The moment the ball is snapped to the No.12 on Green Bay’s offensive plays, fans know that their 2x NFL regular season MVP and Super Bowl
winner is set to dominate the opposition with inch-perfect passes.
However, what is the reason behind the Lambeau Field legend getting the number 12 jersey? Also, why did he stick with it for the entirety of
his career?Aaron Rodgers played three seasons of college football in
his home state. In 2002, he turned out for the Butte Community College
before making the switch to the University of California, Berkeley, in
his sophomore year.
He represented the Golden Bears in 2003 and 2004 and made the No.8 jersey his own. However, when he made his NFL bow in 2005, he could not
keep his college football jersey number.
This is because a special team player Ryan Longwell held the number. The kicker was entering his ninth NFL season with ‘The Green and Gold.’
There was absolutely no way an experienced player would opt to hand
over his jersey number to a rookie.The NFL permits quarterbacks to wear a
number from 1 to 20, and Aaron Rodgers received the No.12 shirt.
This was the number worn by Zeke Bartowski when he featured as the backup to Bart Starr in the 1966 season. This was when Green Bay claimed
the first two Super Bowl games under Vincent Lombardi.
However, in 2006, Rodgers could have switched back to No.8, but he didn’t and made the No.12 his own, at least in Wisconsin.
Numerous quarterbacks have worn the No.12 jersey during their playing days. A fair few of them have guided their teams to the Super
Bowl.
These include the likes of Tom Brady, John Elway, Terry Bradshaw, Roger Staubach, and Bob Griese. Most numbers have legends associated
with it, but these names are stellar in football circles.
