packers11
11-24-2007, 10:18 PM
Big game excites Madden
Posted: Nov. 24, 2007
SportsDay
For broadcaster John Madden, the Green Bay Packers at Dallas Cowboys game Thursday at Texas Stadium stirs memories of earlier times in the National Football Conference.
"It reminds me of the days when we had Packer-Cowboy, Packer-49er, 49er-Dallas, then you had all those eastern division rivalries, that was when it was a lot of fun," Madden said. "You had rivalry games with great players in it, led by great quarterbacks. You are talking about Brett Favre, Troy Aikman, Joe Montana, Phil Simms. Those kinds of guys. You just wish you had more of them. Now it's fewer and far between. Those were good times.
"But now to see it again, Tony Romo against a Brett Favre. Green Bay Packers against the Dallas Cowboys. That's NFL football. That's pretty doggone good."
However, Madden said the unavailability of the NFL Network telecast of the Packers-Cowboys game is not any doggone good.
"To have a game of any magnitude and people not be able to see it, that's not what the NFL is all about," Madden said. "We have always had games available. We have never gone to pay-per-view or any of those types of things. To go in that direction where some fans can't see it, I think that has to be fixed."
Lambeau's greatest
In a new book by Cliff Christl and Dale Hofmann, "The 25 Greatest Moments in Lambeau Field History" (KCI Sports Publishing, 181 pages, $24.95), the Packers never lose.
"This book was written for an audience largely of Packer fans and, thus, the games were selected with that in mind," write the authors, former Journal Sentinel sportswriters who are now retired.
They ranked the Packers' victories at Lambeau based on three criteria, all weighted equally: stakes, historical significance and story lines.
Their top five:
1. 1967 Ice Bowl vs. Dallas (how can you resist reading an account titled: "Secrets of the Ice Bowl"?).
2. 1961 NFL championship vs. New York Giants.
3. 1996 NFC championship vs. Carolina.
4. 1965 NFL championship vs. Cleveland.
5. Lambeau debut game vs. Chicago on Sept. 29, 1957.
By decade, the games are bunched this way: '50s (2), '60s (6), '70s (2), '80s (4), '90s (9), and 2000s (2).
Robinson's way back
Fox Sports reporter Pam Oliver had a good feature about Packers kick returner and wide receiver Koren Robinson that aired Thanksgiving Day. It included comments from Robinson, his wife, former coach Mike Holmgren and teammate Brett Favre.
An interesting moment came when Oliver asked Robinson: "Are you an alcoholic?"
Said Robinson: "I don't think I am. But then again you have to define the word alcoholic. My meaning is - wake up needing it and can't function without it. That wasn't the case with me."
Holmgren, the Seattle Seahawks coach, blamed himself for failing to get through to Robinson when Robinson was with the Seahawks.
"I always looked at Koren's situation with me as my failure," Holmgren said. "I couldn't reach him like I have reached other young guys. I couldn't get the message across."
Microwave take
Jimmy Johnson of Fox, who used to coach the Cowboys, was asked to provide his snap analysis of why he thinks the Cowboys have an edge over the Packers in the upcoming game.
"I think the big difference in these two teams is the explosive players on Dallas' team," Johnson said. "Dallas has got so many players who can hit the home run."
Playing the part
A familiar face at televised celebrity golf events, Jack Wagner, tops Golf Digest's "Hollywood Top 100" list this year of the best golfers in film and television.
Heather Locklear, Wagner's girlfriend, is ranked 97th. Wagner's handicap is listed as +0.3.
Ranked behind Wagner are Lucas Black ("Sling Blade," 2.3 handicap), Billy Crudup (4.5), Craig T. Nelson (4.7) and Chris O'Donnell (5.2).
Dennis Quaid, who was ranked No. 1 last year, is ranked No. 9 this year with a 6.1 handicap.
Jack Nicholson, 70, who is featured on the cover of the magazine, says in an interview that he has played a few rounds with Michael Jordan, but he has been unable to play with Larry Bird.
"He won't (play),"Nicholson said, referring to Bird. "Talk about competitive. Bird won't play with what he calls us 'fatbellies.' "
Nicholson is ranked 47th on the list with a 12.5 handicap.
