Back when the NFL played real football.
And people got their heads knocked off
(The Minnesota/Detroit Snow/Mud bowl of 1969 keeps coming up with new pictures. Such as Greg Landry looking for somebody on his team to throw to, Martin Mills/Getty Images: Photo)
And none of this showboating that the NFL players tend to do. Marshall Lynch would get his head knocked off by Dave (Clothes Line) Wilcox or Mike (Late Hit) Lucci had they played today. I have no use of the NFL today and the plastic grass fields, and multi kinds of jerseys the players wear today. Back in the past we had real football, real mud, real weather and underpayed, overworked players suffering through Lombardi's rigid practices and smashmouth football.
It's time to reconnect with the past and some five star mud games for the ages. Mostly Green Bay and Detroit this time out.
(Marvin Newman probably gets credit for this shot of Bart Starr driving the pack down the field)
The Green Bay/Detroit Mud Bowl of Thanksgiving 1961
Green Bay 17 Detroit 9 11/23/61 Briggs/Tiger Stadium, Detroit
The passing of Don Shula last week ended to connection to Lombardi as Shula has now join Vince in the great beyond. In 1961 They would meet, Shula was Detroit's defense coach and in charge of the likes of Night Train Lane, Wayne Walker and this year's hall of fame inductee Alex Karras. In the early 60s' Detroit was no pushover. In fact they upset Green Bay at Green Bay in game 1 of the 1961 season 17-13, which set Lombardi in a pissed off mood for the rest of the season. When they got back together to play on Thanksgiving in Detroit, a steady rain turned Briggs/Tiger Stadium into the typical mud swamp that would be typical that time of year. Basically Shula's Lion Defense kept Green Bay in check most of the game, but Detroit didn't help themselves with five turnovers and only three Jim Martin FGs. Eventually, the late great Bart Starr would carve up the Lions defense with short and pin point passing and lots of Jim Taylor and Paul Horning run, to which Taylor scored his second TD of the game and a Horning 9 yard FG silenced the Lions. An interesting note: Green Bay wore their green home jersey's instead of the usual white. With this win, Green Bay would go on to win the division. Detroit would have to settle for the Playoff Bowl to which they did beat Philadelphia 38-10. Green Bay blew out New York 37-0 for the NFL Championship.
The Run To Daylight Mud Bowl 1962 (Or Plum's mistake)
Green Bay 9 Detroit 7 (City Stadium-Green Bay) 10/7/1962
The Revenge Bowl
Detroit 26 Green Bay 14 (November 22, 1962) Tiger Stadium-Detroit
In the Marion High School Library section under football, there was a first edition copy of Run To Daylight, the Vince Lombardi book to which there was about twenty pages of the action of this ball game in Green Bay. Like the Thanksgiving game of 1961, it was a defensive battle, like the weather, a steady rainfall turned City Stadium field into a mud bath. Also like the Thanksgiving game it was Herb Adderley's interception that lead to the game winning FG by Paul Horning, whose' three FG was all the Packer scoring. His third FG with 33 seconds left won it for Green Bay. Yet another game that Bart Starr, took the Pack down the field. It was a heartbreaking defeat for the Lions but, they would get their revenge on national TV on Thanksgiving, sacking Bart Starr 10 times in a 26-14 blowout, putting an end to the perfect season of the Packers. Not exactly a mud bowl by any means but this game was Bart Starr's worst as a QB, a fumble from him and Sam Williams picked it up for a TD and Roger Brown sacked Starr in the end zone for a safety. Perhaps the lack of mud and rain might have tripped up the Packers, time and time again, Roger Brown, Sam Williams and Alex Karras kept having regular get together running into Starr and the usual vaulted Packers front line simply couldn't stop them. Detroit managed to stop themselves with five turnovers to which the Packers made the game more respectable Milt Plum threw two TD passes to Gail Cogdill and hit a 47 yard FG (He missed two other FGs tho). The 1962 Lions might have been the second best NFL team behind Green Bay and while they won the next two games, Green Bay stormed through the rest of the season and a 3-0 loss to Chicago, threw the Lions back into the Playoff Bowl in Miami once again and they defeated Pittsburgh 17-10. Green Bay defeated the Giants 16-7 to win the NFL Championship for the second straight year but changes would be forthcoming for both teams. Paul Horning and Alex Karras got busted for gambling and had to sit out the 1963 year. Don Shula would become coach of the Baltimore Colts. The Playoff Bowl win would be Detroit's last win in either championship or playoff bowls.
