NFL Championship Game, 1966
Encyclopedia
The 1966
National Football League Championship Game determined the NFL's champion, which would meet the AFL
's champion in Super Bowl I
, then formally referred to as the first AFL-NFL World Championship Game. The NFL Championship Game was held at the Cowboys'
home stadium, the Cotton Bowl
in Dallas
, even though the Green Bay Packers
had a superior regular season record. As of the 1975
season, playoff sites were determined by regular season record, rather than a rotational basis.
was announced in June 1966
. The game was played on January 1, 1967, the second consecutive year that the NFL season ended in January, rather than December. It was the 34th annual NFL championship game since the league began a championship game after the 1933 season
.
This was seventh season for the Dallas Cowboys and their first winning record since entering the league in 1960
. They were champions of the NFL's Eastern Conference with a 10-3-1 record. The Packers won the Western Conference with a 12-2 record, their eighth consecutive winning season under head coach Vince Lombardi
.
The final score was Green Bay
34, Dallas
27. Two weeks later, Green Bay went on to easily defeat the Kansas City Chiefs
in Super Bowl I
in Los Angeles
.
. The game was expected to be a shootout, and as wary as the Packers were of Cowboys wide-out Bob Hayes
, the fastest man in football at the time, Packers Coach Vince Lombardi made the decision before the game not to put double-coverage on the former Olympic sprinter. It proved to be a good gamble, as Herb Adderley
and Bob Jeter
held Hayes to only one reception for one yard.
Green Bay took an early 14-0 lead on two first-quarter scores; a 17-yard touchdown pass from Bart Starr
to Elijah Pitts
and a 17-yard return by Jim Grabowski
of a Mel Renfro
fumble on the ensuing kickoff, all before the Cowboys' first play. Before the end of the first quarter, though, they tied the score with two touchdowns.
Starr broke the tie in the second quarter with a bomb to Carroll Dale
over the head of Warren Livingston
. After Dallas had cut the lead to 21-20 in the third quarter, Starr's fourth touchdown pass of the game gave the Packers a 34-20 lead with 5:20 left in the game, but the Cowboys responded with a 68-yard touchdown pass from Don Meredith
to Frank Clarke
. Dallas advanced to the Green Bay 22-yard line on their next drive, when a pass interference penalty gave the Cowboys a first down at the Packer 2-yard line. Dan Reeves
gained a yard on first down. A false start put the Cowboys back on the Green Bay 6, and halfback Dan Reeves dropped a pass in the flat on second down. Meredith found tight end Pettis Norman
on third down to bring Dallas back to the two-yard line. On fourth down, the Cowboys attempted a rollout pass. Packers' linebackk Dave Robinson
penetrated on the play, and enveloped Meredith. Somehow Meredith got the ball away, but Green Bay's Tom Brown intercepted the pass in the end zone as the intended receiver, Hayes, was surrounded by Packers defenders.
"I don't know, we haven't played Alabama yet." -- Vince Lombardi after being asked what it felt like to be the greatest football team in the world just after winning the '67 Super Bowl.
With the win, the Packers earned their 10th NFL championship. It was their second in a row and fourth in six seasons under Lombardi.
This would be the Packers' only post-season win in the Dallas area prior to the 2010 season, when they beat the Pittsburgh Steelers
in Super Bowl XLV
(played in the Cowboys' current home, Cowboys Stadium).
1966 NFL season
The 1966 NFL season was the 47th regular season of the National Football League, and the season after which was played Super Bowl I, though it was called the AFL-NFL World Championship Game. The league expanded to 15 teams with the addition of the Atlanta Falcons, thus an odd number of teams...
National Football League Championship Game determined the NFL's champion, which would meet the AFL
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
's champion in Super Bowl I
Super Bowl I
The First AFL-NFL World Championship Game in professional American football, later known as Super Bowl I and referred to in some contemporary reports as the Supergame, was played on January 15, 1967 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California.The National Football League ...
, then formally referred to as the first AFL-NFL World Championship Game. The NFL Championship Game was held at the Cowboys'
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
home stadium, the Cotton Bowl
Cotton Bowl (stadium)
The Cotton Bowl is a stadium which opened in 1929 and became known as "The House That Doak Built" due to the immense crowds that former SMU running back Doak Walker drew to the stadium during his college career in the late 1940s. Originally known as Fair Park Stadium, it is located in Fair Park,...
in Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, even though the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
had a superior regular season record. As of the 1975
1975 NFL season
The 1975 NFL season was the 56th regular season of the National Football League. It was also the first time that featured an entire season with no games ending in a tie. The league made two significant changes to increase the appeal of the game:...
season, playoff sites were determined by regular season record, rather than a rotational basis.
