Edmund Raymond "Zeke" Bratkowski (October 20, 1931 − November 11, 2019) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) for 14 seasons with the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

, and

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

. Bratkowski was an

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

playing

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

with the

Georgia Bulldogs The Georgia Bulldogs are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The offic ...

, and later was an assistant coach in the NFL for over two decades. He was the father of former

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski.

Early years

Born and raised in Westville, Illinois, Bratkowski played

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

at Schlarman Academy in Danville and graduated in 1949. The nickname by which he commonly went had its origins in his boyhood years, when he frequently wore a baseball jersey emblazoned with the name of Major Leaguer Zeke Bonura across the front. Bratkowski came to national prominence in his sophomore season at the

University of Georgia The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...

, and was twice the SEC passing leader under head coach

Wally Butts James Wallace Butts Jr. (February 7, 1905 – December 17, 1973) was an American college football player, coach, and athletics administrator. He served as the head coach at the University of Georgia from 1939 to 1960, compiling a record of 140– ...

. During his three-year career with the Bulldogs, he completed 360 passes for 4,863 yards. Bratkowski was considered one of college football's greatest quarterbacks of his day and was the NCAA's all-time leading passer until 1961. Today, he still ranks eighth on Georgia's list of career passing leaders. Bratkowski also led the NCAA in punting his senior year in

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito ...

with a 42.6 yard average. He was selected for the North–South All-Star Game in

Miami, Florida Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, in December, and led the South to a 20–0 victory.

Playing career

Chicago Bears

Bratkowski was selected 17th overall in the second round of the

1953 NFL draft The 1953 National Football League draft was held on January 22, 1953, at Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia. Selections made by the folded Dallas Texans were assigned to the Baltimore Colts, since the Dallas team had moved to Baltimore. ...

by the

as a "future choice" after his

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically ...

junior season, then played his fifth-year senior season at Georgia in

. He joined the Bears as a rookie in

1954 Events January * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown–IBM experiment: The first public demonstration of a machine translation system is held in New York, at the head ...

. He started the first game of the season with a 64-yard touchdown pass, but was benched after completing just one of his next 11 passes with four interceptions. After

George Blanda George Frederick Blanda (September 17, 1927 – September 27, 2010) was an American professional American football, football quarterback and placekicker who played in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). Blanda ...

was lost for the season with a separated shoulder in mid-November, Bratkowski entered the game and threw three more interceptions in the loss. However, he started and won the last four games of the season, despite ten interceptions in those games for a franchise rookie record 17 on the season. Bratkowski then served in the U.S. Air Force for two years, missing the 1955 and 1956 seasons. He returned in

1957 Events January * January 1 – The Saarland joins West Germany. * January 3 – Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch. * January 5 – South African player Russell Endean becomes the first batsman to be Dismissal (cricke ...

and shared time at quarterback with Ed Brown, and played five seasons in Chicago, through

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Janu ...

. His seven interceptions in an October 2, 1960, loss to Baltimore remains a franchise record.

Los Angeles Rams

Bratkowski was traded to the

in March

1961 Events January * January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union. * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...

, and played in Los Angeles for seasons before being signed in October

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...

Vince Lombardi Vincent Thomas Lombardi ( ; June 11, 1913 – September 3, 1970) was an American professional football coach and executive in the National Football League (NFL). Lombardi is considered by many to be among the greatest coaches and leaders in Ame ...

for the $100 waiver fee to become the "super sub" to

Bart Starr Bryan Bartlett Starr (January 9, 1934 – May 26, 2019) was an American professional football quarterback and head coach for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson T ...

Green Bay Packers

In Green Bay, Bratkowski was nicknamed "Uncle Zekie", and became an ideal backup and spot starter during the Lombardi championship era. In a 15-year NFL career, he passed for 10,345 yards and 65 touchdowns. In the Western Conference playoff game versus the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983, when owner Robert Irsay moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breeding and racing. It w ...

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...

, Bratkowski relieved the injured Starr early in the game and led the Packers to a 13–10 overtime victory on December 26 at

Lambeau Field Lambeau Field () is an outdoor athletic stadium in the East North Central states, north central United States, located in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The home field of the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL), it opened in 1957 Green ...

