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List of Green Bay Packers retired numbers

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A photo of the stands at Lambeau Field, with a row of the Packers' retired numbers and player names located just above the suite seats. A large video screen is located above the numbers.
Lambeau Field's north end zone with the six retired numbers

The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Since their founding in 1919, over 1,700 players,[1] including 33 Pro Football Hall of Famers[2] have played for the team. Of those 33, 6 players have had their uniform numbers officially retired by the organization.[3] Professional sports franchises, including the Packers, retire uniform numbers to recognize the contributions that a player has made towards the team. It is customary that after the uniform number is retired, it is no longer worn by future players with that team. These uniform numbers are usually prominently displayed within the team's arena or stadium. In the case of the Packers, the retired numbers are displayed above the box seats in the north end zone of Lambeau Field.[4]

Packers history

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The first Green Bay Packer to have his number retired was Don Hutson (No. 14) in 1951. Hutson played wide receiver for the Packers for 11 seasons where he set multiple National Football League (NFL) records and was named NFL Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 1941 and 1942.[5] His number was retired by coach Gene Ronzani during a brief ceremony at halftime of a game against the New York Yanks.[6][7] In 1952, Tony Canadeo became the second Packer to have his number (No. 3) retired, immediately after he retired from the NFL. Canadeo played offense, defense, and special teams for 11 seasons for the Packers, becoming the first Packer to rush for over 1,000 yards and winning the NFL championship in 1944.[8] It is not known whether there was a ceremony recognizing the number retirement, however at the very least an unofficial recognition occurred in 1952.[6][a]

The third Packer to have his number retired was quarterback Bart Starr (No. 15). Over 16 seasons, Starr led the Packers to five NFL Championships, including the first two Super Bowls in 1966 and 1967. He was named Super Bowl MVP in both games and was the NFL MVP for the 1966 season. He may be most famous for his winning touchdown dive in the closing seconds of the 1967 NFL Championship Game, which became known as the "Ice Bowl".[9] His number was retired during a ceremony at halftime of a game against the St. Louis Cardinals in 1973, two years after his career was over.[10] Linebacker Ray Nitschke became the fourth Packer to have his number retired (No. 66) in 1983. Nitschke was a five-time NFL Champion and two-time Super Bowl winner under coach Vince Lombardi and anchored the Packers defense for 15 seasons.[11] Nitschke's number was retired in 1983 in a small ceremony at a game against the Chicago Bears.[12]

Reggie White's No. 92 was the fifth number to be retired by the Packers. White, who was known as the "Minister of Defense", came to the Packers as one of the first big signings of the newly revised NFL free agency rules in 1993 and played for the team for six seasons. As a Packer, he was a Super Bowl champion in 1996, a two-time first-team All-Pro and was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1998.[13] His number was retired during a half-time ceremony in 2005, less than a year after his death from cardiac and pulmonary sarcoidosis in September 2004.[14] He was the first and only Packer to have his number retired posthumously,[15] and the first NFL player to have his number retired by two teams (the other being the Philadelphia Eagles).[16][17] Quarterback Brett Favre, White's teammate for six seasons, became the sixth and most recent Packer to have his number (No. 4) retired. Favre played for the Packers for 16 seasons, starting a record 253 consecutive games at quarterback between 1992 and 2007 (a record that was extended to 297 games after his tenure with the Packers). Favre was 3-time NFL MVP, an 11-time Pro Bowl selection, and part of the NFL 1990s All-Decade Team.[18] He led the Packers to their first championship games since the 1960s in Super Bowl XXXI and Super Bowl XXXII, winning the first and losing the second. His number was retired in 2015 at half-time during a game against the Chicago Bears.[19]

Retired numbers

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Green Bay Packers retired numbers
No. Image Player name Position Seasons with the Packers Year number retired Honors and awards Refs
A white number 3 with a green background. An autographed photo of Tony Canadeo holding a football Tony Canadeo[b] Halfback 1941–1944
1946–1952 		1952 [8][21]
A white number 4 with a green background. A photo of Brett Favre from behind throwing a football Brett Favre Quarterback 1992–2007 2015 [18][22]
A white number 14 with a green background. A photo of Don Hutson running with the football Don Hutson[c] Wide receiver 1935–1945 1951 [5][7]
A white number 15 with a green background. A photo of Bart Starr pitching the football towards the camera Bart Starr Quarterback 1956–1971 1973 [9][23]
A white number 66 with a green background. A photo of Ray Nitschke holding his helmet Ray Nitschke Linebacker 1958–1972 1983 [11][12]
A white number 92 with a green background. Photo of Reggie White at the White House Reggie White Defensive end 1993–1998 2005 [13][24]

Future additions

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A black and white photo of Curly Lambeau from the waist up
A color photo of a smiling Paul Hornung, with the text "Paul Hornung, Halfback, Green Bay Packers" in a black bar below the photo
Curly Lambeau (left) and Paul Hornung (right) are two former Packers whose uniform numbers have been discussed as possibly being retired.

