1968 was a season of transition for the Green Bay Packers.
Shortly after winning Super Bowl II, Vince Lombardi had resigned as Head Coach to focus solely on General Manager duties. After winning five titles in nine seasons on the field, Lombardi tucked himself away into an office, far away from the team he had constructed into a dynasty the likes of which the NFL had never seen.
His handpicked successor, longtime Defensive Coordinator Phil Bengston, was put in the nearly impossible position of having to follow a legend.
Bengston’s mild mannered coaching style (in comparision to the often volitile Lombardi) to go along with a team of aging veterans was a recipe for disaster for the new coach.
The spectre of Lombardi overseeing operations from high in his box at Lambeau Field did not help matters either.
The Packers floundred to a 6-7-1 record in 1968, their first losing season since 1958-the season before Lombardi took over.
The next two seasons did not fare much better for the Bengston led Packers. After going 8-6 in 1969 and 6-8 in 1970, Bengston was relieved of his head coaching duties.
The football dynasty Lombardi had spent nine years cultivating, was in ruins.
For this week’s Flashback Sunday, we are pleased to present highlights from two games during the 1968 season.
The Packers loss to the Los Angeles Rams 16-14 is the first “highlight reel” for your enjoyment (hint: click the link).
And the second is the Packers 14-10 loss to the Vikings (again, click the link).
When you are done watching this week’s videos, be sure to head over to AllGBP.com and check out Family Night First Impressions for a full run down on Family Night.
Following last night’s scrimmage, some of the questions surrounding the 2013 Packers have been answered a little bit. Eddie Lacy looks to the be the real deal, a bruising back the Packers have not seen in quite some time. Graham Harrell appears to have a strong hold on the number 2 quarterback job-for now anyways. And Datone Jones IS going to make a difference on a much maligned defense.
Then there’s Mason Crosby, who went a less than stellar 2/6 during the kicking competition period and 3/8 overall. After looking relatively confident during practice, Crosby wilted under the lights at Lambeau on Saturday night.
His competition, newcomer Giorgio Tavecchio, went 5/6 during the competition period and 6/7 for the evening.
Any advantage Crosby had going into Family Night disappeared in a matter of minutes.
Has the time come for the Packers to part ways with Crosby? That remains to be seen.
Hope everyone has a great Sunday!
GO PACK GO!
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John Rehor is a writer at PackersTalk.com.
He can also be heard as one of the Co-Hosts of Cheesehead Radio. ---------------------
