Tunch Ilkin is the perfect representation of a random Packers player.

In his illustrious Packers career, he played in exactly one game. But it wasn’t supposed to be that way.

Ilkin, an offensive lineman, arrived in Green Bay in 1993 as a part of a moderately heralded free agent class. True free agency was new in the early 1990s, and Packers general manager Ron Wolf was willing to spend. In 1992, he’d landed the crown jewel of the NFL’s first true class of free agents, hauling in Reggie White, who was already well on his way to a bust in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Arriving a year later, Ilkin wasn’t quite so decorated, but he was no slouch, either. A 13-year NFL veteran with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Ilkin had made the Pro Bowl in 1988 and 1989. And even though he was heading into his age-36 season when he arrived in Green Bay, he was rewarded accordingly: the Packers ponied up a two-year, $1.8 million contract for his services with a $200,000 signing bonus. Some reports said the deal was worth as much as $2.2 million.

Ilkin was a unique success story in the NFL. He was originally from Turkey, and his family immigrated to the United States when he was just two years old. It’s hard to say what kind of impact it may have had on his playing career, but his mother had the unique claim to fame of having been named Miss Turkey in 1950, seven years before he was born.

And no matter what he did on the field, he was already making history by just getting to the NFL, becoming the first player born in Turkey to do so when he made his debut with the Pittsburgh Steelers

Unfortunately, the Packers ended up paying Ilkin for very little playing time. Injuries limited him to just a single game in 1993, and he’d be out of the league for good in 1994.

But as luck would have it, Ilkin’s lone game in Green Bay was a memorable one. The one time he officially donned a Packers uniform was a 28-0 win over the Los Angeles Raiders — better known as the game in which the first-ever Lambeau Leap took place.

Ilkin, being an offensive lineman, wasn’t on the field for the play. But although many people might like to say they were there to see the first edition of the Packers’ iconic celebration, Ilkin has a unique claim: he got to see it from the sideline, enjoying the show as Reggie White picked up a fumble and tossed it to LeRoy Butler, who made Packers history that day.

After his Packers career ended, Ilkin made his way back into the Steelers’ fold. He worked for the Steelers’ radio broadcast crew for some time, and was also named to the team’s Hall of Honor and their all-time team in the early 2000s.

Ilkin wouldn’t receive a similar honor in Green Bay. They usually reserve that kind of recognition for players who play more than one game. But that one game was pretty incredible. Many players play their entire career and don’t get to bear witness to something that becomes a part of franchise lore.

Ilkin did. He was there. His one game stint in Green Bay afforded him a front row seat to history, and he became a part of that history just by being there.