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Jerry Rice was projected to be a Packer in this 1985 NFL Mock Draft

30 years ago today, one publication thought that the guy who would become the best wide receiver of the modern era would land in Green Bay.

By Evan "Tex" Western
Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

Imagine Brett Favre throwing passes to Jerry Rice.*

No, I'm not asking you to think back to a mid-1990s Pro Bowl. I'm thinking back to the 1985 NFL Draft, when the Green Bay Packers went into the draft holding the 15th overall pick. Here's a mock draft pubilshed by The Sporting News 30 years ago today:

That's right. Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice was projected to be a Packer.

As it turned out, Green Bay traded up from the 15th pick to the 7th overall selection and drafted USC offensive tackle Ken Ruettgers, who was projected to go 9th to the Eagles. That certainly wasn't a bad pick - he played in 156 games over the next 12 years, and started at least 11 games in nine of those seasons. He also earned a Super Bowl ring in his last year in the NFL as a member of the 1996 team.

Rice as a Packer, though? It's hard not to picture him catching passes from the Ol' Gunslinger.

* Yes, we know that if Rice became a Packer, the future would have been changed and Ron Wolf/Mike Holmgren/Brett Favre might never have ended up in Green Bay. Just roll with it.

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