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Post by NFL Historian on Oct 23, 2023 20:56:56 GMT 10
The 1967 NFL Championship Game was the 35th NFL championship, played on December 31 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
It determined the NFL's champion, which met the AFL's champion in Super Bowl II, then formally referred to as the second AFL–NFL World Championship Game. The Dallas Cowboys (9–5), champions of the Eastern Conference, traveled north to meet the Western champion Green Bay Packers (9–4–1), the two-time defending league champions. It was a rematch of the previous year's title game, and pitted two future Hall of Fame head coaches against each other, Tom Landry for the Cowboys and Vince Lombardi for the Packers. The two head coaches had a long history together, as both had coached together on the staff of the late 1950s New York Giants, with Lombardi serving as offensive coordinator and Landry as defensive coordinator.
Because of the adverse conditions in which the game was played, the rivalry between the two teams, and the game's dramatic climax, it has been immortalized as the Ice Bowl and is considered one of the greatest games in NFL history. NFL 100 Greatest Games ranked this game as the 3rd greatest game of all time. It is still the coldest game ever played in NFL history.
Leading up to the 50th Anniversary of the game, NFL Films released an episode of its Timeline series about the events that day and the lasting impact. The episode is narrated and co-produced by filmmaker Michael Meredith, whose father Don Meredith was the quarterback for the Cowboys that day.
Game summary Kickoff was shortly after 1 pm CST. The Packers took a 14–0 lead after two touchdown passes from Bart Starr to Boyd Dowler on their first three possessions of the game. However, despite gaining only two first downs in the first half, Dallas scored twice off Green Bay fumbles late in the half to cut the Packers' lead to 14–10.
The Cowboys then started the second half with a long drive into Green Bay territory, but lost the ball on a fumble. However, they took the lead, 17–14, on a 50-yard halfback option pass by Dan Reeves on the first play of the fourth quarter. After missing a potential game-tying field goal, Green Bay scored the game-winning touchdown on its subsequent drive, re-gaining the lead, 21–17, with only 13 seconds remaining.
First half Aided by two Dallas penalties and a 17-yard reception from Donny Anderson, Green Bay opened up the scoring with an 83-yard, 16-play drive that took nearly 9 minutes off the clock. Bart Starr detected a blitz coming on the Dallas 8-yard line, audibled, and rifled a touchdown pass to Boyd Dowler, giving the team a 7–0 first quarter lead. Green Bay's defense quickly forced a punt, and their offense stormed back for another score, this time driving 65 yards. After a 13-yard run by Ben Wilson and a 6-yard run by Travis Williams, the Packers moved to a third-and one on the Dallas 43-yard line. Starr faked to Ben Wilson and threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Dowler who got behind Mel Renfro, making the score 14–0. Then on the second play of the Cowboys ensuing drive, defensive back Herb Adderley intercepted Don Meredith's pass and returned it 15 yards to the Dallas 32. But after a run for no gain and an incompletion, Cowboys lineman George Andrie sacked Starr for a 10-yard loss, pushing Green Bay out of field goal range.
Dallas' offense went the entire second quarter without gaining a first down, but Green Bay committed two costly turnovers that led to 10 Dallas points. First, Starr lost a fumble while being sacked by Cowboys lineman Willie Townes. Andrie recovered the ball and returned it 7 yards for a touchdown, cutting the lead in half. Then, with time almost out in the second quarter, Packers safety Willie Wood fumbled a Dallas punt after calling for a fair catch, and Cowboys rookie defensive back Phil Clark recovered the ball at the Green Bay 17-yard line. The Packers were able to keep Dallas out of the end zone, but kicker Danny Villanueva kicked a 21-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 14–10 by halftime.
Second half In the third quarter, the Cowboys finally managed to get a sustained drive going, moving the ball to the Green Bay 18-yard line. But Packers linebacker Lee Roy Caffey ended the drive by forcing a fumble from Meredith that was recovered by Adderley. Then after a Packers punt, Dallas once again got moving with a drive to the Green Bay 30-yard line. But once again they failed to score as Caffey sacked Meredith for a 9-yard loss on third down and Villanueva missed a 47-yard field goal attempt.
On the first play of the final quarter, the Cowboys took a 17–14 lead with running back Dan Reeves' 50-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Lance Rentzel on a halfback option play. The Cowboys ran the play to their left side, figuring that Green Bay would not expect the right-handed Reeves to throw from that side.
