Green Bay Packers (5-4) 30, Detroit Lions (5-3-1) 7
Sunday November 8th 1964 (at Green Bay)
GAME RECAP (GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE)
NOV 9 (GREEN BAY) - The Packers performed the spectacular in smashing the Lions in City Stadium Sunday. Try these sparklers on for size: Jim Taylor made the second longest run from scrimmage in Packer history, and the longest in the league this year - 84 yards for a touchdown. Bart Starr, Ron Kramer and Max McGee combined on an 82-yard aerial touchdown. The offense had its biggest day of the season - 434 yards. The defense allowed the Lions in Packer territory only four times all afternoon and the Detroits were shut out until the last nine seconds of the game. Paul Hornung broke out of his kicking slump, with three field goals in four attempts. And, as a parting gesture, Tom Moore ran a kickoff back 55 yards on the final play of the game. Oh yes, the final score. It was 30 to 7 and certainly put a happy ending to a rather heartbreaking City Stadium season. In the first three game here, the Packers whipped the Bears and then lost one-point decisions to the Colts and Vikings. The victory gave Green Bay a sweep in the two-game Detroit series - the first since '59 and it was the Pack's second straight triumph. The Packers, with a 5-4 record, are now in a third-place Western Division tie with the Vikings. Green Bay next invades San Francisco while the Viking make a last ditch attempt to bring the Colts into focus - in Baltimore. The Packers took a 14-0 lead in the first quarter and Taylor scored both TDs in less than three minutes. he hit one yard for a 7-0 lead at 7:38 and reeled off his long run down the west sidelines at 10:07. Hornung, who finished with 12 points, kicked field goals of 40 and 19 yards in the second quarter to set the score at 20-0 at the half. Starr passed 55 yards to Kramer and then McGee picked up Kramer's attempted "lateral" off the ground and raced the final 27 yards for a touchdown and a 27-0 lead at the end of the third quarter. Hornung's third field goal, a 34-yarder, upped it to 30-0 but in the final seconds Milt Plum passed 23 yards to Gail Cogdill for Detroit's only score. The Packers continued with the revamped offensive line they introduced in Minnesota and the 232 yards rushing and the 202 passing are enough proof that it was a big success.
PERFECT TEST
This was a perfect test for the new line because the Lions are among the leading defensive teams, although the visitors received a bad break right at the start when their linebacking star, Joe Schmidt, went out with a dislocated shoulder. Starr finished with 14 completions in 20 attempts for 217 yards and his chief receivers were Kramer and Boyd Dowler - each with four catches. Taylor added up 145 yards in 19 attempts for his biggest day of the season, and he now has five TDs in two games. He got three in Minnesota last Sunday. The Bays averaged 7.8 yards per offensive play - the Lions 3.9. Each team had 56 offense plays. The Packer defense drove Plum slightly crazy and his biggest thrown was Willie Davis, who made tackle after tackle. Plum was thrown eight times for losses totaling 55 yards. The Lions got into Packer territory just before the half, reaching the Packer 15 when Plum fumbled when hit by Davis and Ron Kostelnik. They got to the Packer 43 early in the third quarter and then got all the way to the Packer 6 in the fourth quarter. This time the Bays took it away on downs. The fourth trip for Detroit produced the TD. Detroit settled for 50 yards rushing but picked up 214 in the air.
One of the Lions' drives was stopped by an interception by Doug Hart, who had replaced the injured Jess Whittenton. Kostelnik and Lee Roy Caffey recovered Lion fumbles. The Packers received the opening kickoff and went right in, moving 73 yards in 13 plays for a 7-0 lead. Taylor ran for 13, Starr completed three passes - one to Dowler for 25, and Starr, faking a pass, ran 14 yards himself to the Lion 8 to set up the TD. Taylor then ran 7 and finally 1 for the score. After Yale Lary punted, Taylor ran around his own right end and sprung away like a shot on blocks by Forrest Gregg and Dowler. He zoomed up the sidelines, ran right over Bruce Maher at midfield, and then hit pay dirt, with Bob Skoronski and McGee getting blocks near the goal line. Taylor pushed Walker right into the end zone with him. Again the defense forced Lary to punt and the Bays moved 38 yards in 9 plays for Hornung's first field goal - from 40 yards, and a 17-0 lead. Longest moves were Starr's 14-yard pass to Dowler, an eight-yard run by Hornung and a seven-yarder by Moore. After an exchange of punts, the Lions made their first first down and quickly added a second, reaching the 50. Here's where the defense went to work. The Lions drew 15 for holding, but Plum, back in shotgun formation, was thrown twice for 16 yards by Davis and Henry Jordan. The Lions wound up with fourth and 51 when they decided it would be a good idea to punt. The Bays moved 33 yards in 8 plays to set up Hornung's 19-yard field goal, Taylor taking a 16-yard Starr pass for one of the key plays. The kick made it 20-0. The Lions got a drive going just before the half but on a second and 10 down on the Packer 20 Plum fumbled when hit by Davis and Kostelnik recovered. The second half got off to a slow start, what with two Lary punts and one by Norton, but the Packers broke the calm in spectacular fashion. On a second and eight play on the Packer 18, Starr pitched up the middle to Kramer, who broke away from a Lion on the 30 and continued to the Lion 27 where Bob Thompson tackled him. Kramer was looking around for someone to lateral to but McGee was a few steps back. He whirled and tossed to McGee but Thompson hit the ball and it hit the ground, producing a fumble. McGee scooped it up on the dead run and raced the last 27 yards for a touchdown and a 27-0 lead. Near the end of the quarter, after Hornung's 41-yard field goal shot was side, Doug Hart intercepted Plum's pass and the Packers covered 35 yards in 7 plays for Hornung's final field goal early in the fourth quarter. The major gainers were Starr passes to Dowler for 19 and to Moore for 10 to the 27, bringing on a field goal from the 34 and a 30-0 score. A 33-yard Plum to Barr pass put the Lions down on the Packer 33 and Pietrosante then ran 17 yards to the 14 to seriously threaten the Packer goal. The Bays stood the test as Pietrosante and Watkins made seven yards in three cracks and Plum's fourth down pass to Barr was incomplete. New Packer faces, Elijah Pitts, Bob Long, Steve Wright, Lloyd Voss, Tommy Crutcher, Gene Breen and Marv Fleming, worked into the lineup in the final six minutes. The Bays whipped up two first downs on running by Pitts, Taylor and Moore and then the Lions, thanks to an interference penalty and a roughing penalty, moved 71 yards in 11 plays for their touchdown. The Packers had Plum pinned back on the Bay 38, but a roughing penalty was ruled and the Lions got a second down situation on the 23. Plum then hit Cogdill in the end zone behind Herb Adderley for the touchdown with 9 seconds left. The game ended as Moore cruised to the end of a 55-yard kickoff run. He missed going all the way by a step.
