Last Respects: Green Bay Packers’ Winning Streak
Cold, Hard Football Facts for Dec 21, 2011
They say all good things must come to an end.
Not many expected the Green Bay Packers to lose in Kansas City, 19-14, on Sunday to end their 19-game winning streak. It happened, and in similar fashion to how the Packers last lost a game to the New England Patriots in 2010. They finally trailed in the fourth quarter for the first time since their last loss, and the Chiefs held on for the win.
In a season that’s featured many different storylines from the Manning-less Colts to Tim Tebow, the Packers took a bit of a backseat to the coverage despite their unique winning streak.
The Cold, Hard Football Facts have been covering it in-depth since October:
Green Bay Packers Eye Historic Winning Streak – the first mention of Green Bay’s chance at setting the record for most consecutive wins without trailing in the fourth quarter.
Packers make history…but it’s not easy – the Packers topple the 1942-43 Washington Redskins (13 games) for the longest win streak without trailing in the fourth quarter (classic “Rivers face” included)
The Packers and the greatest winning streaks in history – Green Bay is one of 10 teams to win 15+ consecutive games, and we dug into the key stats those teams had during their run.
Now that the streak is over, it’s time to pay our last respects and update the various tables we’ve been looking at during the season, and to add some new notes of interest.
Note: no statistics for yards and turnovers available for the 1933-34 Chicago Bears.
The Packers stand middle of the road in scoring differential, as no one allowed more points per game. They actually outgained their opponents by one fewer yard (per game) than the record-setting 2003-04 New England Patriots did.
Something Green Bay may have done better than anyone is jump out to early leads. In 10 of the 19 games, the Packers led 14-0 early in the game. In an 11th game they started on a 17-0 run.
No one did a better job in turnover differential than the Packers, coming in at +1.63/game. They won the turnover battle in 14 of the 19 games, were tied four times, and only lost it once (-1 at Philadelphia in NFC Wild Card game). In Kansas City on Sunday, neither team had a turnover.
Their strength of schedule (SOS) is still yet to be officially determined, but the last time we looked it was .570, and has since fallen to .529, which keeps it near the top with the 2003-04 Patriots.
Though not officially recognized by the NFL record books, the 1947-48 Cleveland Browns won 18 straight games without trailing in the fourth quarter in the AAFC. Green Bay beats them by one win.
The Packers actually came close to the all-time record for most consecutive games played without trailing in the fourth quarter. That record belongs to the 1928-30 Green Bay Packers, who went 21-0-2 in a 23-game streak, and never once trailed in the fourth quarter.
Compared to the longest winning streaks ever, the Packers were the only team that did not need multiple fourth quarter comebacks.
Only twice was Green Bay tied, and interestingly enough they were the 2nd and 18th games in the streak. They were only tied in the fourth quarter for a combined three minutes and 16 seconds.
Their scoring margin through three quarters (13.95) was one of the highest, yet they still played 11 games that were a one score game in the fourth quarter.
Green Bay really excelled on defense in protecting these one score leads in the fourth quarter. Here is the comparison to the last five teams that had long winning streaks:
(Drives are all drives in the fourth quarter or overtime where the defense was protecting a 0-8 point lead)
The Packers pitched a shutout on their first 16 drives (had 7 takeaways), but in their last two games they allowed two touchdowns and a field goal to the Buccaneers and Giants.
Sunday’s loss in Kansas City ended another potentially record-setting Packers’ streak: Green Bay had gone 43 straight games with having at least a fourth quarter tie (34-9 record overall in those games). They had a fourth quarter lead in 40 of those 43 games. The last team to enter the fourth quarter with a lead and never lose it against Green Bay was Minnesota on 11/1/2009 (Favre’s return to Lambeau as a Viking).
(*Asterisk on score denotes a playoff game)
The average margin of victory was 10.4 points, with the streaking team scoring on average just 14.1 points, and allowing 24.5 points.
Six losses came on the road, three at home, and one on a neutral field (Super Bowl XLII).