Later in the quarter, a 15-yard facemask penalty on Dallas rookie Dick Daniels during a Wood punt return gave Green Bay the ball on the Cowboys 47-yard line. The Packers then drove into scoring range and had a chance to tie the game, but kicker Don Chandler missed a 40-yard field goal attempt.
The Cowboys then gained two first downs before Green Bay stopped them at the Dallas 38. Meredith had slipped trying to retreat to pass on third down, but got up and fired a desperation heave that landed harmlessly between Green Bay defenders. With just over 5 minutes remaining, Villanueva punted the ball deep into Packer territory, and Wood returned it nine yards before being brought down at the Packers own 32-yard line.
The Drive In their last offensive drive, the Packers took possession at their own 32-yard line with 4:50 left in regulation time. With the wind chill around −70 °F (−57 °C) (or −50 °F (−46 °C) according to the revised formula) Starr led his team down the field, toward the south end zone. He began the drive with a double fake to his backs, but after no one was open downfield he flipped a safety valve pass to running back Donny Anderson who gained six yards. Fullback Chuck Mercein then picked up seven on a sweep around right end, and went out of bounds to stop the clock. Starr dropped straight back on first down and fired a 13-yard pass to Dowler over the middle. Cornell Green's tackle slammed the receiver's helmet off the icy turf, and Max McGee replaced Dowler. Dallas end Willie Townes broke through and smothered Anderson for a 9-yard loss on what was supposed to be a halfback option play.
Anderson had told Starr on the sideline that he could pick up 8 to 10 yards on dump passes since the Dallas linebackers were laying back. Starr used this tip to complete two passes to Anderson for 12 and 9 yards, gaining a key first down on the Dallas 30. Anderson juked linebacker Chuck Howley on both plays and ran by him as Howley sprawled on the icy turf. Mercein told Starr he was also open on the left, and Starr flipped him a pass that the fullback carried down to the Cowboys 11-yard line and out of bounds with 1:11 to play. Then Starr called a play he had kept ready for the right situation, 54-Give, a play that Lombardi frankly called the "sucker" play in the Packer playbook. Left guard Gale Gillingham pulled to his right like it was a typical sweep, and Cowboy right tackle Bob Lilly with his great reflexes instantly followed him. The Packers' left tackle Bob Skoronski blocked Cowboy end George Andrie and Mercein shot through the hole to the 3-yard line.
Anderson carried on the next play to the 1-yard line for a first down (some Cowboys thought Anderson scored on this play, but the officials missed it). Twice Anderson attempted to run the ball into the end zone, but both times he slipped on the icy field before taking the handoff and was tackled inside the 1-yard line. The second time he almost fell down before Starr gave him the ball. By then the thermometer read −20 °F (−29 °C), and the Packers called their last timeout. With the low winter sun angle and the shade of the stands, the south end of the field had received a minimal amount of sunlight. The game had started off shortly after 1 p.m. CST, and it was nearing sunset.
The Block On third-and-goal at the Dallas two-foot line with 16 seconds remaining, Starr went to the sidelines to confer with Lombardi. Starr had asked right guard Jerry Kramer whether he could get enough traction on the icy turf for a wedge play, and Kramer responded with an unequivocal yes. Summerall told the rest of CBS crew to get ready for a roll-out pass, because without any timeouts remaining a failed run play would end the game. Landry would say he expected a rollout pass attempt because an incompletion would stop the clock and allow the Packers one more play on fourth down, either for a touchdown (to win) or a field goal attempt (to tie and send the game into overtime). But Green Bay's pass protection on the slick field had been seriously tested during the game; the Cowboys had sacked Starr eight times.
On the sidelines, according to Starr, he told Lombardi, "Coach, the linemen can get their footing for the wedge, but the backs are slipping. I'm right there, I can just shuffle my feet and lunge in." Lombardi told Starr, "Run it, and let's get the hell out of here!" Lombardi was asked by Pat Peppler what play Starr would call, to which Lombardi replied, "Damned if I know." Starr returned to the huddle and called a Brown right 31 Wedge. The play was a short yardage play using a double-team block to force an opening for the fullback. Starr made the play call in the huddle, but did not tell his teammates he was keeping the ball. Kramer and center Ken Bowman executed a post-drive block (double-team) on left defensive tackle Jethro Pugh and Starr lunged across the goal line for a 20–17 lead.