DETROIT - 0 0 0 7 - 7
GREEN BAY - 14 6 7 3 - 30
DETROIT GREEN BAY
First Downs 14 13
Rushing-Yards-TD 15-50-0 34-232-2
Att-Comp-Yd-TD-Int 33-18-219-1-1 20-14-190-0-0
Sack Yards Lost 8-55 2-15
Net Passing Yards 164 175
Total Yards 214 407
Fumbles-lost 2-2 2-0
Turnovers 3 0
Yards penalized 5-63 8-102
SCORING
1st - GB - Jim Taylor, 1-yard run (Paul Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 7-0
1st - GB - Taylor, 84-yard run (Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 14-0
2nd - GB - Hornung, 40-yard field goal GREEN BAY 17-0
2nd - GB - Hornung, 19-yard field goal GREEN BAY 20-0
3rd - GB - Max McGee, 27-yard fumble recovery after 55-yard pass from Bart Starr to Ron Kramer (Hornung kick) GREEN BAY 27-0
4th - GB - Hornung, 34-yard field goal GREEN BAY 30-0
4th - DET - Gail Cogdill, 23-yard pass from Milt Plum (Wayne Walker kick) GREEN BAY 30-7
RUSHING
GREEN BAY - Jim Taylor 19-145 2 TD, Bart Starr 3-40, Paul Hornung 5-17, Elijah Pitts 2-15, Tom Moore 5-15
DETROIT - Nick Pietrosante 6-31, Tom Watkins 5-16, Hugh McElhenny 2-8, Dan Lewis 1-(-2), Nick Ryder 1-(-3)
PASSING
GREEN BAY - Bart Starr 20-14-190
DETROIT - Milt Plum 33-18-219 1 TD 1 INT
RECEIVING
GREEN BAY - Ron Kramer 4-79, Boyd Dowler 4-70, Jim Taylor 2-34, Tom Moore 2-12, Elijah Pitts 2-5
DETROIT - Terry Barr 6-81, Gail Cogdill 4-59 1 TD, Jim Gibbons 4-43, Nick Pietrosante 2-23, Hugh McElhenny 1-9, Nick Ryder 1-4
Something you do not see very often - On November 8th, trailing 17-0, the Lions had a first and 10 on their own 49 but on the first play they were found guilty of holding on (Lion’s QB) Milt Plum’s six-yard pass to Gail Cogdill. The officials put the ball back on the Lions’ 25 and the Detroiters tried another first down. Willie Davis promptly threw Milt Plum for a seven-yard loss and it was second down on the 18. Plum went back to pass again and this time Hank Jordan and Davis threw him for a nine-yard loss to the nine. On third down, Plum tried another pass but it was incomplete, and the audience of 42,327 let out a big cheer for the Packer defense as the Lions were actually 51 yards away from a first down. Yale Larry punted from behind his own goal line and Willie Wood called for a fair catch on the Detroit 45. (Photo Credit - Packerville, USA)
'REAL SPIRITED - BOTH WAYS,' SAYS VINCE; PACK GOT ROLLING - WILSON
NOV 9 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - For what must have been an agreeable change, Vince Lombardi was confronted with only one major crisis Sunday afternoon - and it didn't arise until some 15 minutes after his Packers had enthusiastically demolished the Detroit Lions' title hopes in the murk and mist of City Stadium. In the midst of his postgame press conference at this point, he suddenly was interrupted by training room aide Bob Noel, who breathlessly informed, "There's no water in the Lions' shower room." After unhappily digesting this intelligence, General Manager Lombardi summoned Line Coach Bill Austin and dispatched him to ascertain "if it might have been a valve that was turned off by accident." When Austin, on the move, pointed out, "If it wasn't the valve, they're going to have to shower with us." Vince donned his coach's hat with admirable alacrity and called after him, "Make sure there's nothing on the boards (employed for play and defense diagrams) in there, will you, Bill?" (The water problem could not be solved, however, and the Lions were forced to bathe with their conquerors, a situation which Henry Jordan subsequently admitted "was a bit awkward.") Lombardi, meanwhile, turned once again to the press corps, whom he earlier had informed, with obvious satisfaction, "We played a real spirited ball game today - both ways. I've said many times - and I hate to use that old cliche - but it's still true, we have played good football all season except for one game (that 27-17 loss to the Rams in Milwaukee Oct. 24). So be it," he added with a shrug of the shoulders. "No use crying over it - that won't bring anything back." How did he evaluate the performance of his "new" offensive line? Staying in character, he replied, "I'll know better when I see the pictures, but Gregg (Forrest) is doing a great job at guard and Skoronski (Bob) at tackle." Asked about rookie center Ken Bowman, moved into the starting lineup a week earlier following injury to Fuzzy Thurston, Lombardi said, "He did well against the Vikings last week, but I would say he didn't do too well today. They ran over him a couple of times." He conceded, however, that Bowman had been a generally effective pass protector and noted, "He's quick - and the only thing he can do is get bigger. He's 230 or 235 now and he looks thin - he should get up to 245 without any trouble." On another point, the Packer major-domo readily acknowledged, "Jordan (Henry) makes a great difference in that defensive line." Discussing Ron Kramer's one-bounce touchdown "lateral" to Max McGee, he observed with a smile, "The idea was good - he probably should have let it go a little sooner." "That's not the first time he's tried that, you know. He lateraled to Max in Baltimore and we scored on that one, too, I think." He suddenly winced as a painful memory struck and corrected himself. "No, he was caught on the 1-yard line and we didn't score (and the Colts went on to win 24-21). At least, we scored on this one."