This is an article about the most significant moments in NFL history. These are the plays that made people’s jaws drop to the floor in shock, disbelief, and sometimes laughter. Each of these plays had a significant effect on games or even entire seasons.
During an ice storm, the Ice Bowl was played at Green Bay Packers’ Lambeau Field on December 31st 1967 against the Dallas Cowboys. The low for that day was 13 degrees below zero, but with howling winds it felt more like -35 degrees below zero. During this time no one wore face masks because they were made out of cloth, which would freeze within minutes in that type of weather. Lambeau field was also not covered at all back then either which made conditions even worse for both teams. Some parts of the field were covered in sleet and ice while other places were just pure snow. In one play, Dallas Cowboys’ Chuck Howley was the only player on the Cowboys to be wearing plastic cleats, which gave him a stronger footing during his kick return. Green Bay Packers running back Dan Currie also had two pairs of socks for added warmth, but they proved to make him too slow. Found out more about NFL players here.
In 1967, the Ice Bowl presented a massive problem for both football teams because no players wore face masks or helmets at that time. The referees could not even blow their whistles because they would jam up with frozen condensation from their breath, hitting cold air. Just looking at a quarterback’s hand after he throws a pass was challenging because the ball would freeze to their hands. A referee could not even run out of bounds because his feet would get frostbite, so he had to crawl on all fours to get himself back into play. Both teams’ fans had to deal with sitting in a frozen stadium for three hours, waiting for the results of this game. It took 10 minutes just for everyone in the stands and on both sidelines, take a bathroom break during a timeout because it was too cold outside in the bleachers without gloves or shoes. The referees decided to move timeouts up from 20-minute halves to 15 minute quarters when they noticed players struggling to stay warm when they were taking breaks from playing.
In 1967, when Chuck Howley was a defensive back on the Dallas Cowboys, he set a record for the most interceptions in a Super Bowl with two. This earned him MVP honors during that same game. He also won another championship ring as part of the Cowboys’ Ring of Honor and received an NFC Defensive Player of the Year award, and made it to five Pro Bowls as a player.
In 1967, when Green Bay Packers wide receiver Max McGee scored his first touchdown, he let out a loud grunt after being hit by two defenders from behind while catching the ball from quarterback Bart Starr’s pass. After letting out this noise and making what was almost like a football move (which probably came from playing too many games of one-on-one football), he fell onto the ground and looked injured. Bart Starr was on the sideline at the time, so he had no idea what happened or who Max McGee was until Coach Lombardi demanded that his team run another play while Max was still down on the field. This is when Bart Starr found out that this game had a new player, which made him afraid of how the coach would react. Max got up off the ground with only a few scratches up after they ran one more play, but by then, everyone else in attendance knew who he was for sure.
The Green Bay Packers quarterback Bart Starr won five NFL Championships with his team, including two back-to-back championships during the 1966/1967 seasons, where they earned themselves one of the most called “Golden” titles. His team also won one Super Bowl back in 1967, which is the only NFL Championship they appeared in. In total, Bart Starr has two MVP awards for his contributions to the Green Bay Packers’ championships and three Pro Bowl appearances during his time with them as a quarterback. He was also inducted into their Hall of Fame and Ring of Honor posthumously after passing away from natural causes in 2015 at age 85.
The Dallas Cowboys went 10-3 in 1966/1967, where they beat out both the Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions for their division titles. They earned themselves an appearance in their first-ever Super Bowl game where they lost to Max McGee’s Green Bay Packers 34-27, with all four of their touchdowns being scored by 1965 Heisman Trophy winner John Huarte. Although they lost their first Super Bowl appearance, they went on to win five championships after that, which included dominating wins against the Miami Dolphins in 1972 24-3 and 1973 24-7; Washington Redskins 21-19 in 1971; Minnesota Vikings 17-14 in 1976; Denver Broncos 27-10 in 1977; and San Francisco 49ers 38-16 back in 1978.
St. Louis (formerly Los Angeles) Rams won one championship during these two years. They beat out the Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions for their division titles with a 9-4 record the following season. They then defeated Bart Starr’s Green Bay Packers for winning their first-ever Super Bowl game back home 34-19, which was a complete turnaround from their first Super Bowl appearance.
In 1967, after the Green Bay Packers quarterback Bart Starr was injured and could no longer play in a game for them, backup Zeke Bratkowski took over the spot as a replacement for two games which included their 34-27 win against Dallas Cowboys where Max McGee scored four of their touchdowns. After that time, he gave back the position to Bart Starr again, who played eight more seasons for his team afterward. In total, Bart Starr has five NFL Championships with his team during this span, including one Super Bowl ring following an impressive performance against Max McGee’s Dallas Cowboys 34-27 decline in decline in 1967 while winning MVP honors. His 1960 Heisman Trophy winner John Huarte helped out the Dallas Cowboys by throwing four touchdowns at them during their loss against the Green Bay Packers 34-27.
The Dallas Cowboys only got two new players on their team during this span, including 1965 Heisman Trophy winner John Huarte who threw four touchdown passes before leaving to join the Philadelphia Eagles. The other player was Zeke Bratkowski, who started as a backup quarterback but eventually took over Bart Starr’s position when he got injured and could not play for his team until he came back again afterward.
As far as MVP awards go, Max McGee won two of them, along with Bart Starr claiming one while playing for the Green Bay Packers in 1966/1967 and 1971, respectively.
