The Green Bay Packers hosted the Atlanta Falcons in the second week of the 1981 NFL season on September 13. Both teams had won in the first week against division rivals, with Green Bay defeating the Bears by a 16-9 tally and the Falcons shutting out New Orleans 27-0.
Expectations were greater for the visiting Falcons, who
topped the AFC West in ’80 with a 12-4 record before losing a close NFC
Divisional-round playoff game to the Cowboys. Coming into their fifth season
under Head Coach Leeman Bennett, Atlanta had a productive offense guided by QB
Steve Bartkowski (pictured above) and also featuring all-purpose FB William Andrews, wide
receivers Alfred Jenkins and Wallace Francis, and TE Junior Miller. The defense
was particularly strong at linebacker, including Al Richardson and Buddy Curry,
who both received Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in 1980.
Green Bay, coached by Bart Starr, was a disappointing
5-10-1 the previous year. QB Lynn Dickey was an able passer when healthy and
had an excellent receiver available in WR James Lofton. TE Paul Coffman was
also noteworthy and FB Gerry Ellis was an effective runner and receiver. The
defense had been riddled by injuries in 1980 and improvement was anticipated,
with the biggest concerns regarding the defensive backfield.
There were 55,382 fans in attendance at Lambeau Field and
for the first three quarters, they saw their team control the game. In the
first quarter, OT Karl Swanke, lined up as an eligible receiver, caught a
two-yard touchdown pass from Lynn Dickey. Jan Stenerud added the extra point.
Dickey tossed another scoring pass in the second quarter, this time to Gerry
Ellis from 11 yards out, and Stenerud again converted.
With time running out in the first half, Ellis ran 10
yards to the Atlanta six and the field goal unit quickly took the field.
However, Stenerud’s 32-yard kick was nullified because Swanke was not yet
properly set on the line at the snap. Still, the home team took a 14-0 lead
into halftime. Lynn Dickey had completed 16 of 20 passes for 208 yards and two
TDs, and the Packers outgained the Falcons by 288 yards to 173 and appeared to
be very much in command. In addition, Steve Bartkowski was playing with a
painful rib injury after a hard hit by DE Mike Butler in the first quarter.
The Packers turned conservative in the third quarter. The
only scoring came late in the period when Stenerud kicked a 44-yard field goal
to add to Green Bay’s lead. The Falcons finally got on the board early in the
fourth quarter when Mick Luckhurst kicked a 32-yard field goal, but it hardly
seemed of concern to the home fans.
The Packers had to punt on their next series and Ray
Stachowitz kicked a line drive that traveled 43 yards and was returned by WR
Reggie Smith, who raced past three defenders, picked up blockers as he reached
the right sideline, and gained 53 yards to the Green Bay two. William Andrews plunged
through the line for a touchdown on the next play and, with Luckhurst adding
the point after, it was a 17-10 game with 10:35 to play.
The ferocious blitzing of the Falcons again kept the
Packers in check on a three-and-out series and, getting the ball back, it took
Atlanta just two plays to advance 52 yards. Bartkowski threw to Alfred Jenkins
twice, first for 22 yards and then for a 30-yard TD, and Luckhurst’s conversion
tied the game at 17-17.
The time remaining was eight minutes as the reeling
Packers regained possession, and Dickey, under heavy pressure, attempted a
short and poorly-thrown pass that was intercepted by LB Fulton Kuykendall (pictured at left), who
returned it 20 yards for the go-ahead touchdown. Luckhurst added the point
after and, in a span of 4:24, the Falcons had scored 24 points to take a
seven-point lead.
Green Bay still had a shot at tying the game, but after a
Dickey throw to WR James Lofton picked up 27 yards, RB Terdell Middleton
fumbled after catching a short pass and LB Joel Williams picked up the loose
ball and ran 57 yards for the clinching touchdown. Luckhurst’s PAT capped the
stunning Atlanta rally which resulted in a total of 31 fourth quarter points to
win by a final tally of 31-17.
The Packers had the edge in total yards (396 to 335) and
first downs (22 to 19), but crucially, they netted only seven rushing yards in
the second half. Green Bay also turned the ball over five times, with two
leading directly to touchdowns in the final period, while the Falcons suffered
four turnovers. Atlanta recorded five sacks, to three by the Packers.
Steve Bartkowski completed 16 of 30 passes for 233 yards
and a touchdown, although he was intercepted four times. William Andrews rushed
for 87 yards on 19 carries that included a TD. Alfred Jenkins had five catches
for 97 yards and a touchdown and WR Wallace Francis also pulled in five passes,
for 88 yards.
For the Packers, Lynn Dickey was successful on 30 of 44
throws for 342 yards and two TDs, but was picked off three times. Gerry Ellis (pictured below) gained 59 yards on 9 rushing attempts and also caught 8 passes for 47 yards and
a score. James Lofton gained 179 yards on his 8 pass receptions. LB Rich Wingo
had 13 tackles as part of a defensive effort that stymied the Falcons for three
quarters.
“It all starts with Reggie’s return,” said Steve
Bartkowski, referencing the long punt return by Reggie Smith that led to
Atlanta’s first touchdown. “When you’re 17 points down, one big play is not
going to win for you. But that got us started.”
“We simply came apart at the seams there for a few
minutes,” said Green Bay’s Coach Starr. “It’s one thing to have points scored
against you. It’s another thing to have them scored like they did after that
long punt return, that interception and that long pass (to Jenkins).”
“The tide of a game is going to turn sometimes,” summed
up Lynn Dickey. “What happened to us today was a tidal wave.”
The Falcons won again the next week to reach 3-0 before
dropping four of their next five contests on the way to a disappointing 7-9
record that placed them a distant second to the 49ers in the AFC West. Green
Bay continued to struggle and was 2-6 at the season’s halfway point before
breaking out with six wins in the remaining eight games to break even at 8-8.
Steve Bartkowski had another Pro Bowl year, throwing for
3829 yards and 30 touchdowns, which made him the first NFL quarterback since
Y.A. Tittle in 1962-63 to reach 30 TD passes in consecutive seasons. However,
he also gave up 23 interceptions and was sacked 37 times. Alfred Jenkins was a
consensus first-team All-NFL as well as Pro Bowl selection, leading the league
with 1358 pass receiving yards and 13 touchdowns among his 70 catches. William Andrews placed second in all-purpose
yards with 2036 and earned his second Pro Bowl selection.