..."HAPPY FOR HIM": Volunteering "Hornung making field goals helped, too," Lombardi said, "I was very happy for him, and the team...for everybody. Everybody stayed behind him in this thing. I think everybody was saying a silent prayer for him before he made that first one." He asked, "What did he have today, three for four?" Informed his assumption was correct, Vince also noted, "And he just missed that long one." Smiling at mention of Taylor's 84-yard excursion, which he described as "just a toss play," Lombardi observed, "He did a great job of staying in there (in bounds) on that one. And Skoronski (Bob) demonstrated the value of a lineman's staying on his feet by getting that last block for him." "By the way, what did Taylor finish with?" Told it had been 145 yards, he said tongue-in-cheekly, "That's a fair afternoon." Had the Pack attempted to capitalize on an early injury to Joe Schmidt, who left in the first quarter with a shoulder dislocation? "No, we didn't," Lombardi said. "That was too bad - he's a helluva football player. He's too good a football player to have things like this happen to him." Taking note of Bart Starr's highly successful flights from pass formation, he pointed out, "It's something you have to do when they put pressure on you. But he doesn't scramble," noted Lombardi, who is not an ardent admirer of this practice. "He's been hurt all year, too - both shoulders, poor fellow." In this connection, he observed, "That Lion front four still put a lot of pressure on us. They're big (he whistled in awe.) But with Grimm (Dan) and Gregg in there," Vince grinned, "we've got some big
fellows against 'em." Turning to the future, he mused, "We've got to go to the Coast now - then come back against Cleveland. And then to Dallas. And Dallas," he sighed, "is getting hot."...An uncomplaining George Wilson pinpointed "two big plays" in the wake of Detroit's disaster. "Pat Studstill was in the open on our opening offensive play in the first quarter," the Lion head coach said. "If Milt (Plum) had hit him, we would have been 7-7. That would have made quite a difference at that point. And on Taylor's touchdown run down the sidelines, he easily could have been run out of bounds at about the 45, but," he sadly added, "he wasn't." Evaluating the situation as a whole, Wilson observed matter-of-factly, "We just couldn't keep out the Packers' defensive line. They played a very big part in the game. The Packers got rolling and when a team gets rolling and is up, it's hard to stop 'em." "I thought we were up before the game and I knew the Packers had to be to stay alive," George further volunteered. "Their momentum took them all the way for a great ball game." Discussing his second quarter switch to the "shotgun," he said, "If Plum had hit on that first one out of the shotgun, it would have made a difference in how they played it. If we had scored something down there before the half, it would have been a big lift." Schmidt's injury "hurt us even more psychologically than it did physically," Wilson asserted in answer to a question. "He's a big man in our defense - he get 'em up. Losing him hurt quite a bit." Plum also was troubled by a second quarter injury, he said. "His elbow (on the passing arm) is swollen like this (he formed a grapefruit-sized arc with his left hand). He's been bothered for two weeks." Asked about Baltimore's streaking Colts, Wilson noted, "Baltimore is going along the same way Green Bay was for a couple of years - without injuries. Which is a big factor in what you do and what you don't do. They can say what they want, but that's the big that decides it. I just hope we are healthy when we meet Baltimore - and somebody else can knock 'em off along the way. They still have five games to play, remember." Possessed of an unfailing sense of humor, George summed up a personally dark afternoon by quipping, "They even shut off the water on us."...PACKER PATTER: Bob Fowler of Detroit's United Press International bureau and Bob Cornwell of the Grand Rapids (Mich.) Press didn't arrive at City Stadium until the end of the first quarter. Their North Central Airlines plane was delayed for one hour of takeoff from Grand Rapids and then unable to land at Straubel Field, subsequently detouring to Menominee. Fowler and Cornwell, along with 10 fellow passengers, came the rest of the way by cab, arriving seconds before Jim Taylor's titillating 84-yard ramble...Some wag (probably City Attorney Clarence Nier, in whose domain such matters fall) appended a line to the bottom of the stadium scoreboard which read, "Welcome Preble."...One of college football's immortals, Tom (98) Harmon, was a pressbox guest for the first time. Harmon, mentioned in the same breath with Red Grange, when he performed for the University of Michigan, stayed over for Sunday's match after originating CBS-TV's "NFL Countdown" show from the stadium Saturday afternoon. Another press box visitor was Greg Dufek, brother of Preble High line coach Jerry Dufek and football coach at Milwaukee Pulaski High School, currently holding second place in the Milwaukee City Conference race with a 5-2 record.
57 EX-PACKERS HONORED IN ANNUAL ALUMNI FESTIVITIES
NOV 9 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - Taking particular delight in the Packers' cavalier treatment of their guests from Detroit were 57 Packers of yesteryear, assembled for the annual "Alumni Day" festivities at City Stadium. Feted along with their wives by the Packer Corporation at a dinner party in the Elks Club Saturday night, they evoked the 42,000-odd witnesses when introduced from the field by WBAY-TV's Al Sampson between the halves.
