Green Bay Packers: The Men and Moments that Made the Green Bay Packers by Drew Olson

Author:Drew Olson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Triumph Books
Published: 2019-07-31T00:25:59+00:00

26. The Instant Replay Game

After two decades of mediocrity, the Packers had begun ­showing signs of life. Quarterback Don Majkowski, a fan ­favorite with his long blond hair, swashbuckling style, and catchy nickname of “Majik Man,” had shown promise. His favorite ­target, Sterling Sharpe, was a rising star. The defense, anchored by linebackers Tim Harris and Brian Noble, played with purpose—if not always effectiveness.

And yet the Packers entered the November 5, 1989, game against the Chicago Bears with a 4–4 record. Chicago, which was 5–3, had humiliated the Packers throughout the “Super Bowl Shuffle” era and had won eight in a row against Green Bay. The sellout crowd of 56,556 at Lambeau Field was thrilled to see the Packers take a 7–3 lead into halftime, but Chicago pulled ahead on Kevin Butler’s field goal and Brad Muster’s two-yard touchdown run.

The fourth quarter had ominous overtones for the home team. Majkowski maneuvered the Packers into the red zone twice and turned the ball over both times. The first came on first and 10 at the Chicago 20, when linebacker John Roper sacked the quarterback and forced a fumble that Ron Rivera recovered. On the next Green Bay series, Majkowski hit Brent Fullwood with a 67-yard pass, moving the ball to the Chicago 23. Two plays later Rivera stepped in front of a pass intended for Sharpe and picked it off at the 10. “That’s where it really got nerve-wracking,” Majkowski said. “I remember coming off after the interception, and Lindy [Infante] grabbed me by the facemask and said, ‘Keep your head up because you’re still going to be the hero of this game.’”

Green Bay’s defense, playing its best game of the season, got the ball back to Majkowski with four minutes and 44 seconds left. Disaster came knocking early as the Bears tipped Majkowski’s pass at the line of scrimmage, and the ball was just about to fall into Steve McMichael’s mitts when Ed West stepped in and knocked it away. With 1:26 left and the Packers on the Chicago 7, Roper hit Majkowski again, knocking the ball to the turf, where it lay uncovered for several agonizing moments before center Blair Bush fell on it. After a pair of incompletions, the game came down to one play: fourth and goal from the 14 with just 41 seconds to play.

The Bears had been blitzing heavily for much of the day. Knowing the ball had to get out quickly, Infante called a play designed to combat man-to-man coverage: Two Out, Short 470, Z Slant, X Choose. Majkowski was going to look for Sharpe or Jeff Query inside the five and hope whoever caught the ball could beat a defender into the end zone. At the snap the Bears rushed four defenders and dropped into a Cover-2 zone, forcing Majkowski to improvise with a scramble drill. As he rolled right with Trace Armstrong in pursuit, Majkowski gave a pump fake toward the right side of the end zone, where Aubrey Matthews and Perry Kemp were covered.

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