Posted: Nov. 24, 2007
SportsDay
For broadcaster John Madden, the Green Bay Packers at Dallas Cowboys game Thursday at Texas Stadium stirs memories of earlier times in the National Football Conference.
"It reminds me of the days when we had Packer-Cowboy, Packer-49er, 49er-Dallas, then you had all those eastern division rivalries, that was when it was a lot of fun," Madden said. "You had rivalry games with great players in it, led by great quarterbacks. You are talking about Brett Favre, Troy Aikman, Joe Montana, Phil Simms. Those kinds of guys. You just wish you had more of them. Now it's fewer and far between. Those were good times.
"But now to see it again, Tony Romo against a Brett Favre. Green Bay Packers against the Dallas Cowboys. That's NFL football. That's pretty doggone good."
However, Madden said the unavailability of the NFL Network telecast of the Packers-Cowboys game is not any doggone good.
"To have a game of any magnitude and people not be able to see it, that's not what the NFL is all about," Madden said. "We have always had games available. We have never gone to pay-per-view or any of those types of things. To go in that direction where some fans can't see it, I think that has to be fixed."
Lambeau's greatest
In a new book by Cliff Christl and Dale Hofmann, "The 25 Greatest Moments in Lambeau Field History" (KCI Sports Publishing, 181 pages, $24.95), the Packers never lose.
"This book was written for an audience largely of Packer fans and, thus, the games were selected with that in mind," write the authors, former Journal Sentinel sportswriters who are now retired.
They ranked the Packers' victories at Lambeau based on three criteria, all weighted equally: stakes, historical significance and story lines.
Their top five:
1. 1967 Ice Bowl vs. Dallas (how can you resist reading an account titled: "Secrets of the Ice Bowl"?).
2. 1961 NFL championship vs. New York Giants.
3. 1996 NFC championship vs. Carolina.
4. 1965 NFL championship vs. Cleveland.
5. Lambeau debut game vs. Chicago on Sept. 29, 1957.
By decade, the games are bunched this way: '50s (2), '60s (6), '70s (2), '80s (4), '90s (9), and 2000s (2).
Robinson's way back
Fox Sports reporter Pam Oliver had a good feature about Packers kick returner and wide receiver Koren Robinson that aired Thanksgiving Day. It included comments from Robinson, his wife, former coach Mike Holmgren and teammate Brett Favre.
An interesting moment came when Oliver asked Robinson: "Are you an alcoholic?"
Said Robinson: "I don't think I am. But then again you have to define the word alcoholic. My meaning is - wake up needing it and can't function without it. That wasn't the case with me."
Holmgren, the Seattle Seahawks coach, blamed himself for failing to get through to Robinson when Robinson was with the Seahawks.
"I always looked at Koren's situation with me as my failure," Holmgren said. "I couldn't reach him like I have reached other young guys. I couldn't get the message across."
Microwave take
Jimmy Johnson of Fox, who used to coach the Cowboys, was asked to provide his snap analysis of why he thinks the Cowboys have an edge over the Packers in the upcoming game.
"I think the big difference in these two teams is the explosive players on Dallas' team," Johnson said. "Dallas has got so many players who can hit the home run."
Playing the part
A familiar face at televised celebrity golf events, Jack Wagner, tops Golf Digest's "Hollywood Top 100" list this year of the best golfers in film and television.
Heather Locklear, Wagner's girlfriend, is ranked 97th. Wagner's handicap is listed as +0.3.
Ranked behind Wagner are Lucas Black ("Sling Blade," 2.3 handicap), Billy Crudup (4.5), Craig T. Nelson (4.7) and Chris O'Donnell (5.2).
Dennis Quaid, who was ranked No. 1 last year, is ranked No. 9 this year with a 6.1 handicap.
Jack Nicholson, 70, who is featured on the cover of the magazine, says in an interview that he has played a few rounds with Michael Jordan, but he has been unable to play with Larry Bird.
"He won't (play),"Nicholson said, referring to Bird. "Talk about competitive. Bird won't play with what he calls us 'fatbellies.' "
Nicholson is ranked 47th on the list with a 12.5 handicap.