'HIT GAP,' TAYLOR; HORNUNG PLEASED
NOV 9 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - "Some were blocking down and some blocking out - I just hit the gap." Explosive Jim Taylor was describing the longest run of his colorful career, an 84-yard bolt that had sent Detroit' stunned Lions reeling toward defeat in gloomy City Stadium Sunday afternoon, and he made it sound ever so easy. "There wasn't anything for 30 or 40 yards after that - until I ran into Moher (he should have said 'over') about midfield," the thoroughly delighted Bayou Bronco continued. Hadn't he felt Lion Wayne Walker's hot breath upon his neck? "I felt someone close behind me, but I didn't look to see who it was," Taylor grinned. "I didn't feel like I could cut in and get by LeBeau (Lion safety Dick, last man between him and the goal line), so I stayed right on course until I got to the 5-yard line, when I figured I'd try to carry him in with me. Skoronski (Bob) was alongside me, and I saw he was going to get a shot at LeBeau. Then I felt a bigger load on my back than I expected," Jarrin ' Jim laughed, explaining, "Walker was right behind me. I thought, 'I'm going to take us all three in,' and then Walker got hold of me from behind. All I wanted to do was get past that flag before I went out of bounds." Taylor, who amassed 145 yards in 19 carries, paid high tribute to the men up front, observing, "The line was coming off the ball real well. Karras and Brown were waiting some, and coming some, and they were dogging a lot. It got kind of sticky in there." Commenting on his part in the muscular Louisianan's "spectacular," Skoronski smiled and noted, "Those are one in a lifetime," then added with a sly grin, "I'll have to see the movies to be sure I was in front of him on that one. I think he was just jockeying around behind me." And that block on LeBeau? "They tell me that's what I did," was the gently jocular reply. "The big thing is we got seven." A happy but battered combatant, Paul Hornung confided, "I'm numb all the way down my back. It happened on a trap play - I turned a flip and landed on my head. Injured the same nerve that was pinched before." He was pleased to agree, however, that he had "hit the ball real good" in connecting on three of four field goal attempts. "It's just a little smoother now. I don't know that I'm doing any different than before - it's just going through," he said. Had he been aware of the explosive "hand" he had received after that first successful field goal? He shook his head. "I didn't realize the hand - you never notice that. You've just got to stay in there with it." Gingerly moving his head in circular fashion, Peerless Paul added grimly, "I've got to get this neck in shape. It's going to be stiffer than hell in the morning, if it's stiff already." That "new" running threat, Bart Starr, alleged fear had triggered his sorties. "I was scared to death," he chuckled. "You can run pretty fast when you're running for your life." "I'm sure this is the most running I've ever done," the canny field general agreed. "We're not out to run. Those things happen - a lane seems to open up when the rush overruns you. And they had a good rush - they have a fine defensive team. I was glad we could get some big plays against 'em - that made it a lot easier." All-pro tackle Forrest Gregg, a standout among the stars this misty afternoon in a second venture at guard, indicated no preference. "I'll settle for just be good at either position," he smiled. "I just want to win some football games." "I've had my taste of glory," the towering Texan continued. "Made all-pro at tackle, so if I don't again, I don't care. I just want to win games." Guard, he
joked, can be more embarrassing. "If you're out in the open, which you are a lot, and you don't do a good job, the pressure's on you," Gregg laughed. "You've got to do it." Turning to another subject, he declared, "That defense was really something today. I don't believe I've ever seen Willie Davis quicker off the ball than he was today. I'm sure glad I wasn't playing against him." A member of that devastating defensive platoon, monolithic Lee Roy Caffey shrugged off his third quarter recovery of a Lion fumble with, "It was laying on the ground and I picked it up." He added with a chuckle, "I was looking for six." Fellow defender Henry Jordan was equally modest. "I had a good seat - I was on the back of my pants most of the afternoon," he drawled. "They must have had something against me," the softspoken Virginian concluded, pointing to his red and bruised countenance. "Look at my mouth - it's all beat up inside, too."...In the Lions' waterless lair, a subdued Milt Plum offered, "It's tough to play catchup football. You can run a few plays, basically you have to throw." This, he pointed out, "makes it easier for the defense. All they have to do it get to the passer - they don't have much else to look for." Gesturing to his injured right arm, he explained, "I stretched a muscle in it. It happened on a fumble - I dove for the ball and somebody got under and knocked my arm up. It happened when we were driving in just before the half." King-sized Alex Karras was even more succinct than Plum had been. "They just ran the holes today. That's all football is anyway," he said. "They ran the right holes and they killed us." It remained for linebacker Wayne Walker, who also is a fair hand at placekicking, to face the moment of truth squarely. "They should have given me the game ball," he said wryly, "just for staying alive out there."
''HAVE TO GO OUT AND WIN,' VINCE
NOV 10 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The Packers are fresh from a two-game winning streak in which they've beaten the Vikings and Lions by a composite 72 points to 20. In manner of scoring, they've beaten the two rivals by 9 touchdowns and 3 field goals to 2 touchdowns and 2 field goals. The Packers are on the rise and, with five games left, they stand a good chance of making a rip-roaring stretch run. The idea being, of course, just in case anything happens to the Colts. What are the chances of the Pack overtaking or coming up even with Baltimore? The Colts would have to lose three of their last five and the Bays win all of them to produce a tie. This is an unfair question to pitch at Vince Lombardi. The Packer coach, being a realist, is concerned with the fortunes of only one group - namely, the Packers. "We'll just have to go out and win," Lombardi said this morning as he called the squad together in preparation for the 49ers in San Francisco Sunday. After 'Frisco, the Packers play the Browns, Cowboys, Bears and Rams - all formidable foes. The Colts, incidentally, meet the Vikings, Rams, 49ers, Lions and Redskins in that order. But that's the future. What about the Packers' 30-7 victory over the Lions in the '64 City Stadium finale Sunday? Generally, Lombardi felt that "we controlled the game on defense and made the big play on offense." The Bays held the Lions to 50 yards rushing and 164 yards passing, and 45 of those passing yards came near the end when the Lions averted a shutout in the last nine seconds. The Bays drove 73 yards in 13 plays for the first TD - a smash by Jim Taylor, and then Taylor ran 84 yards for the second TD and Bart Starr, Ron Kramer and Max Mcgee combined for an 82-yard touchdown. The offense also moved close enough for three Paul Hornung field goals, plus another one he just barely missed. Here are some other points noted by Lombardi in answer to questions: The Offensive Line - "The guard did a good job of handling those two big fellas." Dan Grimm and Forrest gregg worked against 300-pound Roger Brown and the fiery Alex Karras, respectively. Blocks on Taylor's run - "Gregg and Dowler got them at the start and then Skoronski near the goal line." Taylor's speed - "Taylor's not the fastest fullback but he kept going and that's what counts." This was the longest rush of the season in the NFL, and it beat by almost 30 yards Taylor's previous longest. It was the second longest run from scrimmage. Defensive standout - "Davis and Jordan and the three linebackers and Kostelnik, too." Willie Davis and Hank Jordan kept constant pressure on Milt Plum, and the Lion rushing was practically nil with the tackling of Ron Kostelnik, Ray Nitschke, Dan Currie and Lee Roy Caffey. Rookies played late in game - "They all looked like they wanted to hit somebody."...BRIEFS: Larry Cornish, associate representative for the Peace Corps, came all the way up from Cuzco, Peru for the game, but was among those forced to land in Menominee by the weather. Married to the former Sharon Pulchin of Green Bay, he arrived just in time to see Taylor's long run...The Packers were nicked for 102 yards in penalties Sunday, but 40 came in the last minute on interference and roughing infractions...Bart Starr came up with another of those third and short yardage passes on the first play of the fourth quarter. He hit Boyd Dowler for 19 yards and moments later Hornung kicked his fourth field goal...Norm Masters says, "Our goal now is 10-4," while Forrest Gregg observed, "If we can't take the championship, we want to finish as high as we can. But I'm not conceding anything." ...Cooper Rollow, who covers the Bears for the Chi-Tribune, claimed today that "the Packers are now the best team in pro football." We'll second that...Ben Agajanian, the 45-year-old booter who kicked a field goal and four conversions for San Diego's Chargers last Sunday, paid a return visit to the Packer camp today. He is here to work with Packer placekickers. Agajanian will rejoin the Chargers in Kansas City Sunday.
