Packers Playoff Defeats: Welcome Back, See You Again Next Year
- Tim Muma
- Nov 8, 2015
- 4 min read
Since 1993, the Green Bay Packers have reached the NFL playoffs on 17 different occasions. That's truly an amazing run, as they've failed to make the postseason just 5 times in 22 years, and they've never missed more than two consecutive seasons in this stretch.
At the same time, considering the number of opportunities, and Hall of Fame quarterbacks running the franchise for more than two decades, it's actually rather disappointing to know Titletown has seen only three Super Bowls and two World Championships in this time.
They've essentially missed out on being a true dynasty over the past 15+ years.
There are nearly an infinite amount of reasons a team gets knocked out of the playoffs, ranging from injuries and pure luck to untimely turnovers, bad matchups and losing to superior clubs.
Regardless, it hurts quite a bit to know that 14 out of the 17 playoff appearances ended before reaching the Super Bowl, including 5 times watching them fall at Lambeau Field.
With that in mind, I wanted to take a look back at those 14 seasons to remember - or discover - what exactly happened that caused Packers fans across the country to drop tears in their beers.
It starts all the way back in the 1993 season. That began a three-year trend of watching the Packers' title hopes dashed in the same location.
Wild Card Round - Teague Turning Point & Favre to Sharpe:
Packers 28, Lions 24
Ron Wolf's plan finally paid off as Mike Holmgren and Brett Favre led the Packers to the playoffs for the first time since 1982. Even worse, it was only the 3rd time they reached the postseason since winning Super Bowl II after the '67 campaign - a terrifyingly long time for such a proud franchise.
The Detroit Lions won the NFC Central division the week before by taking out the Packers 30-20 in the Silverdome, setting up a rematch in Detroit in the Wild Card round.
Detroit took a 17-7 lead in the 3rd on a Favre pick-six, and things looked bleak as the home crowd and team smelled blood. But Favre hit Sterling Sharpe on a 28-yard bullet - their 2nd TD connection of the game - to pull within a field goal.
That's when the turning point happened.
Erik Kramer drove the Lions to the Packers' 5-yard line as the defense struggled all game. With Detroit poised to go back up by 10, Kramer fired to the end zone where rookie George Teague snatched the ball a yard deep and took it 101 yards the other way for a record-setting touchdown!
The Packers suddenly had a 21-17 lead with 1:40 left in the 3rd quarter, but it was far from over. Detroit marched right back down the field on the worn-down defense, capping an 89-yard drive with a Derrick Moore 5-yard TD run.
Green Bay was behind again, in a now raucous Silverdome.
The Packers defense did get a big stop late in the game, however, giving Favre the ball at his own 29 yard line with 2:29 in the game, trailing 24-21.
If you don't know what happened on the fifth play of the drive - or you just want to relive it once again - take a look below at the 1:00:45 mark (or watch the whole 2nd half if you'd like).
As an 11-year-old at the time, that was the most incredible throw I had ever seen especially considering the circumstances and meaning for many longtime suffering Packer backers. We've been spoiled now, but try to understand what that felt like after so few seasons to celebrate.
It was absolutely breathtaking, thrilling, exhausting and surreal...Green Bay was officially back on the NFL map.
Divisional Round - Defending Champs Too Much:
Cowboys 27, Packers 17
Despite the captivating Packers' win a week earlier, reality quickly set in when Green Bay travelled to Dallas to take on the reigning Super Bowl champion Cowboys and MVP Emmitt Smith.
Dallas finished the 1993 season tied for the NFL's best record, sporting the 2nd-best offense and defense in terms of points. Consequently, facing the upstart Packers, the Cowboys were installed as 13.5-point favorites.
The Packers actually struck first with a Chris Jacke field goal, but things quickly went downhill from there.
Green Bay's offense was stymied, particularly the run game where Dallas allowed just 31 yards for the game.
Favre was under pressure all day long and was drilled on numerous occasions, one of which resulted in a fumble that halted a Packers' scoring opportunity. However, it was a special teams turnover that put the Pack in a hole they couldn't dig out of.
With 23 seconds left in the first half, Dallas kicked a field goal to take a 10-3 lead.
On the ensuing kickoff, Corey Harris coughed up the ball to give the Cowboys possession deep in Packers' territory. Troy Aikman would hit tight end Jay Novachek for a 6-yard TD strike, putting Dallas up 17-3 at the half - a backbreaker for the underdog Packers.
Aikman would throw for 302 yards and 3 TDs as the offensive line proved why they were the best in the league, effectively shutting down Reggie White and company when it mattered most.
Down 27-10 in the 4th, Favre would throw a pair of picks trying to force passes in an effort to bring Green Bay back, but the outcome was never really in doubt.
The Cowboys would go on to win their 2nd consecutive Super Bowl title en route to proving this group was a 90's-style dynasty.
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