Welcome back to our series highlighting the greatest Green Bay Packers players to wear every jersey number from No. 0 to No. 99.
As we inch toward the end of the 70s, we've got a fantastic defensive lineman here at No. 77, one who never really got his just due, as he was squeezed directly in between a pair of players from the Vince Lombardi era who both went on to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
But before we get into all of that, let's first run through our typical routine of looking at every player who's donned the double sevens for the Green & Gold over the years.
- Barrett Brooks, OT
- Mike Butler, DE
- Greg Feasel, OT
- Charlie Getty, OT
- Dave Hanner, DE
- Bill Hayhoe, OT
- Cullen Jenkins, DE
- Ron Kostelnik, DE
- Bill Maas, DT
- Tony Mandarich, OT
- Sylvester McGrew, DE
- John Michels, OT
- Keith Millard, DE
- Jordan Morgan, OT/G
- Bill Neill, DT
- Adam Pankey, G/OT
- Tommy Robison, G
- John Sandusky, OT
- Ollie Spencer, OT
- Bob Summerhays, LB
- Billy Turner, G/OT
- Jerry Wisne, OT
There are two members of the Packers Hall of Fame on this list, one being our selection and the other being two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Dave Hanner, who played 13 strong seasons in Green Bay from 1952 to 1964 but only wore No. 77 for the first two before switching to his more familiar No. 79.
We'll actually circle back to Hanner in just a moment, but we also wanted to give a shoutout to defensive end Mike Butler, who was a good player on some bad Packers teams in the late 1970s and into the 1980s, tallying 41.5 sacks in his seven seasons in Titletown.
And we do need to mention one more player, although not in the most endearing way, with that player being Tony Mandarich, the All-American offensive tackle out of Michigan State who some touted as the best O-line prospect ever heading into the 1989 NFL Draft.
But as every Cheesehead well knows, Mandarich simply didn't pan out, as he played just three seasons in Green Bay and is the only player taken in the top five of that '89 draft not to be enshrined in Canton, with the four others being Troy Aikman, Barry Sanders, Derrick Thomas, and Deion Sanders. Ouch.
Shifting back to the positive side of things, we come to our official selection with defensive tackle Ron Kostelnik.
Ron Kostelnik lined up for the Green Bay Packers in between Willie Davis and Henry Jordan
After a solid collegiate career at the University of Cincinnati, Kostelnik was taken by Green Bay in the second round of the 1961 NFL Draft with the 26th overall selection.
For the first few years of his career, he served in a reserve role behind none other than the aforementioned Dave Hanner (see, we told you we'd circle back) before becoming the Packers' starting left defensive tackle midway through the 1964 season.
Sandwiched in between left defensive end Willie Davis and right defensive tackle Henry Jordan, Kostelnik, like Hanner before him, never got the individual accolades he deserved, as he never made a single Pro Bowl or received any sort of All-Pro honor. But make no mistake about it; Kostelnik did his job extremely well, and it was because of him doing the dirty work in the middle of the line that Davis and Jordan were able to get to opposing quarterbacks as much as they did.
Kostelnik was never one to worry about individual accolades anyway, as he was a team-first kind of a player, and the Packers were certainly successful with him in the starting lineup, winning three consecutive NFL Championships from 1965 to 1967, with the last two earning them the right to represent the league against the AFL's best in the first two editions of what we now call the Super Bowl, with Green Bay taking wins in those two contests as well.
The 6-foot-4, 260-pounder ultimately played eight seasons in Titletown, tallying 16.0 sacks of his own before being traded ahead of the 1969 season to the Baltimore Colts, with whom he played just one year before retiring. Kostelnik was inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame in 1989.
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
- No. 62: Put on the ultimate show of toughness
- No. 63: Was the first in NFL history to win six titles
- No. 64: Had an absurd amount of surgeries
- No. 65: Proved to be a seventh-round steal
- No. 66: Wildly wanted to play for the Bears
- No. 67: Once got a shoutout from John Madden
- No. 68: Nearly gave up football
- No. 69: Achieved a feat not seen in 50-plus years
- No. 70: Was a reliable blocker for Aaron Rodgers
- No. 71: Was Vince Lombardi's first defensive captain
- No. 72: Knows he didn't get the credit he deserved
- No. 73: Made a little NFL draft history
- No. 74: Made Vince Lombardi look like a genius
- No. 75: Was Vince Lombardi's most decorated star
- No. 76: Was the reason for an NFL rule change
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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