'LOOK OUT FOR GREEN BAY - ALL MAD AGAIN,' SVARE SAYS
NOV 10 (Los Angeles) - Whipping the Philadelphia Eagles was quite gratifying but the Los Angeles Rams have another score to settle with the Chicago Bears Sunday. Huge Merlin Olsen of the Rams' front four defensive line, obviously referring to the 38-17 tromping by the Bears early in the NFL season, put it this way Monday: "We want the Bears real bad. We would like to help Papa Bear (George Halas) continue with his losing season." Olsen, named for the Golden Helmet as the professional player of the week in Southern California, spoke at the weekly session of the Football Writers Assn. Halas is the owner-coach of the defending champion Bears. Ram Coach Harland Svare expressed satisfaction with the team's 20-10 victory Sunday over the Eagles but sounded a warning. "Look out for Green Bay. They're all mad again," he said. Since Los Angeles upset the Packers, they have beaten Minnesota and Detroit, the latter 30-7 Sunday.
DOWLER ALTITUDE, RANGE GIVES PACK ATTACK A BIG LIFT
NOV 11 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - What were you doing when Ron Kramer and Max McGee were playing basketball with a Bart Starr pass for an 82-yard touchdown Sunday? Says Boyd Dowler: "I was looking and laughing." Dowler wasn't alone. The 42,327 spectators (minus a few Lion fans) got a chuckle out of that one, too, though a lot of fingers were crossed. Dowler was carrying out his fake to the right when Kramer took the ball over the middle and set sail. And McGee was riding shotgun. The point today is Dowler, who with McGee and Kramer make up the Packers' famed pass-catching unit. Boyd is the tallest regular receiver in the league at a shade over 6-5 and he demonstrated Sunday that it's virtually impossible to defense him - he can go high for the ball. He caught four Starr passes and three of them were skyhookers where the defensive back found himself in a position of craning his neck. Three of his receptions set up scores - a 25-yarder was the big push in the first touchdown drive; a 14-yarder came just before Paul Hornung's first field goal; and a 19-yarder brought the ball in for Hornung's third field goal. Dowler isn't one to flaunt his height, as it were. "It's just there," he explained, "and if anything I suppose it provides a bigger target." Dowler says he has no preference on the kind of passes - high or low. "I'd just as soon go high, but this leaves you wide open for the defensive backs. It's easier to go high, but I've had some success with low passes, too." Starr feels that "Boyd's height is a definite advantage for me, but I've thrown a lot of bad passes that he just went up or down and got." The Packer quarterback reminded that "Boyd has great range on his low passes, too. He's had to
stretch out a long ways for some of mine." Dowler has made some great "stretchers" along the way, but the one we remember most was the crucial in Pittsburgh in 1960 near the Steeler goal line in the last minute. The Packers went in from there for their only touchdown in a 19-13 victory. On this play, Starr waved (with his left hand) Dowler toward the middle of the field and then let fire. Boyd must have leaped five yards parallel with the ground to make the stab. Dowler is leading the "unit" with 29 catches for 436 yards, while Kramer has 20 receptions for 388 yards. Jim Taylor is about to make the Unit a foursome since he has 21 receptions for 244 yards - mostly on screens and safety passes. Jarrin' Jim has something going on his own, however. The Bays' blasting fullback is on his way to becoming the first rusher in the league to gain 1,000 yards for five straight seasons. Taylor gained 1,101 yards in 1960; 1,307 in 1961; 1,474 in 1962; and 1,018 last year. With over 230 yards in his last two games, Taylor now has moved into second place in the league with 726 yards - just 274 short of the coveted 1,000 mark. Jim has 143 attempts. Jim Brown is leading with 934 on 179 attempts. Brown passed 1,000 for four straight years but his string ended in 1962 when he finished with 996 yards. Brown is averaging 5.2 yards this year and Taylor has 5.1. Taylor's sparkling 84-yard run Sunday was chalked up today in the official figures as the longest run in the league this season. The most unusual figures are in the pass receptions where the two Bears, Johnny Morris and Mike Ditka, are one-two with 68 and 55 receptions, a total of 123. The Bears, needless to say, have gone pass crazy. They are only three away from the record set in 1950 by three Rams - Tom Fears, who caught 84, and Glenn Davis and Elroy Hirsch, who snared 42 apiece. Fears now puts his pass catching know-how to work as the Packers' end coach. The Packers enjoyed San Francisco weather (the 49ers are next) today with a spirited workout.
PERSONALITY PARADE
NOV 11 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - It is a fact of NFL life that members of the "taxi squad," who toil in virtual anonymity for the chance that may never come, seldom graduate to stardom. There are exceptions to all rules, however, and one such may now be in the Packers' midst. That would be Doug Hart, the deceptively boyish cornerback from Arlington (Tex.) State, who acquired his initial pro status symbol - that first interception - in last Sunday's 30-7 demolition of the Detroit Lions. Summoned to combat midway through the third quarter in relief of veteran Jess Whittenton, still plagued with a pulled leg muscle, Hart triggered the Packers' final points, a 34-yard Paul Hornung field goal, with his steal. It was a long time in coming for the mercurial Texan, who admits to being "pretty happy about it." Doug, signed as a free agent after being released by the Cardinals, labored in obscurity with the Pack's cab squad throughout the 1963 season, then exhibited sufficient improvement in this year's training grind to win a berth on the official roster. In recent weeks, it should be added, he has become a semi-regular. "I came in in the third quarter of the first Minnesota game when Herb (Adderley) got hurt, then started the San Francisco game the following week," the well-knot Fort Worth native itemized. "Then again in the second Minnesota game, I went in for Jess on the other side. That also was in the third quarter, I believe." His efforts have won him the praise of Defensive Backfield Coach Norb Hecker, who says, "Doug has done a very adequate job. He has progressed very, very rapidly and we aren't afraid to use him at all. If we had been, we wouldn't have started him in the 49er game." Hart became a Packer quite by chance, Hecker further volunteered. "Phil (Defense Coach Bengtson) remembered him from scouring that southwest area - he knew he had excellent speed - so we decided to take a chance on him when the Cardinals put him on waivers last year." And his potential for eventual regular employment? "He's got a good shot at it," Norb replied with hesitation. "He has all the tools. He has good size - he's 6-1 and 185 pounds - excellent speed and he can hit people. He's not afraid to tackle. He's green, of course," Hecker added. "He didn't know too much about defense when he came to us. He was primarily an offensive ball player - they all are, really. But he has learned a lot from Jess and Herb. He'll be all right - he's a good, willing worker."...'JUST CONCENTRATION': Doug, who played both safety and cornerback in college, has found "the big difference here is just concentration and keeping up with what's going on out there. As long as you can do that, you can always stay out of trouble. Jess always says, 'Play it the way you can - and stay on the outside of the receiver.'" Playing both corners, as he has, is no particular handicap, the engaging "sophomore" also has discovered. "I've been practicing at both all season, so I feel pretty secure in either one, although I guess that isn't true with everybody. Herb (Adderley) told me he played the other side in practice and he felt left-handed over there." A recent bridegroom, the 23-year-old defender is married to his ex-college instructor, the former Marilyn Kay Lewis, a beauty who was second runner-up to 1964's "Miss Texas." Persistence also paid off here, he confided with a smile. "I met her when I went back to school last February. She was teaching phy ed - things like modern dance and swimming and fencing - and I kept trying to enroll in all her classes. We were married Oct. 19 - right after the second Baltimore game."
