Welcome back to our series on the greatest Green Bay Packers to wear every number from No. 0 through No. 99. With the 80s now wrapped up, No. 89 brings us a Hall of Famer to finish the run.
Before getting to the top choice, it’s worth running through the full list of Packers who have worn No. 89 over the years: Henry Childs, Mark Chmura, Michael Clark, Jared Cook, Robert Ferguson, Kevin Fitzgerald, Joey Hackett, William Harris, James Jones, Marcedes Lewis, Mark Lewis, Dave Robinson, Richard Rodgers, Ben Sims, Ollie Smith, John Spagnola, Willie Taylor, Aundra Thompson and Charlie Wade.
There are a couple of names here that deserve more than a passing mention, so bringing back the Olympic podium format makes sense. On the bronze step is Mark Chmura, a three-time Pro Bowl tight end who caught 188 passes for 2,253 yards and 17 touchdowns across seven seasons in Green Bay from 1993 to 1999. He was also part of the Packers team that won Super Bowl 31.
The silver medal goes to James Jones, who put together an eight-year Packers career with 360 receptions, 5,195 yards and 45 touchdowns. He, too, helped Green Bay win a Super Bowl, doing his part for the Super Bowl 45 champions.
But the clear No. 1 here is linebacker Dave Robinson.
Robinson arrived in Green Bay with plenty of pedigree, having been a First-Team All-American at Penn State in 1962. The Packers selected him in the first round of the 1963 NFL Draft with the 14th overall pick, and the San Diego Chargers also took him in the third round of the 1963 AFL Draft. He chose Green Bay.
Though he had played defensive end in college, Lombardi moved the 6-foot-3, 245-pound Robinson to linebacker, and that switch paid off in a major way. After spending most of his first two seasons in a reserve role on the right side, he shifted to the left side in 1965 and joined Ray Nitschke and Lee Roy Caffey in what became one of the most feared linebacker trios in NFL history.
That group anchored a Packers defense that helped drive the franchise to three straight NFL Championships from 1965 through 1967. The last two of those titles sent Green Bay to the first two Super Bowls, both of which the Packers won.
Robinson brought everything to the position. He could pressure the quarterback, posting 22.0 sacks in his 10 years in Green Bay.
He could handle the run. And he was dangerous in coverage, finishing with 21 interceptions in a Packers uniform.
His value was so obvious that Dave Hanner, who spent 44 years with the Packers as a player, coach and scout, once said, "I know people think I'm crazy, but if you had to pick between (Ray) Nitschke and Dave Robinson, I'd take Dave Robinson."
Robinson earned three Pro Bowl selections and two All-Pro nods before leaving Green Bay after the 1972 season. He played his final two years with the team now known as the Washington Commanders, was inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame in 1982 and, after nearly four decades of waiting, entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2013.
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