Reggie White #92
Position: Defensive End
With Packers: 1993-98
College: Tennessee
Ht: 6' 5"
Wt: 300 lbs
Born: 12/19/61
Acquired: UFA 1993 (Phi)
Status: Retired After 1998 Season
* The most-honored athlete ever to play defensive end in the National Football League's long history, Reggie White returns for the 14th and what he has termed the final season of a singular and distinguished career
* Hampered by a persistent back problem in 1997, he earlier had announced his retirement from the game - on the second day of the 1998 NFL draft (April 19) - but subsequently decided to play one more year to fulfill a promise he had made to Packers management when he signed a new, five-year contract late in the 1996 season - a commitment to play at least two seasons
* Remembering that promise, he announced on April 21, had triggered his decision to return
* Long a legitimate icon in his game, in which he last season was a Pro Bowl selection at his position for a record 12th consecutive year, White has seen his talents, performance and persona elicit the ultimate in superlatives for more than a decade
* The prepossessing Tennesseean, a certain Hall of Famer as soon as he becomes eligible, is larger than life, literally and figuratively - a man apart, both at his position and off the field
* Green Bay defensive coordinator Fritz Shurmur, openly admiring, has paid him the ultimate compliment, calling White "the cornerstone and foundation of this football team"
* Confident Number 92 will make substantial contributions to the cause in '98, Shurmur observed, "As we have seen with him over the years, whenever he has had some kind of a physical difficulty, in most cases those types of things put the average guy on the shelf. But he has played through dislocated elbows, holes in his hamstring muscle, and last year with a bad back. So I would not be a bit surprised to see him come back and achieve at a high level. I know he has recommitted, rededicated himself to working as much as humanly possible to rehabilitate his injured back. And, again, if it's humanly possible for anyone to do it, Reggie will do it. As a result, I fully expect that he'll be there and be a contributor to our defense again. Obviously, the leadership skills are unparalleled in this league. His impact on our team, on our fans, on our city and on our state is immeasurable. And when it comes to great football players, there's no question that he's probably the greatest to ever play the position. But, more significantly, I've never been around a guy who has more legitimate concerns for his fellow man and for bettering the place in society of his fellow man or for those who do not have the same kind of advantages we have. So he's a great human being and a great football player."
* Addressing what White's presence and performance have meant to the Packers over the past five seasons, Shurmur asserted, "Actually, when we look around at our team and what's happened with our team, the most important - the pivotal move - was to bring Reggie White here. When he came here, he came here with the idea that he was going to help this team get to a Super Bowl, and did about everything he could as an individual to try to get there - including personal sacrifices and all those kinds of things. He was the ultimate team player - a team leader to the point where he has a very positive influence on the rest of our people. I think if I were to take three words that kind of characterize our team, they are commitment, character and chemistry - and all of those words describe Reggie and his commitment to this team. He is a rare football player, a rare individual. He is rare in his capacity to play the game consistently. He has tremendous strength and explosiveness, to go with speed. He's probably the most unselfish team player I've ever been around and it rubs off. If you were to look at one guy whose demeanor and whose mode of living is an example for all of us to follow, it's Reggie White. He leads by example better than any player I've been around - he never misses a turn in practice."
* These accolades having been delivered, there remains no way to adequately measure White's electrifying impact upon the defense in his five seasons as a Packer
* But his unit's performance in 1996, for prime example, offers an eloquent testimonial to his contributions
* The Packers' defense - under White's leadership - reached the summit in '96, finishing as the NFL's top-ranked unit in for the first time since 1967
* White and his colleagues led the league in fewest points allowed (210) and set an NFL record for fewest touchdowns allowed in a 16-game season (19)
* His unit's rankings have consistently held top spots in many defensive categories since his arrival upon the Green Bay scene
* The Green Bay defense soared to second place in 1993 (from a distant 23rd the previous year), when the former Philadelphia Eagles superstar joined the Green and Gold as the most sought-after performer to become available with the advent of unrestricted free agency in the National Football League
* It subsequently finished a highly-respectable sixth in 1994 despite the loss of starters Johnny Holland, Tony Bennett and Roland Mitchell from the '93 unit
* The defense continued to be a positive constant in 1995
* Although it finished 14th overall statistically, it closed out the season ranking fourth in fewest points allowed (314)
* Head Coach Mike Holmgren, for one, was able to put the 1993 performance in practical perspective
* White "made us a better football team - no question about it," Holmgren said, documenting this assertion by noting, "We went from 23 on defense (in the league as a whole) to two - with no noticeable dramatic personnel changes, except for one man."
* Still at the very top of his game after 13 years, White again saw his on-field superiority documented in 1997 by his selection to the Pro Bowl for an NFL-record 12th straight year, breaking a tie with the San Francisco 49ers' Jerry Rice (1986-96) and the Cincinnati Bengals' Anthony Munoz (1981-91) for the most consecutive times chosen since the 1970 league merger
* It also represented his fifth trip to the Pro Bowl in a Green Bay uniform, tying Willie Davis (1963-67) for the Packers' record for a defensive lineman
* He had received even more singular recognition for professional football's all-time sacks leader - his election to the National Football League's 75th Anniversary All-Time Team in August of 1994
* In 1997, he continued his reign as the league's official all-time leader in quarterback sacks, notching 11 to increase his career total to 176.5 over his 13-year NFL tenure
* In the process, became only the second player in league history to post at least 10 sacks in each of 11 seasons (Buffalo's Bruce Smith had become the first earlier in '97)
* Is tied with Smith for the most career sacks in NFL postseason history, each having posted 12 in the playoffs
* Also ranks as the Packers' career sacks leader in the playoffs, having recorded 8 in a Green Bay uniform
* Has 52.5 sacks with the Packers during the regular season, placing him second on the club's all-time list (since sacks became an official NFL stat in 1982), behind only Tim Harris (55)
* Now has sacked 64 different quarterbacks over his NFL career, having added the Eagles' Ty Detmer and the Bills' Alex Van Pelt to his collection in 1997
* Earlier in his career, he had become the fastest player in league history to record 100 career sacks, reaching the century mark in only 93 games, 21 games faster than No. 2 Lawrence Taylor (114)
* One of the game's most durable performers, he missed a non-strike game for the first time in his career late in the 1995 season (Dec. 10 at Tampa Bay due to a hamstring problem), but was back at his customary stand the following week
* Had played in 166 consecutive 'union' contests to that point, one of the longest such streaks in NFL history
* The 36-year-old White is the only player in NFL history to register double-digit sack totals in nine consecutive seasons (1985 through 1993)
* He in 1993 also became the first Packers defensive end chosen for the Pro Bowl since Ezra Johnson in 1978
* Impressively productive since his selection by the Eagles as a first-round pick in the NFL's supplemental draft of USFL players in 1984, White has amassed 1,079 tackles (772 solo), including his 176.5 sacks
* He also has posted 3 interceptions, 51 passes defensed, forced 28 fumbles and recovered 20, two of the latter for touchdowns
* In addition, he has supplemented these contributions by registering 2 safeties and blocking 4 kicks (2 FGs, 1 PAT and 1 punt)
* The only player to be selected by Pro Football Weekly on its 1980s All-Decade team and also to be projected to its All-1990s team, he has customarily lined up at defensive end, but also has used his strength and speed to wreak havoc on blocking schemes from various positions along the line during his career
* Launched his pro career with the USFL's Memphis Showboats (1984-85), posting 193 tackles (120 solo), 23.5 sacks and forcing 7 fumbles in 34 starts