Founder, coach, and player Curly Lambeau is the only Packer credited with wearing jersey No. 1, although it has never been formally retired.[4] The Packers have recognized Lambeau in a more significant manner than just a number retirement by naming their current stadium Lambeau Field shortly after he died.[25]

Paul Hornung's No. 5 was unofficially retired at the Packers' annual press party on July 10, 1967, although there has not been a ceremony to put his number on the wall of retired numbers at Lambeau Field.[26] The number retirement never became official for a couple of reasons. First, Vince Lombardi, who initiated the number retirement, left the organization less than seven months after the announcement and died a year later. Second, number retirements were not as well known or publicized back in the 1960s.[27] Hornung's No. 5 has only been issued to four players since his retirement, and none since 1988. All of the players to wear the No. 5 after Hornung only played a few games for the Packers before leaving the team or changing uniform number.[6]

White number 12 on green background
Aaron Rodgers' No. 12 has been identified as the likely next number to be retired by the Packers

The No. 12 has also been identified as a potential number to retire to honor the contributions of former Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.[28] Rodgers led the Packers to a victory in Super Bowl XLV,[29] was named NFL MVP four times in 2011, 2014, 2020 and 2021 and has been one of the most successful quarterbacks in NFL history.[30][31][32] In July 2023, Packers president Mark Murphy said the team plans to retire Rodgers' number "at the appropriate time".[33]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Canadeo stated that he recalled that the Packers retired his number and gave him a car to honor his contributions. However, a definitive account of the ceremony from a third-party source has yet to be identified.[6]
  2. ^ In 1961, kicker Ben Agajanian, who played only three games for the Packers, wore Canadeo's No. 3 after being assigned it by mistake.[20]
  3. ^ In 1972, quarterback Jerry Tagge was initially given the No. 14 during training camp, however he was shortly reissued the No. 17 prior to the beginning of the season.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Packers All-Time Players Roster". Packers.com. Archived from the original on May 26, 2022. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  2. ^ "Pro Football Hall of Famers by Franchise - Packers". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on January 4, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  3. ^ "Retired Numbers". Packers.com. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  4. ^ a b Bellamy, Jason (May 8, 2003). "Retired Numbers Added To Lambeau Field". Packers.com. Archived from the original on January 14, 2010. Retrieved January 30, 2010.
  5. ^ a b "Pro Football Hall of Fame – Don Hutson". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  6. ^ a b c d e Johnson, Chuck (November 16, 1973). "Packers Play Confusing Numbers Game". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (clipping). Archived from the original on September 26, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018 – via Google News Archive.
  7. ^ a b "Retired Number – Don Hutson". Packers.com. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  8. ^ a b "Pro Football Hall of Fame – Tony Canadeo". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  9. ^ a b "Pro Football Hall of Fame – Bart Starr". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  10. ^ "Packers retire No. 15". Fond Du Lac Commonwealth Reporter (clipping). Associated Press. November 12, 1973. Archived from the original on June 17, 2019.
  11. ^ a b "Pro Football Hall of Fame – Ray Nitschke". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  12. ^ a b "Retired Number – Ray Nitschke". Packers.com. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  13. ^ a b "Pro Football Hall of Fame – Reggie White". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  14. ^ "Ten years ago, Reggie White, the Minister of Defense, died at 43". Fox Sports Interactive Media, LLC. December 26, 2014. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  15. ^ "Brett Favre's retired number unveiled by Packers". ESPN Internet Ventures. Associated Press. September 18, 2005. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  16. ^ "Eagles honor Reggie White, retire his jersey". ESPN Internet Ventures. Associated Press. December 5, 2005. Archived from the original on September 12, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
  17. ^ "Shaq and 31 more athletes with numbers retired by multiple teams". Fox Sports Interactive Media, LLC. February 22, 2016. Archived from the original on September 17, 2018. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  18. ^ a b "Pro Football Hall of Fame – Brett Favre". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  19. ^ Wilde, Jason (November 26, 2015). "Brett Favre's retired number unveiled by Packers". ESPN Internet Ventures. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  20. ^ "Tony Canadeo – Class of 1974". Packers.com. Archived from the original on January 1, 2017. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  21. ^ "Retired Number – Tony Canadeo". Packers.com. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  22. ^ "Retired Number – Brett Favre". Packers.com. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  23. ^ "Retired Number – Bart Starr". Packers.com. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  24. ^ "Retired Number – Reggie White". Packers.com. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  25. ^ "'Lambeau Field' voted by council". Milwaukee Sentinel (clipping). Associated Press. August 5, 1965. p. 3-part 2. Archived from the original on May 10, 2016. Retrieved August 14, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ Dougherty, Pete (June 22, 2016). "Packers should retire Hornung's No. 5". USA Network. Archived from the original on August 28, 2016. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  27. ^ Christl, Cliff (July 28, 2010). "No. 5 should hang on Lambeau wall". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  28. ^ Jones, Brian (July 12, 2017). "Aaron Rodgers is best Packers player to ever wear No. 12". 247 Sports. Archived from the original on January 24, 2020. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  29. ^ "Aaron Rodgers tosses 3 TD passes as Packers drop Steelers to win Super Bowl XLV". ESPN Internet Ventures. Associated Press. February 7, 2011. Archived from the original on August 14, 2018. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
  30. ^ Martin, Jill (February 7, 2021). "Aaron Rodgers named NFL MVP while Peyton Manning headlines Hall of Fame class of 2021". CNN.com. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  31. ^ Fahey, Cian (September 5, 2017). "Why Aaron Rodgers is an even greater NFL quarterback than we think". The Guardian. Archived from the original on August 13, 2018. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
  32. ^ "Packers QB Aaron Rodgers wins fourth NFL MVP award". www.packers.com. Archived from the original on March 21, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2022.
  33. ^ "Packers to retire Aaron Rodgers' No. 12 at 'appropriate time'". ESPN.com. Reuters. July 24, 2023. Archived from the original on July 24, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
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