As the 2018 Pro Football Hall of Fame class gets enshrined on Saturday evening, Packers fans will be rejoicing as Jerry Kramer’s long-awaited induction into the hall in Canton, Ohio is finally happening.  Kramer, one of the faces of the Lombardi era of Packers football, took a long, hard road to his eventual place in Canton and much has been and will be written about his weekend coming up.

Aside from Kramer and the excitement that he will bring to the Packers fanbase this weekend, two other individuals are being enshrined into the Hall of Fame this weekend that embody the Packers rivalries of the turn of the 20^th century and into the 21^st century.  And whether you grew to love to hate them or hate to love them, both men are sure to bring up some vivid memories of Packers moments that both men had a major impact on.

The first of these men being inducted is Randy Moss.  When Randy entered the league in 1998 as a Minnesota Viking, he threw his coming out party on a Monday night in Green Bay where he burned the Packers for five catches, 190 yards and two touchdowns.  From that point forward, Moss was a Packers killer for the rest of his time while donning Vikings purple.  Perhaps his most hated memory as a Viking was during the Wild Card round following the 2004 season.  In the process of the Vikings coming into Lambeau Field and sticking it to the Packers, Moss’ moon seen around the world prompted Joe Buck to chime in on the live broadcast of it being a “disgusting act.”

That would be the last time that Moss would face the Packers as a Minnesota Viking as he went on to Oakland the following season.  As a Viking, Moss would only go 7 - 8 against the Packers, but many memories of his pure domination against the Packers still bring terrors to fans.  Moss himself was most likely a huge influence on the Packers draft in 1999 where Ron Wolf selected defensive backs with his first three selections in a draft class most notably remembered for the selection of Donald Driver with a late seventh round pick.

Looking back on Moss’ career, his talent was undeniable but one has to wonder if he could have done more with his career in the NFL.  While currently sitting second on the all-time touchdown receptions list in NFL history, Moss’ off the field antics often overshadowed his career on the field.  Coming out of high school in West Virginia, Moss was highly recruited by many major college programs.  Trouble with the law caused Notre Dame to revoke a scholarship and Florida State to kick him out of the program.  Then in the NFL, Moss ran into trouble both off the field and in the locker room.  Trouble surrounded Moss among his teammates when he walked off the field late in the game during a loss in Washington and when he was quoted as saying “I play when I want to play.”  Since both incidents, Moss has tried to clear the air by explaining that his desire to win took over all emotions and caused those actions.

The other man being inducted to the Hall of Fame this weekend that exemplifies Packers rivalries is famed Chicago Bear linebacker Brian Urlacher.  During his 13-year career with the Bears, Urlacher was the steadfast piece of the middle of the Bears defense that had the chance to play against both Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers in their prime.  Both Packers legends have expressed their respect for Urlacher since the announcement of his joining the Hall of Fame.

During his career with the Bears, Urlacher saw the playoffs just four times during his career where the 2006 season ended in a Bears loss to the Indianapolis Colts in the Super Bowl and a 2010 NFC Championship Game loss to the Packers.  During the latter loss, one of the happiest memories of Packers fans occurred after a second-half Urlacher interception of Aaron Rodgers.  During the play, Urlacher made a great play on a Rodgers pass near the goal line and quickly made his way toward the opposite end zone.  With only Rodgers being in his way of scoring the pick-six for a touchdown, Rodgers made the best tackle of his career with a diving one-armed grab of Urlacher’s thigh that slowly tripped him up.

Early in his career, Urlacher and Favre partook in many wars on the football field and the two men shared the utmost respect for each other.  Many fans will remember the 2007 season, where the Packers were making a late December push for the number one seed in the NFC playoffs, and the Packers getting destroyed by the Bears in Chicago two days prior to Christmas.  Late in the game with the Packers down 28 – 7, Favre threw an errant pass in traffic that Urlacher picked off and ran 85 yards for a touchdown while being untouched on his way.

As both Urlacher and Favre neared the ends of their career around the same time, it was only fitting how the final play of Favre’s career played out.  In a December Monday night battle on a frozen TCF Bank Stadium turf, Favre was knocked unconscious during a meaningless game for the Vikings.  As he lay hurt on the field, Urlacher stood over Favre watching intently.  I can only imagine Urlacher saying “get up old buddy.”

As I reflect back on the careers of both of the hated Packers rivals for so many years, I can’t help but have a ton of respect for both players and what they meant in cementing two great rivalries for the Packers for many years.  The memories of the battles on the field that both men provided will surely last a long time and I’m looking forward to watching both get inducted alongside Jerry Kramer.  Selfishly, I’m also thrilled that both players will walk to the podium in Canton on Saturday night without a Super Bowl ring on their fingers.