Green Bay Packers Almost Had Ray Lewis in 1996 NFL Draft

Ray Lewis, Green Bay Packers
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Based on some recent interviews, it has been revealed that the Green Bay Packers came oh so close to landing future Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis in the 1996 NFL Draft. The Packers, who were on the clock with the No. 27 overall pick, were so close to selecting Lewis that they were on the phone with him already.

Former Green Bay Packers director Eliot Wolf recently spoke to NFL insider Adam Schefter of ESPN recounting how things went. He was in the team’s war room that year and revealed they were talking to Raw Lewis when the Baltimore Ravens, who were on the clock at No. 26, swooped in and selected the Miami (FL) product.

“There was some disappointment,” Wolf recalled about that draft. “They actually had Ray [Lewis] on that phone. They were talking to Ray, and Baltimore was still on the clock…They thought Ray was one of the best players in the draft.”

It sounds like the Green Bay Packers were certainly hurt when Lewis went off the clock for the pick right before them. Seeing how his career turned out, the disappointment had to have reached another level watching his Hall of Fame career unfold for a different franchise.

Any concerns that evaluators and scouts had about Ray Lewis during the pre-draft process quickly went away. By Year 2 of his illustrious career he was cementing his status as one of the best linebackers in the NFL.

He finished his career with 13 Pro Bowls, 10 All-Pro nominations, led the NFL in tackles three times and was Defensive Player of the Year twice. Most importantly, he also helped the Ravens win two Super Bowls.

Instead of coming away with Ray Lewis, the Green Bay Packers used their first-round pick in the 1996 NFL Draft on offensive tackle John Michels out of USC. Michels helped the team win the Super Bowl during his rookie season, stepping into the starting left tackle spot for an injured Ken Ruettgers.

That was the height of Michels’s NFL career and time with the Packers. He returned for the 1997 season as the starting left tackle but lasted only five games before suffering a knee injury. He missed the remainder of the season and was replaced by 1998 first-round pick Ross Verba.

Michels came back strong with an impressive training camp in 1998, but another right knee injury landed him on injured reserve. He was unable to successfully recover from that one, being traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in 1999 and lasting only a few weeks before being released and his career being ended up injury woes.

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