5 greatest one hit wonders in Green Bay Packers history
- A Heisman winner
- The QB before Brett Favre
- A RB from the 70s
4. Jeff Janis, wide receiver (2014-17)
The legend of Jeff Janis can only grow, it can never be diminished. Jeff Janis was a seventh-round pick out of Saginaw Valley State back in the 2014 NFL Draft class and he instantly became one of the most intriguing players on the entire roster. Over the last 30-plus years, very few wide receivers have had the type of pre-draft process we saw from Jeff Janis.
As a matter of fact, in terms of his size and athleticism, Janis is a top-10 athlete at the receiver position in modern NFL history.
Jeff Janis was drafted with pick 236 of round 7 in the 2014 draft class. He scored a 9.93 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 10 out of 1202 WR from 1987 to 2014. https://t.co/WgCzxJSsyR #RAS pic.twitter.com/ucFWzMLIYK
— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) March 1, 2023
Did this lead to Janis becoming one of the great steals in Green Bay Packers history? No, it didn't. But it did lead to him becoming one of the best one-hit wonders in franchise history. Maybe even more than just being a one-hit wonder for the course of a season, Janis really entrenched himself into the memories of Packers fans by making one of the most memorable catches in franchise history.
Jeff Janis is officially a Cleveland Brown, thank you JJ for one of the most legendary playoff catches of all time🙌🏽🧀 pic.twitter.com/i3oVQJ9mRs
— IKE Packers Podcast (@IKE_Packers) March 30, 2018
In the 2015 playoffs, Janis caught seven passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns. In four regular seasons with the Packers, he caught 17 passes for 200 yards and one touchdown. He played a good amount of special teams and wasn't a one-hit wonder there, but Janis will forever be remembered for that one big catch against the Cardinals.
3. Samkon Gado, running back (2005-06)
The Green Bay Packers really caught lightning in a bottle with Samkon Gado back in his rookie season. The 2005 Green Bay Packers were terrible, but Samkon Gado was a really fun story as an undrafted free agent out of Liberty.
Ahman Green suffered a season-ending injury in Week 7 and Gado was forced into action. He ended up playing eight games in his rookie year, rushing for a team-high 582 yards and six touchdowns. He racked up 659 yards from scrimmage, which was second on the team, and he wound up leading the Packers with seven touchdowns from scrimmage that season.
During the 2006 season, Gado's next two carries for the Packers would go for -7 yards. He was traded to the Houston Texans for Vernand Morency and was barely involved with his next couple of teams, racking up 600 yards from scrimmage and five total touchdowns from 2006-09.