TAYLOR EYES BLOCKING GRADES
NOV 11 (Green Bay) - Green Bay Packer fullback Jim Taylor says he likes to get good grades on his blocking. Taylor had one of his best days of the season last Sunday in leading the Packers to a 30-7 NFL victory over the Detroit Lions. Taylor carried 19 times for 145 yards and two touchdowns and topped his performance with an 84-yard dash down the sidelines behind great blocking for his second TD. It was the second time in a row he had gone over 100 yards and left him 274 yards short of the 1,000-yard mark for the fifth straight season. He still has five games to go. "I'm in the best shape I've ever been in," said Taylor, who was hampered in 1963 by a liver infection. And such as the accomplishments of a player that opponents said would never last because of his reckless and repeated man-to-man showdowns with tacklers. But as Taylor said, "We're graded on blocking and I l like to show up good." He also explained he's not looking for people to knock down anymore. "I'm not looking for guys to run over," he said, but then had to allow that he had trampled one Detroit defender and carried another on his back into the end zone on his long jaunt Sunday...NOWHERE TO GO: His passenger Sunday was Wayne Walker, and Taylor explained, "In that situation I had nowhere to go. When I saw that goal line, I just went for it." Taylor also said he no longer swaps unpleasantries with tacklers who do get him. "I'm still on speaking terms with them," he said. "Before the game I like to talk to the ones I'm going to get familiar with. We just have a nice amiable talk. Nothing bad at
all." There was nothing bad for the Packers in the team statistics announced today in New York. The Packers were determined to prove Sunday they had the best defense of all. They held the Lions to 50 yards on the ground and 164 in the air to continue as the league's defensive leaders. In nine games, the Packers have surrendered 2,108 yards, giving up 944 on the ground and 1,164 in the air. The Packers are third on offense with 2,889 yards - 1,489 rushing and 1,665 passing.
PACKERS TO FACE SAN FRANCISCO, DRAFT, INJURIES
NOV 12 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - It is a pleasure to get back to Mother Earth today. After spending the past four days in the clouds. This area and its inhabitants got up on Cloud Nine via the Packers' 30-7 victory over the Detroit Lions. Folks are still taking about that one and it's hard to cram the win into the history book, what with all the "long" runs. However, the cold reality of Earth revealed today these items: (1) The Packers play the 49ers in San Francisco Sunday, (2) The NFL draft will be held Saturday, Nov. 28 - in Dallas for the Packers, (3) The Packers are leading the league in defense and rushing offense, and (4) The Packers have a few injured players. The Packer-49er game is self-explanatory except for a few added thoughts. These two clubs battled in Milwaukee last Oct. 11 and it turned out to be the Packers' second "closest" victory, a difference of 10 points, via a 24-14 score. In other wins, the Packers won over the Bears by 11 points, the Lions by 4, the Vikings by 29, and the Lions by 23. The Packers had to come from behind twice to trim San Francisco, going ahead for good with a short-smash touchdown by Jim Taylor to start the fourth quarter. It was iced on an eight-yard pass from Bart Starr to Boyd Dowler near the end. It was a sticky affair and the 49ers can be counted on to be just as sticky in Kezar Stadium. And speaking of those kind of affairs, the upcoming collegiate draft, announced by the league Wednesday afternoon, will furnish the Packers with a new set of problems. The drafting will be done via telephone and teletype from each league city, with the NFL office in New York being the command post. However, the Packers won't be home Nov. 28. They'll be traveling that day to Dallas where they meet the Cowboys Sunday, Nov. 29. "We'll just have to draft out of Dallas," Packer Coach Vince Lombardi said, with a trace of salt, adding: "We'll do it from our hotel." This is the league's first try at a full "electronic" draft. Last year's draft was held in Chicago but two or three clubs did their picking via teletype in their own offices and then relayed their choices to the Chicago meeting. The '64 draft will be most difficult for the clubs on the road that weekend due to the shipment of records - not to mention the work by the personnel and coaching staffs. The previous draft went until almost 6 a.m. the next day - almost 20 hours. An all night draft the night before a game could produce some sleepy coaches. The earlier draft (it usually is held on the first Monday in December) is designed to get a jump on the rival AFL. The AFL likely will set a date today. In the past, the AFL usually selected on the Saturday of the Army-Navy game, giving the young loop a jump on the NFL. The Packers are leading in eight defensive categories, including the "big one." That would be points allowed and their total matches the Colts' allowance - 152 points in nine games, an average of just under 17 per game. The Bays are also best in first downs allowed, 128; passing first downs, 64; opponents' yards gained, 2,108; opponents' yard passing, 1,164; average yards per rush, 3.5; opponents' passes attempted, 205; and opponents' touchdowns passing, 8. With Jim Taylor snorting and roaring as of old, the Packers jumped to the league leadership in rushing yards, 1,496 - an average of 166 per game. Baltimore is next with 1,489. The Bays also top the league in first downs rushing with 81. The Vikings and Steelers are next with 74 each. Bart Starr and John Unitas are tied with fewest interceptions, four each...LEAVE FRIDAY: On the injury front, Paul Hornung and Jess Whittenton are the worst off. Hornung has a stiff neck, but it hasn't hampered his kicking, while Whittenton is running carefully on an injured leg. The Packers take off for the west coast after practice Friday morning. They'll go by United Airlines charter to Chicago and leave from there in a commercial jet for San Francisco. Headquarters will be at the Jack Tar hotel. The team will drill in Kezar Stadium Saturday morning.