Every team except for the 2004 Steelers and Patriots was held to 17 points or less. Those two teams put up 20 and 27, but there was a bit of role reversal as each team went -4 in turnover differential (including a pick six) in the loss.
Six teams lost the turnover battle, two tied, and two more had a +1 advantage. No one had it worse with turnovers than the 1977 Raiders, as Ken Stabler threw 7 interceptions, which has happened just five times since 1960.
The ten teams to pull off the upset were a combined 97-48-1 (.668) in the regular season. The 2011 Chiefs became just the second with a losing record, though they do have a chance to finish 8-8.
The most shocking one of them all is likely the 1990 Los Angeles Rams, a 5-11 team, going into San Francisco and beating the 49ers by 11 points. Joe Montana threw three passes in the fourth quarter, and two of them were intercepted. In between, the Rams put together a 17 play, 90-yard touchdown drive that ate up 10:37 on the clock and gave them a 28-17 lead with 2:31 left. The only other two teams that lost at home were playing opponents with great records that would represent the AFC in the Super Bowl that season.
Past precedent has been shown with teams like the 1973 Dolphins, 1998 Broncos and 2004 Patriots coming back from a loss to end their winning streak, and still going on to win their second straight Super Bowl.
Green Bay is still the favorite to join that club. They’re just no longer perfect.
Scott Kacsmar is a football researcher/writer who has contributed large quantities of data to Pro-Football-Reference.com, including the only standardized database of fourth quarter comebacks and game-winning drives. He thought about seeking out a Mercury Morris quote, but remembered it doesn’t matter what Mercury Morris thinks. You can send any questions or comments to Scott at smk_42@yahoo.com and you can follow him on Twitter at @CaptainComeback.
Not many expected the Green Bay Packers to lose in Kansas City, 19-14, on Sunday to end their 19-game winning streak. It happened, and in similar fashion to how the Packers last lost a game to the New England Patriots in 2010. They finally trailed in the fourth quarter for the first time since their last loss, and the Chiefs held on for the win.
In a season that’s featured many different storylines from the Manning-less Colts to Tim Tebow, the Packers took a bit of a backseat to the coverage despite their unique winning streak.
The Cold, Hard Football Facts have been covering it in-depth since October:
Green Bay Packers Eye Historic Winning Streak – the first mention of Green Bay’s chance at setting the record for most consecutive wins without trailing in the fourth quarter.
Packers make history…but it’s not easy – the Packers topple the 1942-43 Washington Redskins (13 games) for the longest win streak without trailing in the fourth quarter (classic “Rivers face” included)
The Packers and the greatest winning streaks in history – Green Bay is one of 10 teams to win 15+ consecutive games, and we dug into the key stats those teams had during their run.
Now that the streak is over, it’s time to pay our last respects and update the various tables we’ve been looking at during the season, and to add some new notes of interest.
The Ten Longest Winning Streaks Ever
Green Bay’s 19-game streak ended two short of tying the all-time record, but was enough to give them sole possession of the second longest winning streak in NFL history.| Team | Games | Season(s) | PPG | OPG | Diff. | Net Yards | NYPG | TO Diff | SOS |
| New England Patriots | 21 | 2003-04 | 23.7 | 14.7 | 9.0 | 597 | 28.4 | 22 | 0.536 (180-156) |
| Green Bay Packers | 19 | 2010-11 | 33.8 | 19.7 | 14.1 | 520 | 27.4 | 31 | 0.529 (147-131) |
| Chicago Bears | 18 | 1941-42 | 34.4 | 10.3 | 24.1 | 3183 | 176.8 | 18 | 0.404 (77-115-6) |
| New England Patriots | 18 | 2007 | 35.6 | 17.0 | 18.6 | 2056 | 114.2 | 17 | 0.493 (142-146) |
| Denver Broncos | 18 | 1997-98 | 32.5 | 17.3 | 15.2 | 1556 | 86.4 | 10 | 0.493 (142-146) |
| San Francisco 49ers | 18 | 1989-90 | 28.5 | 13.8 | 14.7 | 2091 | 116.2 | 23 | 0.490 (141-147) |
| Miami Dolphins | 18 | 1972-73 | 25.6 | 12.3 | 13.3 | 1844 | 102.4 | 19 | 0.433 (107-141-4) |
| Chicago Bears | 18 | 1933-34 | 20.7 | 7.8 | 12.9 | - | - | - | 0.483 (101-108-2) |
| Oakland Raiders | 17 | 1976-77 | 26.3 | 12.6 | 13.7 | 1134 | 66.7 | 13 | 0.494 (117-120-1) |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 15 | 2004 | 23.7 | 14.5 | 9.2 | 1209 | 80.6 | 9 | 0.500 (120-120) |
Note: no statistics for yards and turnovers available for the 1933-34 Chicago Bears.