Radio calls of the Block "Here are the Packers, third down, inches to go, to paydirt. 17–14, Cowboys out in front, Packers trying for the go-ahead score. Starr begins the count. Takes the snap...He's got the quarterback sneak and he's in for the touchdown and the Packers are out in front! 20–17! And 13 seconds showing on the clock and the Green Bay Packers are going to be...World Champions, NFL Champions, for the third straight year!" – Ted Moore, Packers radio announcer
"About a half-yard to go, here come the Packers up again. Mercein sets his feet. Bart Starr's all set...16 seconds left... Starr's in, touchdown!" (About 12 seconds of crowd noise) "And the crowd has gone wild and ran onto the field with 16, 13 seconds left, the Packers are ahead." – Bill Mercer, Cowboys radio announcer
Conclusion Don Chandler kicked the extra point to make the score 21–17. Dallas downed the kickoff in their end zone, and after two Dallas incompletions the game was over. At the conclusion of the game, jubilant Packers fans streamed onto the field knocking over Packers and Cowboys players alike. Since the playoff era began in 1933, the 1967 Packers are the only team to win a third consecutive NFL title. (The 1931 Packers won a third consecutive, but without a postseason.)
Aftermath Emotionally, both the Packers and Cowboys players were spent. In the Packers' locker room, the players openly wept. Kramer told interviewers, "Many things have been said about Coach (Lombardi). And he is not always understood by those who quote him. The players understand. This is one beautiful man." Packers linebacker Ray Nitschke developed frostbite in his feet, causing his toenails to fall off and his toes to turn purple. Bart Starr had frostbite on his fingers and several Packer players were suffering from flu-like symptoms. Cowboys George Andrie, Willie Townes, and Dick Daniels also suffered frostbite from the game.
The furthest thing from Starr's mind was the thought of playing in the AFL–NFL World Championship Game. To him, this was the Packers' championship game. Green Bay went on to finish the postseason by easily defeating the American Football League (AFL) champion Oakland Raiders, 33–14, in the second AFL–NFL World Championship Game.
Brookshier and other journalists went into the winning locker room for post-game interviews. At some point, journalists had become aware of the significance of the block Kramer and Bowman had placed on Pugh. Of the eleven cameras Ed and Steve Sabol set up to film the game, the pivot and motion capabilities of Camera Five had become frozen by the time Starr's sneak occurred. This particular camera, however, was fortuitously positioned to offer a perfect view of the block. CBS had been replaying the block repeatedly and had been giving the TV audience a detailed perspective of the workings of the offensive and defensive line.
Frank Gifford recounted in his 1993 autobiography The Whole Ten Yards that he requested and received permission from CBS producers to go into the losing locker room for on-air post-game interviews—a practice unheard of in that era. Gifford, as a New York Giants player and a broadcaster, already enjoyed a friendship with Meredith, and he approached the quarterback for his thoughts on the game. The exhausted Meredith, in an emotion-choked voice, expressed pride in his teammates' play, and said, in a figurative sense, that he felt the Cowboys did not really lose the game because the effort expended was its own reward. Gifford wrote that the interview attracted considerable attention, and that Meredith's forthcoming and introspective responses played a part in his selection for ABC's Monday Night Football telecasts three years later. Defensive tackle Bob Lilly took a different view, telling reporters that the Cowboys were a great team except that they could not win the "big one". Wide receiver Lance Rentzel later remarked that on the team plane home from Green Bay to Dallas' Love Field, "not one word was spoken the entire flight."
Wikipedia
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Post by NFL Historian on Oct 23, 2023 20:59:06 GMT 10
PLAYERS FOR the Green Bay Packers, right, and the Dallas Cowboys line up for action during the very cold “Ice Bowl” game in 1967. Temperatures were about minus 21 degrees at the end of the game.
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Post by NFL Historian on Oct 23, 2023 21:00:31 GMT 10
AN OFFICIAL signals a touchdown in the finals seconds of the NFL Championship game in 1967. Green Bay quarterback Bart Starr sneaked the ball in for what was the winning score giving the Packers a 21-17 victory.
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Post by NFL Historian on Oct 23, 2023 21:05:34 GMT 10
Bart Starr sneaks into the end zone.
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