As halftime sounded during the Green Bay Packers’ game hosting the Chicago Bears Sunday night, my wife and I reflected on the fact that there are generations of Packer fans that have no experience of the Packers being a perennial loser.
If you were born in the late 1980s, your memories of the Packers likely start in the early 1990s and ever since 1992, the Packers have either started the season with high hopes for a deep playoff run or have been among the top four teams in the power rankings of the National Football League.
As the Packers trailed 17-0 at halftime vs. the Bears and walked off the field to the locker room, I could hear jeers from the crowd. At that point it looked like Aaron Rodgers was already stricken with what may have been a season-ending injury. The Bears offense dominated the Packer defense – even making Clay Matthews whiff on a goal-line stand tackle that led to a Chicago touchdown.
The Packers didn’t look good in the first half, but Packer fans have become awfully greedy and unappreciative of the success the team has had for the last 25 years. There are only two Super Bowl victories to show for it, but the team’s regular-season record since 1992 is 248-151-1. In 25 years, the Packers have only had three losing seasons.
Some of those folks booing at halftime need to put a sock in it.
In the 22 years before 1992 — starting in 1970, when I was cognizant enough as a human being to know the Green Bay Packers were “my” football team – the squad had a combined record of 123-169-8. They made the playoffs just one year — the 1983 strike-shortened season when the Pack went 5-3-1.
And that wasn’t the highlight of the era.
In 1989, the Green Bay Packers went 10-6 and beat the Bears both times the teams played. The Packers didn’t earn a playoff berth that year, but they earned many last-second victories and it was the season the term “Cardiac Pack” came a greater part of the language shared by Green Bay fans.
Everybody who lives in the Stateline Area knows we’re in the midst of the Green Bay vs. Chicago border war. During the period between the 1970s and 1980s, the Bears owned the Packers.
The Packers and Bears have the oldest rivalry in the NFL and have played each other 198 times since 1921. Back in 1992, the Bears had 24 more wins in the rivalry than the Packers. Over the last 25 years, the Packers reversed that and now lead the all-time rivalry 97-94-6. This means that during the last quarter century, Green Bay has a 39-13 advantage over the Bears.
Packer fans with the experience to remember the 1970s and 1980s, watched the Bears win 26 games against just 16 Packer victories from 1970 to 1992. During one stretch the Bears had won 13 games out of 15. Since 2011, Green Bay has completely turned the tables on the Bears, winning 15 of 17 games.
When it came to Sunday night’s game vs. the Bears, Green Bay looked to be headed toward a stinging, season-opening loss to the Bears. While the Packers have been hyped as one of the top teams entering this season, they are suspect in many areas. They have a weak running game, hodge-podge offensive line, no superstar receiver, an unproven defensive secondary … What they do have is Aaron Rodgers, who is considered to be the second-best quarterback in the NFL behind Tom Brady – and Brady has been supported by much better teams than Rodgers has throughout his career.
During Green Bay’s improvement in the 1990s, the team developed a dominant defense led by Reggie White. The defense fielded by the Packers in Super Bowl XXXI was as good as the team’s defenses of the 1960s — and that’s saying a lot.
While a legendary quarterback like Aaron Rodgers can give a team a significant edge, its defense is the difference between eking into the playoffs or contending for a conference or league title. Green Bay’s defense has a long way to go this season to give the Packers the edge they need to be the dominant team that Packer fans crave.
The Packers have three young generations of fans who have come to think that having a losing team is an anomaly. If these fans had a sense of history or lived through those seasons in the 1970s and 1980s, there would be no jeers at halftime. Halftime means half a game has been played – you don’t “boo” your team at halftime. Leave that poor sportsmanship to other franchises with no sense of history or pride.
The Chicago Bears have a decent team this season with a promising defense. After being out briefly due to his leg injury, Rodgers came back in the game and led the Packers to a 24-23 win. Be thankful of these wins, fellow cheese heads.
There have been times when a Bears’ victory was more certain and regular than you’re old enough to remember.
Recognize the historic nature of Green Bay’s success over the last 25 years. Be true to your team.
— Matt Johnson is publisher of the Monroe Times. His column is published Wednesdays.