Background
It was the first NFL title game played after the AFL-NFL MergerAFL-NFL Merger
The AFL–NFL merger of 1970 was the merger of the two major professional American football leagues in the United States at the time: the National Football League and the American Football League...
was announced in June 1966
1966 NFL season
The 1966 NFL season was the 47th regular season of the National Football League, and the season after which was played Super Bowl I, though it was called the AFL-NFL World Championship Game. The league expanded to 15 teams with the addition of the Atlanta Falcons, thus an odd number of teams...
. The game was played on January 1, 1967, the second consecutive year that the NFL season ended in January, rather than December. It was the 34th annual NFL championship game since the league began a championship game after the 1933 season
1933 NFL season
The 1933 NFL season was the 14th regular season of the National Football League. Because of the success of the 1932 NFL Playoff Game, the league divided its teams into two divisions for the first time, with the winners of each division playing in a championship game to determine the NFL champion...
.
This was seventh season for the Dallas Cowboys and their first winning record since entering the league in 1960
1960 NFL season
The 1960 NFL season was the 41st regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, Pete Rozelle was elected NFL commissioner as a compromise choice on the twenty-third ballot. Meanwhile, the league expanded to 13 teams with the addition of the Dallas Cowboys. Also, the Cardinals...
. They were champions of the NFL's Eastern Conference with a 10-3-1 record. The Packers won the Western Conference with a 12-2 record, their eighth consecutive winning season under head coach Vince Lombardi
Vince Lombardi
Vincent Thomas "Vince" Lombardi was an American football coach. He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight league championships and five in seven years, including winning the first two Super Bowls following the 1966 and...
.
The final score was Green Bay
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
34, Dallas
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
27. Two weeks later, Green Bay went on to easily defeat the Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a...
in Super Bowl I
Super Bowl I
The First AFL-NFL World Championship Game in professional American football, later known as Super Bowl I and referred to in some contemporary reports as the Supergame, was played on January 15, 1967 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California.The National Football League ...
in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
.
Game summary
The seasoned Green Bay Packers, defending champions of the 1965 season, were favored by a touchdown over the talented, but young Cowboys team, who had no players with championship experience and only one player over 30, linebacker Chuck HowleyChuck Howley
Charles Louis "Chuck" Howley is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League...
. The game was expected to be a shootout, and as wary as the Packers were of Cowboys wide-out Bob Hayes
Bob Hayes
Robert Lee "Bullet Bob" Hayes was an Olympic sprinter turned American football wide receiver in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys. An American track and field athlete, he was a two-sport stand-out in college in both track and football at Florida A&M University...
, the fastest man in football at the time, Packers Coach Vince Lombardi made the decision before the game not to put double-coverage on the former Olympic sprinter. It proved to be a good gamble, as Herb Adderley
Herb Adderley
Herbert Allen Adderley is a former American football cornerback who played for the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League....
and Bob Jeter
Bob Jeter
Robert DeLafayette Jeter, Jr. was a former American football cornerback in the National Football League for the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears. He was raised in Weirton, WV where he attended Weir High School...
held Hayes to only one reception for one yard.
Green Bay took an early 14-0 lead on two first-quarter scores; a 17-yard touchdown pass from Bart Starr
Bart Starr
Bryan Bartlett "Bart" Starr is a former professional American football player and coach. Wearing #15, he was the quarterback for the Green Bay Packers from 1956 to 1971 and head coach from 1975 to 1983, compiling a record of 52–76–3 ....
to Elijah Pitts
Elijah Pitts
Elijah Eugene Pitts was an American football halfback in the National Football League for the Green Bay Packers, the Los Angeles Rams, and the New Orleans Saints. He played college football at Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas.Pitts scored two touchdowns in the original Super Bowl...
and a 17-yard return by Jim Grabowski
Jim Grabowski
James S.Grabowski is a former American football player and broadcaster. Grabowski played collegiately at the University of Illinois and professionally for the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears, and served as an analyst on University of Illinois football radio broadcasts for nearly 30 years,...
of a Mel Renfro
Mel Renfro
Melvin Lacy "Mel" Renfro is a former American football defensive back in the National Football League who spent his entire fourteen-year career with the Dallas Cowboys.-High school:...
fumble on the ensuing kickoff, all before the Cowboys' first play. Before the end of the first quarter, though, they tied the score with two touchdowns.
Starr broke the tie in the second quarter with a bomb to Carroll Dale
Carroll Dale
Carroll Wayne Dale is a former American football wide receiver. He played college football at Virginia Tech from 1956–59. Dale was named second-team All American in 1958 and 1959....
over the head of Warren Livingston
Warren Livingston
Warren Livingston is a former professional American football cornerback. He played six seasons for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League....
. After Dallas had cut the lead to 21-20 in the third quarter, Starr's fourth touchdown pass of the game gave the Packers a 34-20 lead with 5:20 left in the game, but the Cowboys responded with a 68-yard touchdown pass from Don Meredith
Don Meredith
Joseph Don "Dandy Don" Meredith was an American football quarterback, sports commentator and actor. He spent all nine seasons of his professional playing career with the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League . He was named to the Pro Bowl in each of his last three years as a player...
to Frank Clarke
Franklin Clarke
Franklin Clarke is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League for the Cleveland Browns and Dallas Cowboys.He was named after Franklin D...
. Dallas advanced to the Green Bay 22-yard line on their next drive, when a pass interference penalty gave the Cowboys a first down at the Packer 2-yard line. Dan Reeves
Dan Reeves
Daniel Edward Reeves is a former American football player and head coach. He has participated in more Super Bowls as player/assistant coach/Head Coach than anyone else...
gained a yard on first down. A false start put the Cowboys back on the Green Bay 6, and halfback Dan Reeves dropped a pass in the flat on second down. Meredith found tight end Pettis Norman
Pettis Norman
Pettis Burch Norman is a former professional American football tight end in the National Football League from 1962-1973 for the Dallas Cowboys and the San Diego Chargers.-College career:...
on third down to bring Dallas back to the two-yard line. On fourth down, the Cowboys attempted a rollout pass. Packers' linebackk Dave Robinson
Dave Robinson
Richard David Robinson is a former professional American football player in the National Football League for the Green Bay Packers and Washington Redskins.-Early life:...
penetrated on the play, and enveloped Meredith. Somehow Meredith got the ball away, but Green Bay's Tom Brown intercepted the pass in the end zone as the intended receiver, Hayes, was surrounded by Packers defenders.
"I don't know, we haven't played Alabama yet." -- Vince Lombardi after being asked what it felt like to be the greatest football team in the world just after winning the '67 Super Bowl.
With the win, the Packers earned their 10th NFL championship. It was their second in a row and fourth in six seasons under Lombardi.
This would be the Packers' only post-season win in the Dallas area prior to the 2010 season, when they beat the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
in Super Bowl XLV
Super Bowl XLV
Super Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League champion for the 2010 season. The game was held at Cowboys Stadium in...
(played in the Cowboys' current home, Cowboys Stadium).
Scoring summary
- GB - Pitts 17 pass from Starr (ChandlerDon ChandlerDonald Gene "Don" Chandler was an American college and professional football player who was a punter and placekicker in the National Football League for twelve seasons in the 1950s and 1960s...
kick) 7-0 GB - GB - Grabowski 18 fumble return (Chandler kick) 14-0 GB
- DAL - Reeves 3 run (VillanuevaDanny VillanuevaDaniel Dario Villanueva is a former American football placekicker and punter in the National Football League for the Los Angeles Rams and the Dallas Cowboys. Villanueva, who was of Mexican American descent, played college football at New Mexico State University....
kick) 14-7 GB - DAL - PerkinsDon PerkinsDonald Anthony Perkins is a former American football halfback who spent eight seasons with the NFL's Dallas Cowboys.-Early years:...
23 run (Villanueva kick) 14-14 TIE - GB - Dale 51 pass from Starr (Chandler kick) 21-14 GB
- DAL - FG Villanueva 11 21-17 GB
- DAL - FG Villanueva 32 21-20 GB
- GB - DowlerBoyd DowlerBoyd Hamilton Dowler is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League who played twelve seasons for the Green Bay Packers and Washington Redskins from 1959 to 1971...
16 pass from Starr (Chandler kick) 28-20 GB - GB - McGeeMax McGeeWilliam Max McGee was a professional football wide receiver who played for the Green Bay Packers from 1954-67. He served as the team's punter during a few years of his career. McGee may be best known for his performance during the first Super Bowl game. Prior to his NFL career, he played college...
28 pass from Starr (kick blocked) 34-20 GB - DAL - Clarke 68 pass from Meredith (Villanueva kick) 34-27 GB