1989 Green Bay Packers season

1989 Green Bay Packers season
Head coach Lindy Infante
General manager Tom Braatz
Home field Lambeau Field
Milwaukee County Stadium
Results
Record 10–6
Division place 2nd NFC Central
Playoff finish did not qualify

The 1989 Green Bay Packers season was their 70th in the National Football League. The Packers posted a 10–6 record, their best since 1972, but failed to make the playoffs. The team was often referred to as the "Cardiac Pack" due to several close-game wins. The 1989 Packers hold the NFL record for most one-point victories in a season with four. The team was coached by Lindy Infante and led by quarterback Don Majkowski, who attained his nickname "The Majik Man."

Offseason

The Green Bay Packers selected Tony Mandarich with their first pick of the 1989 NFL Draft, passing on prospects such as Barry Sanders, Derrick Thomas, and Deion Sanders. Mandarich was a first-team All-American, an Outland Award finalist and a two-time Big Ten Lineman of the Year. Mandarich would later hold out most of the preseason, playing most of the regular season on special teams. Four years after signing Mandarich, the Packers cut him. ESPN rated Mandarich as the third biggest sports flop in the past 25 years.[1]

Round Selection Overall Player College Position
1 2 2 Tony Mandarich Michigan State T
3 2 58 Matt Brock Oregon DE
3 18 74 Anthony Dilweg Duke QB
4 3 87 Jeff Graham Long Beach State QB
5 12 124 Jeff Query Millikin WR
5 15 127 Vince Workman Ohio State RB
6 3 142 Chris Jacke Texas-El Paso K
7 2 169 Mark Hall SW Louisiana DE
8 3 198 Thomas King SW Louisiana DB
8 11 206 Brian Shulman Auburn P
9 2 225 Scott Kirby Arizona State T
10 3 254 Ben Jessie SW Texas State DB
11 2 281 Cedric Stallworth Georgia Tech DB
12 3 310 Stan Shiver Florida State DB

Personnel

Staff

1989 Green Bay Packers staff
Front office
  • President and Chief Executive Officer – Bob Harlan
  • Executive Vice President of Football Operations – Tom Braatz

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

  • Offensive Backs – Willie Peete
  • Wide Receivers – Wayne "Buddy" Geis
  • Tight Ends – Virgil Knight
  • Offensive Line – Charlie Davis
  • Offensive Assistant – Joe Clark
 Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • Special Teams – Howard Tippett

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and Conditioning – Virgil Knight

[2]

Roster

1989 Green Bay Packers roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

 Tight ends

Offensive linemen

 Defensive linemen

Linebackers

 Defensive backs

Special teams


Rookies in italics

Regular season

Although the Packers failed to make the Playoffs, they recorded their best record since 1972. The Packers finished 10–6, placing them second in the NFC Central. The Minnesota Vikings also finished 10–6, but held the tiebreaker due to a better conference record. The team finished with a 10–6 record for their first winning season since the strike shortended 1982 season. It was also the first club to record 4 1-point victories in a season. The club was 6–2 at home and 4–4 on the road.[3] The Packers offense had success due to a strong passing game, headed by quarterback Don Majkowski. Majkowski finished first in the NFL in passing yards and completions. He earned a bid to the NFL Pro Bowl. Wide receiver Sterling Sharpe finished the season first in receptions, and second in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. Sharpe would also earn a bid to the Pro Bowl.[4]

The Herschel Walker trade and the Packers

On October 8, 1989, the Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys, featuring star running back Herschel Walker. Four days later, the Cowboys traded Walker to the Minnesota Vikings, the next team on the Packers' schedule. Walker's debut with the Vikings occurred three days after the trade, on October 15, 1989, against the Packers. The Packers faced Walker for a third time during the regular season, on November 26, 1989, when the Packers played the Vikings again. These regular season games between the Packers and Walker occurred in three different cities: Green Bay, Minneapolis, and Milwaukee.

