The Green Bay Packers have had a lot of impressive cornerbacks come and go. Heck, they have one right now in Jaire Alexander, who could very well be on his way out this offseason.
But let’s go back in time to a different era of Packers football, when Brett Favre was at quarterback and Mike Sherman was head coach. Green Bay didn’t win any Super Bowls during those years, but let’s be honest: those were some fun seasons.
For example, who could forget Al Harris’ game-winning pick-six against the Seattle Seahawks in the Wild Card Round of the 2003-04 NFL playoffs?
And do you remember the cornerback who played opposite of Harris that season? Mike McKenzie.
McKenzie may very well have been one of the most underrated defensive backs in football during his day. He was selected by the Packers in the third round of the 1999 NFL Draft and got his career off to a bang, hauling in six interceptions while racking up 18 passes defended during his rookie campaign.
For the next five-plus years, the Memphis product patrolled Green Bay’s secondary and was consistently among the league’s better cornerbacks, even if he never made a Pro Bowl. Heck, a legitimate argument can be made that he was better than Harris at his peak, and Harris actually did make a couple of Pro Bowl appearances.
McKenzie was ultimately traded to the New Orleans Saints during the 2004 season as a result of a contract dispute in Green Bay, and he went on to spend the remainder of his career with the Saints, right through 2009.
But there is no doubt that the Miami native was very fun to watch during his time with the Packers, and he did not quite get the respect that he deserved outside of Lambeau.
