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Packers Trying To Ignore, Change History In Philly
by Mike Spofford, Packers.com
posted 09/29/2006
Head Coach Mike McCarthy said he wasn't even aware that the last Packers head coach to win a game in Philadelphia was Vince Lombardi.
Middle linebacker Nick Barnett said that every year in the NFL, it's a different team and a whole new season.
Those are probably the healthiest ways to ponder, or not ponder, the Packers' losing streak in Philadelphia that dates back to 1962. Since a 49-0 shellacking administered by Green Bay that year, the Packers have dropped eight straight in a place named, not so appropriately to Packers fans, the City of Brotherly Love.
To even try to understand how this losing streak was constructed is to only invite frustration, if not bewilderment. The Packers certainly haven't been the poorer team every time they've played there in the last 44 years. Is it just bad luck?
Or in 1962 did Lombardi exact such merciless revenge for the 17-13 loss in the NFL Championship game two years earlier at Philadelphia's Franklin Field, where Green Bay's Jim Taylor was tackled by Chuck Bednarik on the 8-yard line on the game's final play for Lombardi's only postseason defeat, that the Packers are somehow cursed every time they set foot in the city?
Whatever the reason, the Packers will do their best to end the streak on Monday night, when they travel to Philadelphia for a fourth straight season.
But to get a sense of just what type of history they're up against, let alone a potent 2006 Eagles' team, here's a recap of some of the not-so-fond memories of the city of Philadelphia that have left Packers fans, at the very least, scratching their heads.
1978 - The Packers outgain the Eagles 385-148 but lose 10-3 thanks to five turnovers. A fumble sets up a 2-yard TD drive for Philadelphia, and a potential game-tying drive in the fourth quarter is thwarted by an interception at the Eagles' 6-yard line.
1994 - A potential go-ahead scoring drive stalls, also at the Eagles' 6, in the final two minutes in a 13-7 defeat.
1997 - Rookie kicker Ryan Longwell, who would go on to become the Packers' all-time leading scorer and hit 10 game-winning field goals in his career with Green Bay, misses a 28-yard field goal in the final seconds on a wet, ugly day in a 10-9 heartbreaker.
2003 - A 20-17 overtime loss in the NFC Divisional playoffs is fraught with frustration, as the Packers are stopped on fourth down on the goal-line in the second quarter, surrender a 4th-and-26 conversion on the Eagles' game-tying drive in the fourth, and throw an interception in OT to set up the winning points.
2005 - Despite surrendering only 88 passing yards and stopping the Eagles on 12 of 16 third-down conversions, the Packers fall 19-14 due to five turnovers.
Even with such odd occurrences, the veteran Packers players say there's no need to search for explanations to their struggles in Philadelphia.
"We just haven't played well there," receiver Donald Driver said. "We've made a lot of mistakes, but we're hoping we don't make them this week."
Philadelphia is known for its raucous crowd that is sure to be even more jazzed up for Monday Night Football. Earlier this week McCarthy called Philadelphia "one of the wildest places to play."
But the crowd is one of the least of the Packers' worries. They just plan to focus on themselves and their play and let the rest, no matter the history, take care of itself.
"If we can go out there and execute, we'll be good," Driver said.
by Mike Spofford, Packers.com
posted 09/29/2006
Head Coach Mike McCarthy said he wasn't even aware that the last Packers head coach to win a game in Philadelphia was Vince Lombardi.
Middle linebacker Nick Barnett said that every year in the NFL, it's a different team and a whole new season.
Those are probably the healthiest ways to ponder, or not ponder, the Packers' losing streak in Philadelphia that dates back to 1962. Since a 49-0 shellacking administered by Green Bay that year, the Packers have dropped eight straight in a place named, not so appropriately to Packers fans, the City of Brotherly Love.
To even try to understand how this losing streak was constructed is to only invite frustration, if not bewilderment. The Packers certainly haven't been the poorer team every time they've played there in the last 44 years. Is it just bad luck?
Or in 1962 did Lombardi exact such merciless revenge for the 17-13 loss in the NFL Championship game two years earlier at Philadelphia's Franklin Field, where Green Bay's Jim Taylor was tackled by Chuck Bednarik on the 8-yard line on the game's final play for Lombardi's only postseason defeat, that the Packers are somehow cursed every time they set foot in the city?
Whatever the reason, the Packers will do their best to end the streak on Monday night, when they travel to Philadelphia for a fourth straight season.
But to get a sense of just what type of history they're up against, let alone a potent 2006 Eagles' team, here's a recap of some of the not-so-fond memories of the city of Philadelphia that have left Packers fans, at the very least, scratching their heads.
1978 - The Packers outgain the Eagles 385-148 but lose 10-3 thanks to five turnovers. A fumble sets up a 2-yard TD drive for Philadelphia, and a potential game-tying drive in the fourth quarter is thwarted by an interception at the Eagles' 6-yard line.
1994 - A potential go-ahead scoring drive stalls, also at the Eagles' 6, in the final two minutes in a 13-7 defeat.
1997 - Rookie kicker Ryan Longwell, who would go on to become the Packers' all-time leading scorer and hit 10 game-winning field goals in his career with Green Bay, misses a 28-yard field goal in the final seconds on a wet, ugly day in a 10-9 heartbreaker.
2003 - A 20-17 overtime loss in the NFC Divisional playoffs is fraught with frustration, as the Packers are stopped on fourth down on the goal-line in the second quarter, surrender a 4th-and-26 conversion on the Eagles' game-tying drive in the fourth, and throw an interception in OT to set up the winning points.
2005 - Despite surrendering only 88 passing yards and stopping the Eagles on 12 of 16 third-down conversions, the Packers fall 19-14 due to five turnovers.
Even with such odd occurrences, the veteran Packers players say there's no need to search for explanations to their struggles in Philadelphia.
"We just haven't played well there," receiver Donald Driver said. "We've made a lot of mistakes, but we're hoping we don't make them this week."
Philadelphia is known for its raucous crowd that is sure to be even more jazzed up for Monday Night Football. Earlier this week McCarthy called Philadelphia "one of the wildest places to play."
But the crowd is one of the least of the Packers' worries. They just plan to focus on themselves and their play and let the rest, no matter the history, take care of itself.
"If we can go out there and execute, we'll be good," Driver said.