The Packers stand middle of the road in scoring differential, as no one allowed more points per game. They actually outgained their opponents by one fewer yard (per game) than the record-setting 2003-04 New England Patriots did.
Something Green Bay may have done better than anyone is jump out to early leads. In 10 of the 19 games, the Packers led 14-0 early in the game. In an 11th game they started on a 17-0 run.
No one did a better job in turnover differential than the Packers, coming in at +1.63/game. They won the turnover battle in 14 of the 19 games, were tied four times, and only lost it once (-1 at Philadelphia in NFC Wild Card game). In Kansas City on Sunday, neither team had a turnover.
Their strength of schedule (SOS) is still yet to be officially determined, but the last time we looked it was .570, and has since fallen to .529, which keeps it near the top with the 2003-04 Patriots.
Fourth Quarter Wins
The Packers were able to obliterate the 1942-43 Washington Redskins' record of 13 consecutive wins without trailing in the fourth quarter by six games. When one talks about records that will be hard to beat, this deserves considerable mention.| Team | Season(s) | Winning Streak | Games Tied in 4Q | Championship? |
| Green Bay Packers | 2010-11 | 19 | 2 | Yes |
| Washington Redskins | 1942-43 | 13 | 1 | Yes |
| Indianapolis Colts | 2005 | 11 | 0 | No |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 1975 | 11 | 2 | Yes |
| Dallas Cowboys | 1971-72 | 11 | 1 | Yes |
| Tennessee Titans | 1961-62 | 11 | 0 | Yes |
| Green Bay Packers | 1928-29 | 11 | 2 | Yes |
| New York Giants | 1927-28 | 11 | 0 | Yes |
| Frankford Yellow Jackets | 1924-25 | 11 | 0 | No |
| Baltimore Ravens | 2000-01 | 10 | 1 | Yes |
| Dallas Cowboys | 1993-94 | 10 | 1 | Yes |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 1976 | 10 | 0 | No |
| Miami Dolphins | 1973 | 10 | 0 | Yes |
| Baltimore Colts | 1968 | 10 | 1 | No |
| Chicag oBears | 1942 | 10 | 0 | No |
| Detroit Lions | 1934 | 10 | 0 | No |
Though not officially recognized by the NFL record books, the 1947-48 Cleveland Browns won 18 straight games without trailing in the fourth quarter in the AAFC. Green Bay beats them by one win.
The Packers actually came close to the all-time record for most consecutive games played without trailing in the fourth quarter. That record belongs to the 1928-30 Green Bay Packers, who went 21-0-2 in a 23-game streak, and never once trailed in the fourth quarter.
Compared to the longest winning streaks ever, the Packers were the only team that did not need multiple fourth quarter comebacks.