PACKER TITLE HOPE SLIM? LET'S LOOK AT THE RECORD
NOV 13 (Green Bay Press-Gazette) - Friday Lobster. And who ever heard of the little bitty perch out here? The Packers are three games behind the Colts and, with five games left, the chances of Green Bay finishing in a Western Division tie (or even winning) for the Western Division lead are extremely slim. The Colts would have to lose three and our boys would have to win their remaining five. Big order, but, as you know, anything can happen! Three teams are above the Packers who are tied with the Vikings with 5-4 records. Looking down at Green Bay and Minnesota are the Colts with 8-1 and the Lions and Rams, each with 5-3-1 records. The Packers play the 49ers Sunday and then follow with the Browns in Milwaukee, the Cowboys in Dallas, the Bears in Chicago and the Rams in Los Angeles. Can you see five wins there? The Packers' only concern, other than their own fortunes, is Baltimore. The Vikings could do it Sunday, but it's not easy winning in Baltimore. LA could give the Colts trouble in the Coliseum and the Lions could provide an upset despite their 34-0 loss at home. But we can't see the 49ers or Redskins trimming Baltimore. Second and third place, of course, are a bigger factor this year what with the added money from the championship game via television. Each member of the second place teams could get as high as $1,000, and third place players can figure on close to $750. And don't forget the Playoff Bowl for the second place teams of the two divisions. Each winning player will get $800 and each loser $500. These are increases over the $600 and $400 of the previous games. The stakes are high (the championship winner could get as much as $7,500 and the loser $5,000) this year and anything can happen. It is interesting to note that three of the Colts' final foes are still title contenders - Vikings, Rams and Lions. Like we said...anything can happen...The Packers had a rare parley in camp this week. That would be Ben Agajanian, the 45-year-old kicking wonder from Long Beach, Calif. Agajanian was called up to Green Bay three weeks ago when Paul Hornung's kicking went off key and he agreed to return the week before the 49er game. He then would fly to the west coast with the Bays. However, Agajanian signed on with the San Diego Chargers of the AFL in the interim and just last Sunday he kicked a field goal and four extra points. Instead of going to California today, Ben went on to Kansas City where the Chargers meet the Chiefs. Though the NFL and AFL are warring, you had a situation where an AFL "player" was "coaching" in the NFL. Horrors. Reminded thusly, the affable Agajanian just laughed and remarked: "I've been kicking in the pros for 20 years and I never carried a play book. I don't know anything about greens, or rights, or reds." The question always comes up about the strength of the AFL as compared to the NFL, and Aggie was asked about it: "There's no question that overall the NFL clubs are stronger than the teams in the other league. I'd say that most of the Packers could make any team in the AFL, but only a few players from each AFL team could make Green Bay. I think that a
couple of the AFL clubs could beat some of the weaker teams in the NFL - if there is such a thing as a weak team. This is a funny game and anybody can beat anybody if there is a letdown."...Not another injury? The Packers picked up one in practice Thursday when Gene Breen turned his ankle. This prompted Coach Vince Lombardi to comment, "We got more injuries in practice than we do in a game." Breen kept on running around and he said "there's nothing to it." It was feared that the ankle might be badly swollen the next day...The Packers are staying at the Jack Tar hotel here. They were scheduled to arrive via jet at 3:40 this afternoon. The Bays will drill in Kezar Stadium Saturday morning.
49ERS' MIRA SET TO START AGAINST PACK
NOV 13 (San Francisco) - George Mira, a surprised and admittedly anxious rookie quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, will start his first NFL game when the 49ers meet the Green Bay Packers here Sunday. Coach Jack Christiansen, making major changes in the 49er lineup, replaced veteran John Brodie with Mira and Bill Kilmer with rookie halfback Dave Kopay from the University of Washington. "I'll give it all I've got," said Mira, All-America from Miami of Florida. "I hope I do well." Mira said he was surprised. "Frankly," he added, "I'm anxious to see how things turn out." Mira has been understudy to Brodie so far this season. He has completed 13 of 36 passes for 255 yards. The rookie can also scamper. He's the 49ers third leading rusher with 139 yards in 10 carries. "I want to play Mira," Christiansen said, "and I think this is the time." He offered no other reasons for the shakeup. The 49ers have lost their last five games and are at the bottom of the Western Conference in the league standings. San Francisco leads the NFL in passing yardage largely on the basis of Brodie's 119 completions in 248 attempts. But the 49ers aren't going to win the title. Christiansen says he is starting Kopay because Kilmer "has looked a little tired. We'll use Bill Kilmer in spot situations for a while." Except for times when Brodie has been injured, this will be the first game he has failed to start since 1960 when he shared quarterback duties with Y.A. Tittle, now with the New York Giants.
49ERS 'ISOLATE' PACKERS?