Side note: much was made of Milt Plum's interception to Herb Adderley in the final 2 minutes but Wayne Walker missed two FGs, one to which Adderley blocked. Had Walker made one or both of the FGs Detroit would have won the game, tho Plum's INT with 1:53 left did give the Packers a gift win. In the Lambeau field mud, Detroit didn't allow a TD. A lack of a decent kicker may have doomed Detroit from the get go. Walker missed two FG attempts in a 17-14 loss to the New York Giants, Plum missed three in the Bears loss. (in essence, Plum should have never thrown that ball, but Walker's field goal miss didn't help things either).
(from Packers History)
Mud Tie Bowl
14-14 Tie (Green Bay) 11/1/71
A lousy game for both teams. Howling winds and a steady rain turned Lambeau stadium into Lambeau soup. Scott Hunter only threw five passes all day and completed one. John Brockington gained 111 yards and Dave Hampton scored a TD. However, a Greg Landry to Charlie Sanders TD from 49 yards out before halftime ended all scoring chances and the teams traded punts for the rest of the game, with the exception of missed FGs. The glory days of the Packers were by now history and Dan Devine didn't help things.
Credit: Journal Sentinel files
Green Bay 10 Detroit 9 (Green Bay) 12-4-77
Another game that pretty much was over after the first half. Green Bay dominated most of the way and then rode out the game. Detroit made a game of it in the forth quarter with a Greg Landy to Leonard Thompson. But Green Bay opted to have their punter take a safety. There is actually a You Tube of part of this game floating around if you love mud games. Packers fans were so joyful about winning this game, they tore the goal posts down. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDcus7GJU2U
Green Bay 27 Tampa Bay 14 12-2-84
The Belly Flop Mud Bowl
The mud games between Green Bay and Detroit became less and less, since the Lions moved from Tiger Stadium to the Pontiac Silverdome in 1975 and with the exception of the 1977 fun in the mud 10-9 win and a 1983 OT win by Detroit (Billy Sims ran wild for 189 yards that game), which contributed to the end of the Bart Starr era and the 84 season Forrest Gregg took over, he managed to get the Cincinnati Bengals into the Super Bowl. Like Starr, Forrest was no Lombardi and would leave a few seasons later for the comforts of SMU. The Packers simply kept spinning their wheels and couldn't find the end zone if they tried, but on the waning 84 season they spotted a 14 point Tampa Bay lead before scoring the next 27 points, on the strength of Lynn Dickey. Afterwards, The Packers celebrated by doing mudsurfing across Lambeau Field.
Big Upset Mud Bowl
Pittsburgh 24 Green Bay 17 (Green Bay 12/17/67)
Finally, the last of the Green Bay Mud Bowl Special was this forgotten game that Pittsburgh came to Green Bay and shocked the Packers. Packers turned the ball over five times, and the Steeler defense scored 2 touchdown on Packer mistakes. Former Packers RB Earl Gros scored on a 22 yard run. Bart Starr played sparingly (Lombardi rested him for the playoffs to which the Packers would get back to winning and of course the Super Bowl win) Zeke Bartkowski stumbled and future packer QB Don Horn would take over. Basically The Packers were looking ahead judging by their lackluster performance.
