Jan. 9, 1963 - “I’m the unluckiest, luckiest guy in the world,” says Jerry Kramer, All Pro guard of the Green Bay Packers. Why does he say this? As a 16-year-old in Sand Point, Idaho, Kramer had part of his arm shot away and was almost fatally wounded in the side in a 10-gauge shotgun accident. A year later, a stick pierced his stomach, and a prodigious splinter lodged in a back muscle. The stick narrowly missed an artery, or otherwise he might have bled to death. In 1960, while blocking Lamar Lundy of the Rams, he suffered a detached retina. Only a delicate operation saved his sight in one eye and prolonged his career. Two years ago against the Vikings, Kramer separated the bones in his ankle. It was feared that he might never play again. Even today, Kramer, a cheerful, 6-foot-3-inch 250-pounder, has only partial use of his right hand because of the shotgun accident. Kramer’s medical history hardly qualifies him for the exacting, demanding profession he pursues. Yet, at 26 and in his fifth pro year, many coaches acclaim Kramer as the best blocking guard in football. Kramer, who is playing in his first Pro Bowl game this year, does not subscribe to the theory that pro football players must be savages to survive. “I know very few players who are actually mean. They just take pride in their job — as I do,” says Kramer.
