Best of the Packers: Top 10 linebackers since 1960
By Phil Watson
7. Nick Barnett (2003-10)
Oregon State linebacker Nick Barnett was the 29th overall pick by the Green Bay Packers in the 2003 NFL Draft and immediately seized control of the middle linebacker job for most of the next eight seasons.
Barnett posted at least 100 tackles in six of his eight seasons, including a career-high 138 in 2005, and had 15½ sacks, two forced fumbles, nine interceptions and 36 passes defensed.
His 575 solo tackles rank third on the Packers’ all-time list (the statistic has been semi-official since 1994) and his 36 passes defensed ranks eighth.
The Packers released Barnett in July 2011 and he played two seasons with the Buffalo Bills and one with the Washington Redskins before going unsigned as a free agent after the 2013 season.
A member of Green Bay’s Super Bowl championship team in 2010, Barnett was limited to just four games that season, sustaining a season-ending wrist injury in October.
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