NOV 14 (San Francisco-Green Bay Press-Gazette) - Occasionally, you'll see a great big linebacker chasing a swift and small-by-comparison running back on a pass pattern anywhere from 10 to 40 yards downfield. This kind of race seems a bit unfair but if the maneuver gains yards or scores points for your favorite team - namely, the Packers, it's great. But it's a headache for the defense. Hank Gremminger, the Pack's defensive captain and left safety, runs into this obnoxious situation many times. "Everybody tries to isolate a back with a linebacker and it puts quite a strain on the linebacker. It usually goes to the right side of the offensive team which is our left side, and that means Dan Currie. We have an idea it's coming when they put the slot back (or tight end) and flanker on the same side. This means that the flanker (Herb Adderley) goes with the flanker and the safety (Gremminger) goes with the slot back. Then, the fullback races into the same territory and the only man left to take him is the linebacker." The Packers and Vikings both scored on the play in Minnesota three weeks ago. Tommy Mason, the Vikings' great back, was isolated with Currie and Fran Tarkenton threw him a 63-yard scoring pass. Actually, Dapper Dan stayed right with Mason but Tarkenton dropped the ball right in Mason's arms and there was no stopping him. Bart Starr tried a similar play a bit later and put Jim Taylor out wide and about five yards downfield - with linebacker Roy Winston. In this case, Forrest Gregg cut
down Winston with a strong block and Taylor went 35 yards for a TD. "We'll be running into all sorts of pass patterns against the 49ers," Gremminger said, adding: "You'd have to say that they'll be filling the air with footballs. We're planning on them throwing a lot." San Francisco, despite its 2-7 record, leads the league in yardage gained in passing. "We'll play it normal which means that we'll depend on the front four to get a good rush on the passer and then the linebacker and backs will drop back," Gremminger said. While the 49ers appear to be pass-happy, Hank reminded that "they can run. They moved the ball well on the Colts, judging by films of the game. Maybe their rushing total is low because they don't run very much." Gremminger noted that "we'll be seeing that big Casey. He didn't play against us in Milwaukee. Parks is having a great start. He's a rookie, you know." Bernie Casey leads the 49ers with 35 catches. Dave Parks was the 49ers' first draft choice. Monty Stickles is the tight end. And speaking of rookies, the 49ers' No. 2 choice, George Mira, will open at quarterback. And this will present the Packers with a new problem, since he's a real scrambler. Coach Vince Lombardi rates Mira a more dangerous scrambler than the noted Tarkenton because Mira is considerably faster. The Packers worked out in Kezar Stadium this morning. They are headquarters at the Jack Tar Hotel.
LOMBARDI SAYS PACKERS MUST THWART 49ER PASSING ATTACK
NOV 14 (San Francisco) - "We've got work to do," Coach Vince Lombardi said as he brought his Green Bay Packers to town for Sunday's NFL game with the San Francisco 49ers. There are reasons to think the Packers might not be pressed too hard in repeating their 24-14 triumph over the 49ers last month in Milwaukee, but Lombardi is taking no chances. The defeat started the 49ers on a five-game losing streak and they are now 2-7 and last in the Western Division. The Packers are 5-4 and still hoping the division-leading Baltimore Colts, who have a three-game lead on Green Bay, will slip somewhere along the line in the next five games. Despite their poor place in the standings, the 49ers are second in the league in passing. They've tossed for 1,889 yards, and trail only the Chicago Bears, with whom they share last place. The Bears have passed for 1,912 yards...THROW BOMB: "They throw the bomb," said Lombardi of the 49ers, "so we're simply going to have to stop their passing. Their defense against the run has been very good, so we've got work to do." The Packers, who lead the league in rushing and on defense, are in good physical condition. Lombardi said that sophomore linebacker Dave Robinson is "still limping, otherwise, everyone is ready." Probably San Francisco Coach Jack Christiansen doesn't even remember the names of the players he had planned as an offensive backfield prior to the season, and before injuries put his running back on the sidelines. So, now, the 49ers depend upon the pass. John Brodie had been doing most of the quarterbacking, but on Sunday the assignment will go to rookie George Mira, the flashy freshman from Miami. In limited appearances, Mira has completed 13 of 36 passes and pitched for two touchdowns. But at the same time, five of his tossed have been intercepted and he has fumbled three times in crucial situations. In another move to add offensive punch, Dave Kopay, a 217-pound rookie from Washington, will take the place of Bill Kilmer at halfback. Kilmer, who also can pass, may see some spot action. The game begins at 3 p.m. Wisconsin time and will be broadcast and televised.
MIRA LURES TOP CROWD FOR 49ER 'DEBUT' VS. PACK
NOV 15 (San Francisco-Green Bay Press-Gazette) - The Packers meet George Mira in Kezar Stadium this afternoon. The 49ers, too, of course. The big story out here isn't the Packer-49ers game. It's the Packer-Mira contest. Frisco Coach Jack Christiansen announced earlier in the week that rookie Mira, the nation's leading college quarterback the last three seasons, will replace John Brodie as the 49ers' starting QB today - in addition to rookie Dave Kopay at left half in place of Bill Kilmer. As a result, the 49ers are counting on the season's largest crowd - over 40,000, which is 7,000 more than the previous biggest turnout for the Detroit game a few weeks ago. Mira is a great passer and a great scrambler. Coach Vince Lombardi says he's more dangerous than Fran Tarkenton at running around with the ball because he's faster. The Packers will, as they did against Fran in Minneapolis, put what Vince calls an "intelligent rush" on Mira. Mira gives the 49ers a third running back, too. The scooter carried only 10 times thus far but added up 139 yards. He's an exciting little feller which is the reason he has such a large Start-Mira fan club. Regardless, the Packers are strong favorites to win their third straight
NFL clash and add to their stature as the best team in the league right now. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:05, Packerland time. The Packers go into today's action on the wings of explosive and lopsided victories over the Vikings and Lions. The Bays are a hot club after losing four of their first seven games and they indicated that they are still steaming with an exceptionally spirited and noisy warmup Saturday. Green Bay has a few injuries, but everyone may see action. Paul Hornung may not run, what with a neck and shoulder injury, but he certainly will kick. Jess Whittenton may sit out in favor of Doug Hart due to a leg injury. The only other injured player is Dave Robinson, who has a bad knee. The Packers will have more than a little interest in the scoreboard today due to the Viking-Colt clash in Baltimore. The only problem here is that the scores aren't posted, though an announcement usually is made. The Eastern game will be over about the time action starts here. The Packers' fading hope of catching Baltimore rests with the Vikings. The battle plans today are no secret. The 49ers will pass their collective heads off and the Packer pass defense will have to be at its best - since the 49ers are the best passing team, yardagewise, in the league. The Packer attack, as per usual, will be varied between rushing and passing. Green Bay was pushed extremely hard in the earlier match in Milwaukee, being forced to come from behind twice to eke out a 24-14 victory. The Packers picked up 336 yards that day and Bart Starr might settle for that right now - if the score is "right." The 49ers counted 270 yards, including 178 in the air. The Packers will look at the 49ers' great end, Bernie Casey, who missed the earlier tiff with an injury. He joins Dave Parks and Monty Stickles to round out a strong pass-catching trio. Jim Taylor will be going for his third straight 100-yard game. He picked up 108 on the Vikings and 145 against the Lions. A good day today would put him in a fine position for his head to head crash against Jim Brown in Milwaukee next Sunday. But that won't be such an exciting day unless the Bays can escape the 49ers today. Incidentally, the 49ers are reportedly exceptionally fired up for the Packers. They all are, it seems.