Only twice was Green Bay tied, and interestingly enough they were the 2nd and 18th games in the streak. They were only tied in the fourth quarter for a combined three minutes and 16 seconds.
| Team | Games | Season(s) | 4QC | GWD | %4QC | %GWD | 3Q Mg. | Avg. |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 15 | 2004 | 6 | 7 | 40.0 | 46.7 | 75 | 5.00 |
| New England Patriots | 21 | 2003-04 | 4 | 8 | 19.0 | 38.1 | 147 | 7.00 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 18 | 1989-90 | 3 | 6 | 16.7 | 33.3 | 177 | 9.83 |
| Chicago Bears | 18 | 1933-34 | 4 | 5 | 22.2 | 27.8 | 155 | 8.61 |
| Oakland Raiders | 17 | 1976-77 | 3 | 4 | 17.6 | 23.5 | 183 | 10.76 |
| New England Patriots | 18 | 2007 | 4 | 4 | 22.2 | 22.2 | 255 | 14.17 |
| Denver Broncos | 18 | 1997-98 | 3 | 4 | 16.7 | 22.2 | 206 | 11.44 |
| Miami Dolphins | 18 | 1972-73 | 4 | 4 | 22.2 | 22.2 | 202 | 11.22 |
| Chicago Bears | 18 | 1941-42 | 2 | 2 | 11.1 | 11.1 | 302 | 16.78 |
| Green Bay Packers | 19 | 2010-11 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 10.5 | 265 | 13.95 |
Their scoring margin through three quarters (13.95) was one of the highest, yet they still played 11 games that were a one score game in the fourth quarter.
| Game | Opponent | Lead After 3 | Closest 4th QT Margin | Final |
| 1 | NY Giants | 14 | 14 | 45-17 |
| 2 | Chicago | 0 | 0 | 10-3 |
| 3 | at Philadelphia | 11 | 5 | 21-16 |
| 4 | at Atlanta | 28 | 21 | 48-21 |
| 5 | at Chicago | 14 | 7 | 21-14 |
| 6 | Pittsburgh | 4 | 3 | 31-25 |
| 7 | New Orleans | 8 | 8 | 42-34 |
| 8 | at Carolina | 10 | 7 | 30-23 |
| 9 | at Chicago | 10 | 10 | 27-17 |
| 10 | Denver | 25 | 25 | 49-23 |
| 11 | at Atlanta | 1 | 1 | 25-14 |
| 12 | St. Louis | 21 | 21 | 24-3 |
| 13 | at Minnesota | 16 | 6 | 33-27 |
| 14 | at San Diego | 7 | 7 | 45-38 |
| 15 | Minnesota | 24 | 24 | 45-7 |
| 16 | Tampa Bay | 8 | 2 | 35-26 |
| 17 | at Detroit | 24 | 12 | 27-15 |
| 18 | at NY Giants | 4 | 0 | 38-35 |
| 19 | Oakland | 36 | 30 | 46-16 |
Green Bay really excelled on defense in protecting these one score leads in the fourth quarter. Here is the comparison to the last five teams that had long winning streaks:
(Drives are all drives in the fourth quarter or overtime where the defense was protecting a 0-8 point lead)
| Team | Games | Drives | Points | TOs | Pts/Dr | TO/Dr |
| 2004 Steelers | 9 | 19 | 15 | 3 | 0.79 | 0.158 |
| 2010-11 Packers | 11 | 20 | 17 | 7 | 0.85 | 0.350 |
| 2007 Patriots | 5 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 1.00 | 0.571 |
| 2003-04 Patriots | 17 | 43 | 44 | 12 | 1.02 | 0.279 |
| 1997-98 Broncos | 8 | 16 | 21 | 2 | 1.31 | 0.125 |
| 1989-90 49ers | 7 | 11 | 20 | 5 | 1.82 | 0.455 |
The Packers pitched a shutout on their first 16 drives (had 7 takeaways), but in their last two games they allowed two touchdowns and a field goal to the Buccaneers and Giants.
Sunday’s loss in Kansas City ended another potentially record-setting Packers’ streak: Green Bay had gone 43 straight games with having at least a fourth quarter tie (34-9 record overall in those games). They had a fourth quarter lead in 40 of those 43 games. The last team to enter the fourth quarter with a lead and never lose it against Green Bay was Minnesota on 11/1/2009 (Favre’s return to Lambeau as a Viking).
