Let's not dive in too much here at the get-go, however, as we first need to run through our usual process of looking at every player who's worn the number for Green Bay over the years.

Al Barry, G
Fred Cone, FB/K
Ralph Davis, G
Mike Lewis, NT
Ray Nitschke, LB
Paul Rudzinski, LB
George Svendsen, C/LB
Deral Teteak, G/LB

Nitschke certainly isn't the only legend on this list, as three other members of the Packers Hall of Fame have sported No. 66 as well, with center/linebacker George Svendsen wearing it for the final two of his five seasons in Green Bay in 1940 and 1941, fullback/kicker Fred Cone wearing it as a rookie in 1951 before switching to his more familiar No. 31, and guard/linebacker Deral Teteak wearing it for the entirety of his five-year run with the club from 1952 to 1956.

Ray Nitschke wanted to play for the Bears but settled for winning five titles with the Packers instead

After a solid collegiate career in his home state at the University of Illinois, with whom he earned Second-Team All-Big Ten honors in 1957, Nitschke, a Cook County native, entered the 1958 NFL Draft desperately dreaming to be selected by the Chicago Bears, a dream that died when he was taken by the rival Packers in the third round at No. 36 overall.

That '58 draft class ultimately turned out to be one of the best in franchise history, as well as NFL history, for that matter, as Nitschke, who certainly didn't seem to love the Bears when he took the field against them, by the way, was one of three players picked by Green Bay that year that ultimately ended up enshrined in Canton, the other two being fullback Jim Taylor (Round 2, No. 15 overall) and offensive guard Jerry Kramer (Round 4, No. 39 overall).

And the team's top pick that year, linebacker Dan Currie (Round 1, No. 3 overall), was no slouch himself, earning a Pro Bowl selection and a pair of All-Pro nods.

Now, what some may not know about Nitschke, well, other than the fact that he actually wore No. 33 as a rookie before switching to No. 66 in Vince Lombardi's first year in Titletown in 1959, is that he didn't become a regular starter until 1962.

Don't get things twisted, though, as he was a key piece of the Packers' defense for those first few years and started both the 1960 and 1961 NFL Championship Games, the second of which resulted in Green Bay's first title in 17 years, with Nitschke recording an interception in the 37-0 beatdown of the New York Giants.

And after that first full season as the team's starting middle linebacker in '62, for which he earned a Second-Team All-Pro selection, the 6-foot-3, 235-pounder earned MVP honors in Green Bay's rematch with the Giants in the 1962 NFL Championship Game, recovering two fumbles and deflecting a pass that resulted in an interception in a 16-7 victory.

From that point on, Nitschke became the focal point of a Green Bay defense that featured several future Hall of Famers, and simply put, he ultimately became one of the best middle linebackers in NFL history, He earned All-Pro honors in four consecutive campaigns from 1964 to 1967, with the final three seasons resulting in his third, fourth, and fifth championships, and the last two ending with the Packers earning victories in the first two editions of what we now call the Super Bowl. And he certainly showed out when it mattered most.

In the first edition of what was then called the AFL-NFL World Championship Game to close the '66 season, Nitschke tallied six tackles and a sack in a 35-10 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs. And a year later, in a 33-14 win over the then-Oakland Raiders, he led the Packers in tackles.

While Lombardi stepped down as head coach ahead of the 1968 season, Nitschke remained a regular starter for all three seasons under Phil Bengtson, but once Dan Devine took over in 1971, he was relegated to a reserve role, starting just three games over his final two seasons before retiring just ahead of the 1973 campaign.

Nitschke was as ferocious as any player who's ever put on a uniform, but people tend to forget that he was a bit of a ballhawk at times as well, recording 25 interceptions during his career, which remain tied with John Anderson's 25 for the most by any Green Bay linebacker ever and are also good for a tie for the 12th-most by any player in franchise history.

Nitschke, who was the only linebacker featured on both the NFL's 50th and 75th Anniversary All-Time Teams, was inducted into both the Packers Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and his No. 66 was officially retired by the team in 1983.

Now, try to imagine him accomplishing all that with the Bears. You can't, can you? To be fair, Chicago got its own legendary linebacker six years after passing on Nitschke in Dick Butkus. But while Butkus may have more individual accolades, Nitschke's five rings to Butkus' zero is really the only metric we really need, right?

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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Ray Nitschke wanted to play for the Bears but settled for winning five titles with the Packers instead

Other Green Bay Packers jersey honorees

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