. The Packers went on to win the

NFL championship game Throughout its history, the National Football league (NFL) and other rival American football leagues have used several different formats to determine their league champions, including a period of inter-league matchups to determine a true national ...

against the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

on January 2, 1966. This was the first of three consecutive NFL titles for the Packers, unprecedented in the playoff era (since

1933 Events January * January 11 – Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independen ...

). After coaching under Phil Bengtson in

1969 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 2nd millennium, the 69th year of the 20th century, and the ...

and

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...

, Bratkowski came out of retirement to play again for the Packers in

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (Solar eclipse of February 25, 1971, February 25, Solar eclipse of July 22, 1971, July 22 and Solar eclipse of August 20, 1971, August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 1971 lunar eclip ...

under first-year head coach

Dan Devine Daniel John Devine (December 23, 1924 – May 9, 2002) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Arizona State University from 1955 to 1957, the University of Missouri from 1958 to 1970, and the Universi ...

, and appeared in six games, with one start.

Chicago Bears (second stint)

The following year, Bratkowski became an assistant coach for the

, a position he would hold for three seasons (1972–74); in 1973, the Bears activated Zeke as an emergency back-up quarterback for eight games, but he did not actually appear in any of them. A well-conditioned athlete, Bratkowski was an early advocate of

aerobic training Aerobic means "requiring air," in which "air" usually means oxygen. Aerobic may also refer to * Aerobic exercise, prolonged exercise of moderate intensity * Aerobics, a form of aerobic exercise * Aerobic respiration, the aerobic process of cellu ...

for professional football players. Bratkowski ended his career with an official NFL playoff record of 5–0, the best playoff record by a quarterback (minimum 5 playoff games played) in NFL history. However, due to 5 playoff games being a relatively small number, as well as his limited playing time in these games, he is seldom recognized or mentioned in conservations regarding the best playoff quarterback of all time.

Coaching career

After his playing career, Bratkowski became quarterback coach/offensive coordinator for Chicago, Baltimore / Indianapolis, Philadelphia, and

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

. He was also a quarterbacks coach with Cleveland and the Jets and worked two stints as a Green Bay assistant coach. While Bratkowski was coaching the Chicago Bears quarterbacks during the 1973 season, head coach

Abe Gibron Abraham Gibron (September 22, 1925 – September 23, 1997) was an American professional football player and coach. Gibron played 11 seasons as a guard in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and National Football League (NFL) in the 1940 ...

abruptly promoted him to offensive coordinator, then pressed him into service as a back-up quarterback (see above). * 1969–1970,

: Assistant * 1972–1974,

: Assistant * 1975–1981, Green Bay Packers: Assistant * 1982–1984, Baltimore / Indianapolis Colts: OC/QB * 1985–1989,

: QB * 1990,

: QB * 1991–1992,

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

: QB * 1993–1994, Philadelphia Eagles: OC/QB * 1995, New York Jets: OC/QB

Death

Bratkowski died at his home in

Santa Rosa Beach, Florida Santa Rosa Beach is an unincorporated community in Walton County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Geography Santa Rosa Beach is located at 30.3960324°, -86.2 ...

, on November 11, 2019, of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

at the age of 88.

Halls of Fame

Bratkowski is a member of numerous halls of fame. In 1980, he was inducted into the State of Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. Nine years later (in 1989), Bratkowski was inducted into the

Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame The Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame is a team-specific hall of fame honoring players, coaches, executives and other contributors to the history and success of the Green Bay Packers, an American football team in the National Football League (NFL). ...

. He also was elected to the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 1995. Bratkowski was inducted into the University of Georgia's Circle of Honor in 2006, and was the first member of his high school's Hall of Fame in 1974.

References

External links

Sports Reference
– collegiate statistics – Zeke Bratkowski {{DEFAULTSORT:Bratkowski, Zeke 1931 births 2019 deaths American football quarterbacks Chicago Bears players Georgia Bulldogs football players Green Bay Packers players Los Angeles Rams players New York Jets coaches American people of Polish descent Sportspeople from Danville, Illinois Players of American football from Illinois Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame