1964 Green Bay Packers season

1964 Green Bay Packers season
1964 Green Bay Packers season
Head coach	Vince Lombardi
General manager	Vince Lombardi
Home field	City Stadium; Milwaukee County Stadium
Results
Record	8–5–1
Division place	2nd NFL Western
Playoff finish	Lost NFL Playoff Bowl (vs. Cardinals) 17–24
	← 1963; Packers seasons; 1965 →;

The 1964 Green Bay Packers season was their 46th season overall and their 44th season in the National Football League. The team was led by sixth-year head coach Vince Lombardi, and tied for second place in the Western Conference at 8–5–1.

The Packers opened the season in Green Bay with a promising win over the rival Chicago Bears, the defending NFL champions.^[1]^[2] They then lost four of six, including three home games, and were 3–4 midway through the season, falling twice to the Baltimore Colts. The first three losses were by a total of five points, but the fourth on October 25, to the Los Angeles Rams in Milwaukee, was by ten and came after building a 17–0 lead.^[3]

In the season's latter half, Green Bay won five of six and tied the Rams in the finale to end 3½ games behind the Colts (12–2) in the West, tied for second with Minnesota. Baltimore clinched the Western title on November 22, with three games remaining.^[4]^[5] Based on point differential in the season split with the Vikings, the Packers were awarded the runner-up slot in the Playoff Bowl,^[6] the consolation third place game in Miami played three weeks after the regular season, on January 3.

Green Bay had played in the previous season's Playoff Bowl and won decisively,^[7]^[8] which followed consecutive league titles in 1961 and 1962, and three straight appearances in the championship game. In the 1964 season's third-place game, the St. Louis Cardinals prevailed over the unmotivated Packers, 24–17.^[9]^[10]^[11]^[12]

The 1964 season was arguably the most disappointing for Lombardi as a head coach. Consecutive appearances in the consolation Playoff Bowl, and the loss, keyed Lombardi and the Packers to win three consecutive NFL titles; the latter two followed by victories in the first two Super Bowls. Since the playoff era began 88 years ago in 1933, no other team was won three straight NFL titles.

Hall of Fame right guard Jerry Kramer missed most of the season due to an intestinal condition. After multiple surgeries, it was rectified in May 1965 after sizable wood fragments from a teenage accident a dozen years earlier were removed.^[13]^[14]^[15]^[16]

Offseason[]

NFL Draft[]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	School
1	13	Lloyd Voss	Defensive End	Nebraska
2	27	Jon Morris	Center	Holy Cross
3	36	Ode Burrell	Back	Mississippi State
3	40	Joe O'Donnell	Guard	Michigan
3	41	Tommy Crutcher	Linebacker	TCU
4	44	Bob Long	Wide Receiver	Wichita State
4	55	Paul Costa	Tackle	Notre Dame
5	60	Duke Carlisle	Quarterback	Texas
5	69	Steve Wright	Offensive Tackle	Alabama
7	97	Dick Herzing	Tackle	Drake
8	111	Ken Bowman	Center	Wisconsin
9	125	John McDowell	Offensive Tackle	St. John's (MN)
10	139	Allen Jacobs	Back	Utah
11	153	Jack Petersen	Tackle	Nebraska-Omaha
12	167	Dwain Bean	Back	North Texas State
13	181	Jack Mauro	Tackle	Northern Michigan
14	195	Tom O'Grady	End	Northwestern
15	209	Alex Zerko	Tackle	Kent State
16	223	Andrew Ireland	Back	Utah
17	237	Len St. Jean	End	Northern Michigan
18	251	Mike Hicks	Guard	Marshall
19	265	John Baker	End	Norfolk State
20	279	Bill Curry	Center	Georgia Tech

Yellow indicates a future Pro Bowl selection

Roster[]

**1964 Green Bay Packers final roster**

	Quarterbacks 15 Bart Starr 12 Zeke Bratkowski Running backs 5 Paul Hornung 25 Tom Moore 22 Elijah Pitts 31 Jim Taylor Wide receivers 86 Boyd Dowler 85 Max McGee Tight ends 81 Marv Fleming 88 Ron Kramer		Offensive linemen 57 Ken Bowman C 75 Forrest Gregg T 67 Dan Grimm G 76 Bob Skoronski T 63 Fuzzy Thurston G Defensive linemen 82 Lionel Aldridge DE 87 Willie Davis DE 74 Henry Jordan DT		Linebackers 60 Lee Roy Caffey OLB 58 Dan Currie 66 Ray Nitschke ILB 89 Dave Robinson OLB Defensive backs 26 Herb Adderley CB 46 Hank Gremminger 43 Doug Hart SS/CB 21 Bob Jeter CB 47 Jesse Whittenton 24 Willie Wood SS/PR Special teams		Reserve lists 64 Jerry Kramer G Practice squad Rookies in italics

Regular season[]

Schedule[]

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
1	September 13	Chicago Bears	W 23–12	1–0	City Stadium	42,327
2	September 20	Baltimore Colts	L 20–21	1–1	City Stadium	42,327
3	September 28	at Detroit Lions	W 14–10	2–1	Tiger Stadium	59,203
4	October 4	Minnesota Vikings	L 23–24	2–2	City Stadium	42,327
5	October 11	San Francisco 49ers	W 24–14	3–2	Milwaukee County Stadium	47,380
6	October 18	at Baltimore Colts	L 21–24	3–3	Memorial Stadium	60,213
7	October 25	Los Angeles Rams	L 17–27	3–4	Milwaukee County Stadium	47,617
8	November 1	at Minnesota Vikings	W 42–13	4–4	Metropolitan Stadium	44,278
9	November 8	Detroit Lions	W 30–7	5–4	City Stadium	42,327
10	November 15	at San Francisco 49ers	L 14–24	5–5	Kezar Stadium	38,483
11	November 22	Cleveland Browns	W 28–21	6–5	Milwaukee County Stadium	48,065
12	November 29	at Dallas Cowboys	W 45–21	7–5	Cotton Bowl	44,975
13	December 5	at Chicago Bears	W 17–3	8–5	Wrigley Field	43,636
14	December 13	at Los Angeles Rams	T 24–24	8–5–1	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum	40,735

^[17]

Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text.

Season summary[]

Week 1 vs Bears[]

Week One: Chicago Bears (0–0) at Green Bay Packers (0–0)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bears	0	3	9	0	12
Packers	7	10	3	3	23

at City Stadium, Green Bay, Wisconsin

Date: September 13, 1964
Game weather: 53 °F (12 °C)
Game attendance: 42,327
Pro-Football-Reference.com

Game information

First quarter

GB – Max McGee 11-yard pass from Bart Starr (Paul Hornung kick). Packers 7–0. Drive:

Second quarter

CHI – Bob Jencks 8-yard field goal. Packers 7–3. Drive:
GB – Tom Moore 33-yard pass from Bart Starr (Paul Hornung kick). Packers 14–3. Drive:
GB – Paul Hornung 52-yard field goal. Packers 17–3. Drive:

Third quarter

CHI – Bob Jencks 36-yard field goal. Packers 17–6. Drive:
CHI – Mike Ditka 13-yard pass from Rudy Bukich (kick failed). Packers 17–12. Drive:
GB – Paul Hornung 29-yard field goal. Packers 20–12. Drive:

Fourth quarter

GB – Paul Hornung 20-yard field goal. Packers 23–12. Drive:

Top passers

CHI – Rudy Bukich – 7/16, 83 yards, TD, 2 INT
GB – Bart Starr – 8/16, 127 yards, 2 TD

Top rushers

CHI – Ronnie Bull – 8 rushes, 25 yards
GB – Jim Taylor – 16 rushes, 79 yards

Top receivers

CHI – Mike Ditka – 7 receptions, 74 yards, TD
GB – Ron Kramer – 3 receptions, 48 yards

Week 2 vs Colts[]

Baltimore Colts (0–1) at Green Bay Packers (1–0)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Colts	7	14	0	0	21
Packers	7	6	7	0	20

at New City Stadium, Green Bay, Wisconsin

Date: September 20
Game weather: 65 °F (18 °C)
Game attendance: 42,327
Box Score

Game information

First quarter

BAL – Lenny Moore 52-yard pass from Johnny Unitas (Lou Michaels kick). Colts 7–0. Drive:
GB – Paul Hornung 20-yard run (Paul Hornung kick). Tie 7–7. Drive:

Second quarter

BAL – Lenny Moore 4-yard run (Lou Michaels kick). Colts 14–7. Drive:
GB – Paul Hornung 4-yard run (kick failed). Colts 14–13. Drive:
BAL – John Mackey 40-yard pass from Johnny Unitas (Lou Michaels kick). Colts 21–13. Drive:

Third quarter

GB – Jim Taylor 23-yard run (Paul Hornung kick). Colts 21–20. Drive:

Fourth quarter

No scoring

Top passers

BAL – Johnny Unitas – 7/12, 154 yards, 2 TD
GB – Bart Starr – 16/21, 175 yards, 3 INT

Top rushers

BAL – Jerry Hill – 15 rushes, 49 yards
GB – Jim Taylor – 18 rushes, 98 yards, TD

Top receivers

BAL – Lenny Moore – 1 reception, 52 yards, TD
GB – Boyd Dowler – 7 receptions, 66 yards

Week 11: vs. Cleveland Browns[]

Green Bay Packers 28, Cleveland Browns 21

	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	14	0	0	7	21
Packers	7	0	14	7	28

at Milwaukee County Stadium in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Date: November 22, 1964
Game time: 1:00 p.m. CST
Game weather: 15 °F (−9 °C), wind 15 mph (24 km/h), wind chill 0 °F (−18 °C)
Game attendance: 48,065
TV announcers (CBS): Ken Coleman (CLE) (second half) and Earl Gillespie (GB) (first half) (play-by-play), Warren Lahr (CLE) (second half) and Tony Canadeo (GB) (first half) (color commentators)
Pro-Football-Reference.com

Game information

First quarter

CLE – Paul Warfield 48-yard pass from Frank Ryan (Lou Groza kick), CLE 7–0
GB – Elijah Pitts 19-yard rush (Paul Hornung kick), tied 7–7
CLE – Jim Brown 1-yard rush (Groza kick), CLE 14–7

Second quarter

no scoring

Third quarter

GB – Jim Taylor 1-yard rush - (Hornung kick), tied 14–14
GB – Bart Starr 4-yard rush (Hornung kick), GB 21–14

Fourth quarter

GB – Taylor 5-yard rush (Hornung kick), GB 28–14
CLE – Warfield 19-yard pass from Ryan (Groza kick), GB 28–21

Standings[]

NFL Western Conference
view talk	W	L	T	PCT	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Baltimore Colts	12	2	0	.857	10–2	428	225	W1
Green Bay Packers^[a]	8	5	1	.615	6–5–1	342	245	T1
Minnesota Vikings	8	5	1	.615	6–5–1	355	296	W3
Detroit Lions	7	5	2	.583	6–4–2	280	260	W2
Los Angeles Rams	5	7	2	.417	3–7–2	283	339	T1
Chicago Bears	5	9	0	.357	5–7	260	379	L2
San Francisco 49ers	4	10	0	.286	3–9	236	330	L1

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

^ Green Bay was awarded the Playoff Bowl berth from the Western Conference by outscoring Minnesota 65–37 in their two meetings.

Playoff Bowl[]

Season	Date	Winner	Score	Runner up	Venue	Attendance
1964	January 3, 1965	St. Louis Cardinals	24–17	Green Bay Packers	Orange Bowl	56,218

Source:^[9]^[10]^[11]^[12]^[18]

Awards and records[]

Bart Starr, NFL Leader, Passing Yards, (2,144 yards)

References[]

^ Lea, Bud (September 14, 1964). "Packers hammer Bears, 23-12!". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 4, part 2.
^ "Packer smash Bears by 23-12". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. September 14, 1964. p. 34.
^ Lea, Bud (October 26, 1964). "Rams' rally rips Packers, 27-17". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 3, part 2.
^ "Colts jar Rams, 24-7, to clinch Western title". Milwaukee Sentinel. Associated Press. November 23, 1965. p. 4, part 2.
^ "Colts clinch title; Bears beat 49ers". Chicago Tribune. UPI. November 23, 1964. p. 1, section 3.
^ "Packers win spot in Bowl". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. December 14, 1964. p. 4B.
^ Lea, Bud (January 6, 1964). "Starr-led Packers bomb Browns". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 2, part 2.
^ "Packers cuff Browns, 40-23". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. January 6, 1964. p. 12.
^ ^a ^b Lea, Bud (January 4, 1965). "Cards blunt Packers' rally, 24-17". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 2, part 2.
^ ^a ^b Johnson, Chuck (January 4, 1965). "Packers season ends as it began; Cardinals win in an exhibition". Milwaukee Journal. p. 8, part 2.
^ ^a ^b "'Peanuts' leads Cards to victory". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. January 4, 1965. p. 3B.
^ ^a ^b Segreti, James (January 4, 1965). "Cards outlast Packers in runner-up bowl, 24-17". Chicago Tribune. p. 1, section 3.
^ Lea, Bud (May 12, 1965). "Find splinters in Kramer". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 2, part 2.
^ "Splinters from old injury caused Kramer's illness". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. May 12, 1965. p. 15.
^ "Kramer surveys". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. May 13, 1965. p. 24.
^ "(Photo)". Milwaukee Journal. Associated Press. May 13, 1965. p. 12, part 2.
^ "'Defense did a super job'". Milwaukee Sentinel. September 29, 1964. p. 2, part 2.^{[dead link]}
^ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 369

Sportsencyclopedia.com

External links[]

PackersHistory.net – 1964 season

[8-5-18] Green Bay was awarded the Playoff Bowl berth from the Western Conference by outscoring Minnesota 65–37 in their two meetings.

[phbrs-1] Lea, Bud (September 14, 1964). "Packers hammer Bears, 23-12!". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 4, part 2.

[psmash-2] "Packer smash Bears by 23-12". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. September 14, 1964. p. 34.

[rrrpc-3] Lea, Bud (October 26, 1964). "Rams' rally rips Packers, 27-17". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 3, part 2.

[mscjrms-4] "Colts jar Rams, 24-7, to clinch Western title". Milwaukee Sentinel. Associated Press. November 23, 1965. p. 4, part 2.

[cctcht-5] "Colts clinch title; Bears beat 49ers". Chicago Tribune. UPI. November 23, 1964. p. 1, section 3.

[pwsipoberg-6] "Packers win spot in Bowl". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. December 14, 1964. p. 4B.

[slpbb-7] Lea, Bud (January 6, 1964). "Starr-led Packers bomb Browns". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 2, part 2.

[pcbrnsrv-8] "Packers cuff Browns, 40-23". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. January 6, 1964. p. 12.

[cblntpr-9] Lea, Bud (January 4, 1965). "Cards blunt Packers' rally, 24-17". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 2, part 2.

[endmjex-10] Johnson, Chuck (January 4, 1965). "Packers season ends as it began; Cardinals win in an exhibition". Milwaukee Journal. p. 8, part 2.

[pnlctverg-11] "'Peanuts' leads Cards to victory". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. January 4, 1965. p. 3B.

[copirub-12] Segreti, James (January 4, 1965). "Cards outlast Packers in runner-up bowl, 24-17". Chicago Tribune. p. 1, section 3.

[fsplink-13] Lea, Bud (May 12, 1965). "Find splinters in Kramer". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 2, part 2.

[spoinjlmt-14] "Splinters from old injury caused Kramer's illness". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. May 12, 1965. p. 15.

[frmjph-15] "Kramer surveys". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. May 13, 1965. p. 24.

[mjfrph-16] "(Photo)". Milwaukee Journal. Associated Press. May 13, 1965. p. 12, part 2.

[ddsj-17] "'Defense did a super job'". Milwaukee Sentinel. September 29, 1964. p. 2, part 2.^{[dead link]}

[19] NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 369

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[a]

[18]

v t Green Bay Packers
Founded in 1919 Based and headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin
Franchise	Founders: Curly Lambeau & George Whitney Calhoun Franchise overview Green Bay Packers, Inc. Charitable Foundation Team history
Records	Coaches Draft history First-round draft picks Hall of Fame Fan Hall of Fame Players A–D E–K L–R S–Z Pro Bowlers Pro Football Hall of Famers Records Retired numbers (3 4 14 15 66 92) Seasons Stadiums Starting quarterbacks
Stadiums	Hagemeister Park Bellevue Park City Stadium Borchert Field Wisconsin State Fair Park Marquette Stadium Milwaukee County Stadium Lambeau Field
Training facilities	Clarke Hinkle Field Don Hutson Center Ray Nitschke Field Rockwood Lodge (former) St. Norbert College (training camp)
Culture	"Bang the Drum All Day" Bart Starr Award Cheerleaders Cheesehead Driven Fight song Home games in Milwaukee The Hungry Five Indian Packing Company Instant Replay Lambeau Leap Lombardi (film) Lombardi (play) Lumberjack Band Packers Heritage Trail Packers Pro Shop Packers sweep Pigskin Champions Pitch Perfect 2 Receiver (statue) Ron Wolf Second Effort That '70s Show The 60 Yard Line Titletown District Vernon Biever Vince Lombardi When Pride Still Mattered
Lore	4th and 26 Dez Caught It Dolly Gray impostor Fail Mary Instant Replay Game Miracle in Motown The Catch II The Ice Bowl The Snow Bowl
Rivalries	Chicago Bears Dallas Cowboys Detroit Lions Minnesota Vikings New York Giants San Francisco 49ers Seattle Seahawks
Division championships (21)	1936 1938 1939 1944 1967 1972 1995 1996 1997 2002 2003 2004 2007 2011 2012 2013 2014 2016 2019 2020 2021
Conference championships (9)	1960 1961 1962 1965 1966 1967 1996 1997 2010
League championships (13^†)	1929 1930 1931 1936 1939 1944 1961 1962 1965 1966 (I) 1967 (II) 1996 (XXXI) 2010 (XLV)
Media	Broadcasters Radio: Packers Radio Network WIXX WKTI-HD2 WTAQ WTMJ Television: WGBA-TV WTMJ-TV Spectrum News 1 WI Personnel: Wayne Larrivee (play-by-play) Larry McCarren (color/analysis)
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League (1921–present) Conference: National Football Conference (1970–present) Division: North Division (2002–present)
^† does not include 1966 or 1967 NFL championships