If you have noticed the absence of the two most muddiest games in NFL history of the Packers (13-0 over San Francisco on Dec. 10, 1960 in Kezar Stadium, the Mud Bowl Of The West) and the Jan 2, 1966 23-12 whopping of Cleveland in Green Bay, you can find them in earlier editions of our Mud Bowl feature. We can't forget the big 1996 35-14 whopping of the 49ers in the playoffs. But in the golden age of football in the 60s and 70s, the majority of Packer mud games were with the Lions. Most games were defense battles but if you enjoy a nice mud game, these are the best ones of that bygone era.
Thanks to Packers History for the quick references while compiling this blog. www.packershistory.net
(from Packers History)
Mud Tie Bowl
14-14 Tie (Green Bay) 11/1/71
A lousy game for both teams. Howling winds and a steady rain turned Lambeau stadium into Lambeau soup. Scott Hunter only threw five passes all day and completed one. John Brockington gained 111 yards and Dave Hampton scored a TD. However, a Greg Landry to Charlie Sanders TD from 49 yards out before halftime ended all scoring chances and the teams traded punts for the rest of the game, with the exception of missed FGs. The glory days of the Packers were by now history and Dan Devine didn't help things.
Credit: Journal Sentinel files
Green Bay 10 Detroit 9 (Green Bay) 12-4-77
Another game that pretty much was over after the first half. Green Bay dominated most of the way and then rode out the game. Detroit made a game of it in the forth quarter with a Greg Landy to Leonard Thompson. But Green Bay opted to have their punter take a safety. There is actually a You Tube of part of this game floating around if you love mud games. Packers fans were so joyful about winning this game, they tore the goal posts down. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDcus7GJU2U
Green Bay 27 Tampa Bay 14 12-2-84
The Belly Flop Mud Bowl
The mud games between Green Bay and Detroit became less and less, since the Lions moved from Tiger Stadium to the Pontiac Silverdome in 1975 and with the exception of the 1977 fun in the mud 10-9 win and a 1983 OT win by Detroit (Billy Sims ran wild for 189 yards that game), which contributed to the end of the Bart Starr era and the 84 season Forrest Gregg took over, he managed to get the Cincinnati Bengals into the Super Bowl. Like Starr, Forrest was no Lombardi and would leave a few seasons later for the comforts of SMU. The Packers simply kept spinning their wheels and couldn't find the end zone if they tried, but on the waning 84 season they spotted a 14 point Tampa Bay lead before scoring the next 27 points, on the strength of Lynn Dickey. Afterwards, The Packers celebrated by doing mudsurfing across Lambeau Field.
Big Upset Mud Bowl
Pittsburgh 24 Green Bay 17 (Green Bay 12/17/67)
Finally, the last of the Green Bay Mud Bowl Special was this forgotten game that Pittsburgh came to Green Bay and shocked the Packers. Packers turned the ball over five times, and the Steeler defense scored 2 touchdown on Packer mistakes. Former Packers RB Earl Gros scored on a 22 yard run. Bart Starr played sparingly (Lombardi rested him for the playoffs to which the Packers would get back to winning and of course the Super Bowl win) Zeke Bartkowski stumbled and future packer QB Don Horn would take over. Basically The Packers were looking ahead judging by their lackluster performance.
If you have noticed the absence of the two most muddiest games in NFL history of the Packers (13-0 over San Francisco on Dec. 10, 1960 in Kezar Stadium, the Mud Bowl Of The West) and the Jan 2, 1966 23-12 whopping of Cleveland in Green Bay, you can find them in earlier editions of our Mud Bowl feature. We can't forget the big 1996 35-14 whopping of the 49ers in the playoffs. But in the golden age of football in the 60s and 70s, the majority of Packer mud games were with the Lions. Most games were defense battles but if you enjoy a nice mud game, these are the best ones of that bygone era.
Thanks to Packers History for the quick references while compiling this blog. www.packershistory.net
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