Welcome back to our series on the greatest Green Bay Packers player to wear every jersey number from No. 0 to No. 99.
After not having any decision to make in our initial entry at No. 0, as literally only one player has donned that digit, we did have to think a bit about what we wanted to do at No. 1. But No. 2 was a no-brainer, and we've got a similar situation going on here at No. 3. And as every Cheesehead well knows, we won't have any dilemma deciding Nos. 4 and 5, either, but let's not jump too far ahead.
Before we reveal the winner at No. 3, let's first have a look at the complete list of Packers players to wear it.
- Ben Agajanian, K
- Tony Canadeo, HB
- Tommy Cronin, HB
- Jim Crowley, HB
- Hector Cyre, OL
- Beattie Feathers, HB
- Roy McKay, HB
- Paul Miller, HB
- Stan Mills, HB
- Bob Monnett, QB/HB
- Tillie Voss, OL
There are certainly several notable names here. Jim Crowley made up a quarter of Notre Dame's legendary "Four Horsemen," but only played three games in the pros, only two of which were with the Packers in 1925, the other coming with the Providence Steam Roller. He later served as the commissioner of the All-America Football Conference, which served as a short-term rival to the NFL in the 1940s before folding after just four years.
Beattie Feathers, who was the first-ever player to tally 1,000 rushing yards in a single season as a rookie in 1934 with the Chicago Bears, wore No. 3 in his lone season in Green Bay in 1940, and Packers Hall of Famer Bob Monnett also did so during the 1935 campaign, making it one of six different digits he wore during his six-year run with the club.
But the clear-cut winner here is halfback Tony Canadeo, who is one of only six Packers players to have his number retired, joining Brett Favre (No. 4), Don Hutson (No. 14), Bart Starr (No. 15), Ray Nitschke (No. 66), and Reggie White (No. 92).
Tony Canadeo was just the second Packers player to have his number retired
A two-time All-America at Gonzaga, which dropped its football program one year after Canadeo left the school following the 1940 season, the Chicago native was taken by Green Bay in the ninth round of the 1941 NFL Draft with the 77th overall selection.
While Canadeo spent most of his time on offense, serving as both a running back and a quarterback, he also took some snaps on defense and special teams, serving as a kicker, punter, and punt/kick returner, and developed a reputation for being one of the most versatile players in the NFL at that time.
A First-Team All-Pro selection in 1943 after leading the Packers in both passing yards and rushing yards, Canadeo, who served in both the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Army, played just three games over the next two seasons due to World War II, missing out on Green Bay's NFL Championship Game victory to close out the 1944 season.
Upon his return in 1946, he led the Packers in rushing in each of the following four seasons and ultimately became just the third player in NFL history to reach the 1,000-yard mark in 1949, a year in which he received Second-Team All-Pro honors.
When he retired following the 1952 campaign, Canadeo's 4,197 rushing yards were the most in team history, and he'd also passed for 1,642 yards and 16 touchdowns, caught 69 passes for 579 yards and five TDs, and recorded nine interceptions on defense. So, again, he was quite the versatile guy.
His No. 3 was retired immediately following his retirement, thus making him only the second Packers player to receive the honor, as Hutson had his No. 14 taken out of rotation a year earlier. Somehow, kicker Ben Agajanian was given No. 3 in 1961 by mistake and wore it for the only three games he played for the club, thus making him the last player to do so.
Canadeo was inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame in 1973 and was then inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1974.
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
This list will be updated daily until all 100 entries are complete, so be sure to bookmark this page or check back in with Lombardi Ave for updates.
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