The Loss that Ended the Streak
Every streak has its own way of coming to an end, but some trends are more common than others.| Team | Games | Season(s) | Loss | Opponent | Score | TO Diff |
| New England Patriots | 21 | 2003-04 | 10/31/2004 | at Pittsburgh (15-1) | 34-20 | -4 |
| Green Bay Packers | 19 | 2010-11 | 12/18/2011 | at Kansas City (6-8) | 19-14 | 0 |
| Chicago Bears | 18 | 1933-34 | 12/9/1934 | at NY Giants (8-5) | 30-13* | 1 |
| Chicago Bears | 18 | 1941-42 | 12/13/1942 | at Washington (10-1) | 14-6* | -2 |
| Miami Dolphins | 18 | 1972-73 | 9/23/1973 | at Oakland (9-4-1) | 12-7 | -1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 18 | 1989-90 | 11/25/1990 | LA Rams (5-11) | 28-17 | -4 |
| Denver Broncos | 18 | 1997-98 | 12/13/1998 | at NY Giants (8-8) | 20-16 | 1 |
| New England Patriots | 18 | 2007 | 2/3/2008 | vs. NY Giants (10-6) | 17-14* | 0 |
| Oakland Raiders | 17 | 1976-77 | 10/16/1977 | Denver (12-2) | 30-7 | -8 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 15 | 2004 | 1/23/2005 | New England (14-2) | 41-27* | -4 |
(*Asterisk on score denotes a playoff game)
The average margin of victory was 10.4 points, with the streaking team scoring on average just 14.1 points, and allowing 24.5 points.
Six losses came on the road, three at home, and one on a neutral field (Super Bowl XLII).
Every team except for the 2004 Steelers and Patriots was held to 17 points or less. Those two teams put up 20 and 27, but there was a bit of role reversal as each team went -4 in turnover differential (including a pick six) in the loss.
Six teams lost the turnover battle, two tied, and two more had a +1 advantage. No one had it worse with turnovers than the 1977 Raiders, as Ken Stabler threw 7 interceptions, which has happened just five times since 1960.
The ten teams to pull off the upset were a combined 97-48-1 (.668) in the regular season. The 2011 Chiefs became just the second with a losing record, though they do have a chance to finish 8-8.
The most shocking one of them all is likely the 1990 Los Angeles Rams, a 5-11 team, going into San Francisco and beating the 49ers by 11 points. Joe Montana threw three passes in the fourth quarter, and two of them were intercepted. In between, the Rams put together a 17 play, 90-yard touchdown drive that ate up 10:37 on the clock and gave them a 28-17 lead with 2:31 left. The only other two teams that lost at home were playing opponents with great records that would represent the AFC in the Super Bowl that season.
Conclusion
The Green Bay Packers put together one of the most impressive and unique winning streaks in NFL history. We may never see another one like it in our lifetime. Now that it’s over, the pressure of trying to win 25 straight games has been lifted, and they can focus on repeating as Super Bowl champions.Past precedent has been shown with teams like the 1973 Dolphins, 1998 Broncos and 2004 Patriots coming back from a loss to end their winning streak, and still going on to win their second straight Super Bowl.
Green Bay is still the favorite to join that club. They’re just no longer perfect.
Scott Kacsmar is a football researcher/writer who has contributed large quantities of data to Pro-Football-Reference.com, including the only standardized database of fourth quarter comebacks and game-winning drives. He thought about seeking out a Mercury Morris quote, but remembered it doesn’t matter what Mercury Morris thinks. You can send any questions or comments to Scott at smk_42@yahoo.com and you can follow him on Twitter at @CaptainComeback.
Read more: Aaron Rodgers, Chicago Bears, Fourth Quarter Comebacks, Game-Winning Drives, Green Bay Packers, Joe Montana, Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots, NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers
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