Adding to Lambeau’s frigid history? Dec. 22, 1990: Lions 24, Packers 17
Nobody blinks when asked, “What’s the coldest game in Lambeau Field history?”
On Dec. 31, 1967, the Ice Bowl became part of sports iconography, both for the Green Bay Packers franchise that defeated Dallas that day for the NFL championship (en route to Super Bowl II) and for the NFL in general.
With a temperature of minus-13 and the wind chill dipping as low as 48 below zero, fans nonetheless packed the stands to watch the Packers prevail 21-17 thanks to a late sneak by quarterback Bart Starr for the game-winning touchdown, with Jerry Kramer throwing a famous block.
An arctic front swept across Wisconsin shortly before midnight before the game and temperatures dropped nearly 30 degrees during the 12-hour period ending at 9 a.m. on the day of the Ice Bowl. Referees couldn’t use their whistles because they stuck to their lips, so they were forced to shout. Several players were treated for frostbite, and a fan in the stands died of exposure to the cold, according to the National Weather Service.
The Packers’ game against the San Francisco 49ers at 7 p.m. Saturday in a divisional-round game had a chance to crack this list, with 24 degrees forecast for the high and about 11 degrees at game time, according to The Weather Channel. Where will it rank among the coldest Lambeau Field playoff games?
Temperatures on this list are documented as of kickoff, as recorded by Football Reference (with one exception — the 1976 game against the Bears is recorded with 2 degrees, but local reporting listed the game time temperature multiple times as 6 degrees).
Jan. 20, 2008: Giants 23, Packers 20
Temperature: minus-1
Fans experienced bitter cold at Lambeau Field and even colder temperatures in their hearts. Brett Favre played his final game in a Packers uniform, throwing a costly interception in overtime that turned into a game-winning field goal by Lawrence Tynes in the NFC championship game. The Packers, enjoying a renaissance season from Favre, would fall just short of a return to the Super Bowl.
Dec. 26, 1993: Packers 28, Raiders 0
Temperature: Zero
Like the two games before it on the list, this was a historically meaningful contest for the Packers, who clinched a playoff spot for the first time in 11 years and just the third time since that Ice Bowl season. Not only that, but the
Green Bay Packers quarterback Bart Starr calls signals in bitter cold as he led the Packers to a win over the Dallas Cowboys in the Ice Bowl.
game featured an unusual play where Reggie White picked up a fumble and lateraled it to LeRoy Butler, who ran the rest of the way for a touchdown and let his momentum carry him into the stands. The Lambeau Leap was born.
Temperature: 3
Barry Sanders ran for 133 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown, leaving the Packers still shaking their head over the decision in the 1989 draft to choose Tony Mandarich over Sanders. Although, Sanders said afterward, “I don’t think I would have played in Green Bay if they would have drafted me. The weather is something I couldn’t handle every day. These are the worst conditions I’ve ever played in. I’ve never been this cold before.”
The wind chill during the game dropped as low as minus-35.
Blair Kiel still had the Packers in position to win before the Lions scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns, abetted by Packers turnovers on their last three possessions. The loss eliminated the Packers from playoff consideration. Ray Crockett returned a fumble 22 yards for a game-tying touchdown, then intercepted Kiel in the end zone to seal the game.
Jan. 12, 1997: Packers 30, Panthers 13
Temperature: 3
The Packers found an opening big enough “to drive a truck to the Super Bowl through,” as former broadcaster Jim Irwin said. The NFC championship game triumph wasn’t always as lopsided as the final score made it appear, but the Packers were on what felt like a preordained quest to a championship. For the first time in three decades, the Packers
were headed back to the Super Bowl, cold or not. Edgar Bennett ran for 99 yards, and Dorsey Levens ran for another 88 while also catching five passes for 117 yards and a touchdown.
“I knew it would be cold. I knew they would blitz us and the crowd would be crazy,” quarterback Brett Favre said. “It was just a matter of settling down and playing.”
Dec. 7, 2008: Texans 24, Packers 21
Temperature: 3
The Packers lost to a team from Texas in the bitter cold? The first year of starter Aaron Rodgers was a rough one when the Packers went 6-10, and Houston won the game thanks to Kris Brown’s 40-yard field goal as time expired. Rodgers threw for 295 yards and two touchdowns and Ryan Grant ran for 104 yards and another score, but it wasn’t enough with the defense allowing 549 yards — the most permitted by a Packers team in a single game since 1993 — even if it managed to keep the score reasonable thanks to three turnovers.
Jan. 5, 2014: 49ers 23, Packers 20
Temperature: 5
The Packers had won a thriller over the Chicago Bears to even reach the playoffs, and they were underdogs despite hosting the wild-card round game. The 49ers, a team that had crushed the Packers in the preceding year’s playoffs, were three-point favorites to eliminate Green Bay again, and that’s exactly the margin by which it happened. The Packers put up a much better fight this time around and kept Colin Kaepernick at least modestly in check relative to the year before, but Phil Dawson’s field goal as time expired ended the season. The weather only got colder from there, closing schools across Wisconsin on
Monday.
Dec. 4, 1977: Packers 10, Lions 9
Temperature: 5
The heated field melted the considerable snowfall and turned this game into a cold, muddy disaster. David Whitehurst threw only nine passes for the Packers and completed four of them with two interceptions, no less. The Packers had only 11 first downs and 229 total yards of offense. But they won.
Detroit eschewed a chance at a game-tying field goal with 5 minutes left from 19 yards away, instead trying to score a touchdown from 2 yards, but Rich Kane was sacked by a trio of Packers rushers. The Packers ran out of the back of the end zone for an intentional safety, and the Lions finished the game pinned in their own end. Fans rushed the field and a hearty celebration ensued, given that the Packers had snapped a five-game losing streak and won for just the second time in 11 tries.
Dec. 11, 1988: Packers 18, Vikings 6
Temperature: 6
The Packers snapped a seven-game losing streak, getting touchdowns from Keith Woodside and Patrick Scott, though Randy Wright (11 of 20, two interceptions) didn’t have a great day and was replaced by Don Majkowski in the third quarter.
Nov. 28, 1976: Bears 16, Packers 10
Temperature: 6
It was an adventure for Packers quarterback Carlos Brown, who completed just 5 of 17 passes with one touchdown and two interceptions. Ken Payne caught the Packers’ lone score, but Green Bay failed to score on three golden opportunities in the second quarter. Chester Marcol missed two field goals in the game.
Dec. 8, 2013: Packers 22, Falcons 21
Temperature: 9
This was part of a remarkable lateseason surge in 2013 without injured Aaron Rodgers when the Packers won a thriller with Matt Flynn at the helm. Flynn threw for 258 yards and one touchdown, a score to Andrew Quarless early in the fourth quarter that gave the Packers the one-point lead.
The Packers then dodged bullet after bullet; Matt Bryant missed a 52-yard field goal, a fourth-down pass to Tony Gonzalez from the Packers’ 33 was knocked away by Jarrett Bush, and Bush intercepted Matt Ryan on Atlanta’s lastgasp drive. Viewers in Milwaukee didn’t get to see a fumble forced by Mike Neal and recovered by Johnny Jolly that set up the go-ahead touchdown because the TV broadcast cut in with a local weather update tracking area snowfall.