The Instant Replay game

See also: NFL Lore

On November 5, 1989, the Packers beat the Bears 14–13, but not without controversy. Don Majkowski led the Packers to a comeback and a game-winning touchdown pass to Sterling Sharpe with less than a minute left to play. Initially the play was called a touchdown, but line judge Jim Quirk had called a penalty on Majkowski for being beyond the line of scrimmage when he threw the pass. With a nervous and tense crowd at Lambeau Field, the call went up to the instant replay official, Bill Parkinson. Several minutes later the call came down and the touchdown was awarded as recorded by instant replay. The Lambeau faithful and Packer players erupted with joy because it marked the first time since 1984 that the Packers had beaten their long-time rivals. The Packers would later beat the Bears again in the season.[5] The game was broadcast on CBS with Dick Stockton and Dan Fouts on the call.

The last team to beat San Francisco

On November 19, 1989, the Packers traveled to Candlestick Park and beat Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers. It would be one of only two losses for the 49ers, and the last before the 49ers finished out the season 8–0, including a 55–10 victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXIV. In that game, the Packers matched their win total from the previous season (4–12). Although regarded at the time as a fluke, Green Bay would proceed to win 13 of the next 15 contests with San Francisco over the next 21 seasons.[6]

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Game site Attendance
1 September 10, 1989 Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 23–21 Lambeau Field
55,650
2 September 17, 1989 New Orleans Saints W 35–34 Lambeau Field
55,809
3 September 24, 1989 at Los Angeles Rams L 41–38 Anaheim Stadium
57,701
4 October 1, 1989 Atlanta Falcons W 23–21 Milwaukee County Stadium
54,647
5 October 8, 1989 Dallas Cowboys W 31–13 Lambeau Field
56,656
6 October 15, 1989 at Minnesota Vikings L 26–14 Metrodome
62,075
7 October 22, 1989 at Miami Dolphins L 23–20 Joe Robbie Stadium
56,624
8 October 29, 1989 Detroit Lions W 23–20 (OT) Milwaukee County Stadium
53,731
9 November 5, 1989 Chicago Bears W 14–13 Lambeau Field
56,556
10 November 12, 1989 at Detroit Lions L 31–22 Pontiac Silverdome
44,324
11 November 19, 1989 at San Francisco 49ers W 21–17 Candlestick Park
62,219
12 November 26, 1989 Minnesota Vikings W 20–19 Milwaukee County Stadium
55,592
13 December 3, 1989 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 17–16 Tampa Stadium
58,120
14 December 10, 1989 Kansas City Chiefs L 21–3 Lambeau Field
56,694
15 December 17, 1989 at Chicago Bears W 40–28 Soldier Field
44,781
16 December 24, 1989 at Dallas Cowboys W 20–10 Texas Stadium
41,265

Standings

NFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Minnesota Vikings(3) 10 6 0 .625 6–2 8–4 362 356 W1
Green Bay Packers 10 6 0 .625 5–3 10–4 351 275 W2
Detroit Lions 7 9 0 .438 4–4 6–6 312 364 W5
Chicago Bears 6 10 0 .375 2–6 4–8 358 377 L6
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 5 11 0 .313 3–5 5–7 320 419 L4

Season statistical leaders

Awards and records

Milestones

Hall of Fame Inductions

References

  1. ↑ ESPN 25 Biggest Sports Flops
  2. ↑ "All Time Coaches Database". Packers.com. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  3. ↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 266
  4. ↑ 1989 League Leaders – NFL from Pro-Football-Reference
  5. ↑ "Majik" Act Still A Big Hit With Packers Fans from 10/05/2004
  6. ↑ See 1989 San Francisco 49ers season
  7. ↑ 1989 Green Bay Packers Stats obtained 12/03/2006
  8. 1 2 3 4 1989 NFL Pro Bowlers – Pro-Football-Reference.com

External links

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