Welcome back to our series covering the greatest Green Bay Packers players to wear every jersey number from No. 0 to No. 99.
In our first two entries to kick off the 80s, both of which were extremely tough decisions, by the way, we had an offensive player at No. 80 with arguably the greatest wide receiver in franchise history, followed by a special teams standout at No. 81 who helped the team lift a Lombardi Trophy, winning Super Bowl MVP honors in the process. And here at No. 82, we'll finish the trifecta, as our call here, in yet another close contest, comes from the defensive side of the football.
But before we break everything down, let's first have a look at every player who's worn No. 82 for the Green & Gold over the years.
- Erik Affholter, WR
- Lionel Aldridge, DE
- Jan Barrett, E
- Sanjay Beach, WR
- Don Beebe, WR
- Ed Bell, G/T
- Scott Bolton, WR
- Jack Cloud, LB
- Paul Coffman, TE
- Rod Gardner, WR
- Derrick Harden, WR
- Keith Hartwig, WR
- Desmond Howard, WR/KR
- Mark Ingram, WR
- Reggie Johnson, TE
- Charles Jordan, WR
- Charles Lee, WR
- T.J. Luther, WR
- Brian Manning, WR
- Ruvell Martin, WR
- Mike Moffitt, WR
- David Moore, WR
- J'Mon Moore, WR
- Keith Paskett, WR
- Richard Rodgers, TE
- Darrius Shepherd, WR
- Will Sheppard, WR
- Ben Steele, TE
- Ryan Taylor, TE
- Jim Temp, DE
- Gerald Tinker, WR
- Taco Wallace, WR
Of all the players on this particular list, only two have been inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame, with the one we didn't choose but coming in a close second being tight end Paul Coffman, who spent eight seasons in Green Bay from 1978 to 1985.
Undrafted out of Kansas State, where he was never an all-conference selection, Coffman worked hard to establish himself at the professional level, and he ultimately did more than anyone would have ever expected, as he tallied 322 receptions for 4,223 yards with 39 touchdowns for the Packers and earned three trips to the Pro Bowl.
While Coffman could have easily been the choice here, we instead opted to roll with defensive end Lionel Aldridge.
Lionel Aldridge was the only rookie Vince Lombardi ever started in a season opener for the Green Bay Packers
After spending his collegiate career at Utah State, Aldridge was taken by Green Bay in the fourth round of the 1963 NFL Draft with the 54th overall selection.
Ahead of the '63 season, the Packers, coming off their second straight NFL Championship, traded veteran defensive end Bill Quinlan to the New York Giants, who then immediately traded him to the Philadelphia Eagles, not that that matters for our purposes here, but it's still interesting.
Anyway, with no real plan in place for who would replace Quinlan, the frontrunners heading into training camp were Urban Henry, who'd signed with Green Bay as a free agent, and rookie Dave Robinson, who'd been taken by the Packers in the first round of the same '63 draft at No. 14 overall.
But after Vince Lombardi made the decision to play Robinson at linebacker, Aldridge ultimately beat out Henry to earn the starting job at right defensive end. As such, he became the only rookie in Lombardi's nine seasons with the Packers to start a season opener, which is quite the accomplishment, given the talent that came through Titletown in that era.
And given all the talent on that roster, while Aldridge was a fantastic player, as well as a reliable one, as he only missed three games in nine years in Green Bay, he never quite got the credit he deserved. But make no mistake about it; he was a complete player who was effective against both the run and the pass.
While sacks didn't become an official NFL stat until 1982, our friends at Pro Football Reference have stats dating back to 1960. And using those totals, Aldridge racked up 62.0 for the Packers in his 123 regular-season appearances, with two of his best seasons coming in 1965 and 1966, when he recorded 10.0 and 12.5, respectively.
As every Cheesehead well knows, those two seasons resulted in the Packers winning the NFL Championship Game, with the second allowing them to represent the league in the first edition of what we now call the Super Bowl, which they won as well. And, of course, they went on to win a third straight NFL title in 1967, as well as the second Super Bowl.
Aldridge remained productive once Lombardi left the franchise, recording a career-high 13.5 sacks in 1970. But following the 1971 season, with Green Bay looking to get younger, he was traded to the San Diego Chargers, with whom he spent two years before retiring. He was inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame in 1988.
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
- No. 77: Did the dirty work so others could shine
- No. 78: Made a Pro Bowl shortly after being shot
- No. 79: Spent 44 years in Titletown
- No. 80: Holds a special spot in the Hall of Fame
- No. 81: Owns a special place in Super Bowl history
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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