Top 25 Green Bay Packers Games (and 5 Most Painful Losses) from 2004-2024

I have decided to take a break from writing about movies and television shows to focus on another hobby of mine – THE GREEN BAY PACKERS!!! WOOOOOOO! GO GREEN BAY! The 2024 NFL season has officially started, and I couldn't be more excited.  Last season, the Packers got off to a rough start (they lost four consecutive games and were 3 – 6 at the midway point) but managed to turn things around, thanks to the improved play of quarterback, Jordan Love, and snuck into the playoffs with a 9-8 record. Can Jordan Love continue this upward trajectory, or if he will suffer from a sophomore slump?

Like most people in my generation, it was the Packers of the 1990s that made me into a fan. I was born in 1979 and throughout most of my childhood the Packers were kind of lame.  They only had two winning seasons in the 1980s – in 1982, thanks to a strike shortened season (they went 5-3-1 and won a playoff game against the Cardinals) and in 1989 (they went 10-6 and just missed the playoffs).  

The Packers’ fortunes changed in 1992 with the arrival of Mike Holmgren (the former offensive coordinator of the 49ers) and Brett Favre (a gun slinging QB from Mississippi).  On September 20, 1992 – the Packers were playing the Bengals at Lambeau Field. The Packers had begun the season 0-2 and things seemed to take a turn for the worst when Packers QB (and fan favorite), Don Majkowski, was knocked out of the game. ENTER BRETT FAVRE. It was a sloppy game, but in the closing seconds Favre connected with Kiltrick Taylor to tie the score.  The Chris Jacke extra point gave the Packers the win and thus began the Brett Favre Era. Holmgren and Favre would inevitably deliver a Super Bowl championship to the city of Green Bay.

However, if you noticed the title of this post is the “Top 25 Green Bay Packers Games (and 5 Most Painful Losses) from 2004 – 2024. I specifically limited my list to the last twenty years for two reasons:

1) The last twenty years are far better etched in my memory. I can recall where I was when I watched these games and the joy/misery I felt after witnessing them. The last twenty years have been one of hell of a roller coaster ride – there have been a lot of ups and downs, plenty of excitement, and a good deal of heartbreak.  I went to my first Packers game in 2006, against the Cardinals, and it was one of the most exciting moments in my life – I drove down to Lambeau with my friend, Brad, and we bought tickets from a scalper ($80 apiece).  The Packers dominated the Cardinals that day; they won 31 – 14 and we got to witness Brett Favre do his first, and only, Lambeau Leap. The Packers had two 100-yard rushers that day, Ahman Green and Vernand Morency.  I would attend numerous Packers games since, but that first one still holds a special place in my heart (I would also like to forget about the last one – the Packers epic choke job against the 49ers in 2021 NFC Divisional Round, but I will get to that later).

2) There have been many documentaries and books written about the Lambeau, Lombardi, and Holmgren Eras that there is really nothing more I can add. Do we really need another recap of the Ice Bowl?  While I greatly appreciate the Packers’ history, I am far removed from most of it – it is a different experience reading about a game and watching highlights than it is witnessing it live.  Most fans can tell you where they were during Super Bowls XXXI and Super Bowl XLV, but few will remember the details of when they first watched the highlights of The Ice Bowl. You didn’t go to school the next day, walk up to a classmate, and ask, “Did you watch the NFL Films’ highlights of the Ice Bow, eh? It had me at the edge of my seat, der!”

Before I get on with the top 25, there are ten games that deserve honorable mentions. These were all exciting games, but just fell short of the top 25 (though I’m sure many Packers fans will disagree with me):

 
October 29, 2007 – Green Bay Packers 19, Denver Broncos 13 (overtime)
October 24, 2010 – Green Bay Packers 28, Minnesota Vikings 24
September 8, 2011 – Green Bay Packers 42, New Orlean Saints 34
January 1, 2012 – Green Bay Packers 45, Detroit Lions 41
November 9, 2014 – Green Bay Packers 55, Chicago Bears 14 (“The Sunday Night Massacre”)
December 3, 2015 – Green Bay Packers 27, Detroit Lions 23
January 10, 2016 (NFC Wild Card) – Green Bay Packers 35, Washington Redskins 18
January 16, 2021 (NFC Divisional) – Green Bay Packers 32, Los Angeles Rams 18
November 13, 2022 – Green Bay Packers 31, Dallas Cowboys 28 (overtime)
September 10, 2023 – Green Bay Packers 38, Chicago Bears 20

Without further ado, here are my Top 25 Packers Games (and 5 Most Painful Losses) of the last twenty years:   

1.        January 4, 2004 (NFC Wild Card)- Green Bay Packers 33, Seattle Seahawks 27

“We want the ball and we’re going to score.”
The Packers finished the 2003 season with a 10-6 record. They were a hot team going into the postseason; they won their four last games by significant margins and seemed to be a team of destiny. The day before the Packers faced the Raiders on Monday Night Football (December 22, 2003) Brett Favre’s father, Irv, passed away and there was talk on whether he would start. Of course, there was never doubt in Brett Favre’s mind and he proceeded to have the game of his life (his stats for the game were: 22/30 399 yards and 4 touchdowns).
 
Their opponent in the Wild Card Round was the Seattle Seahawks, who had multiple ties to Green Bay, including two former head coaches (Mike Holmgren – Seattle’s head coach - and Ray Rhodes – Seattle’s defensive coordinator) and Brett Favre’s former back up, Matt Hasselbeck.  The game was an exciting back and forth between two determined teams and eventually went into overtime. It was during the overtime coin toss that Matt Hasselbeck famously declared, “WE WANT THE BALL AND WE’RE GOING TO SCORE!!!”

 
In Hasselbeck’s defense, he did throw the game winning touchdown…. just to the wrong team. With over ten minutes left in overtime, Matt Hasselback dropped back and was intercepted by cornerback, Al Harris, who took it to the house for the game winning touchdown.  The following week, it would be Brett Favre who would throw a game losing interception in overtime, against the Philadelphia Eagles. His boneheaded throw helped set up the game winning field goal for the Eagles.  The Packers’ Cinderella-type season came to a brutal end. Though, had the defense done their job in regulation and stopped the Eagles on 4^th& 26, Favre’ s boneheaded interception would have never happened.

I must confess that the Mike Sherman Era is a complete blur to me. It was during this time that I was attending UW-Milwaukee for Film Studies and the Packers were mostly background noise to me in the early 2000s.  However, I still vividly recall the Wildcard game against the Seahawks – I watched it at my friend’s townhouse in Grafton and, afterwards, we were all convinced the Packers would be returning to the Super Bowl. Boy, were we stupid.

2.        December 31, 2006 - Green Bay Packers 26, Chicago Bears 7

“Packers’ defense holds Rex Grossman to a zero-passer rating.”
It was during the 2006 season that I got back into the Packers. This was largely because I had graduated from UW-Milwaukee, which opened my schedule up significantly, and the fact that I attended two games that year (a preseason game against the Titans and the regular season game against the Cardinals). 

The Packers were coming off a 4-12 season, which resulted in the firing of Mike Sherman. In the offseason, it was announced that Mike McCarthy would be the Packers new head coach. The season got off to a disastrous start, with a 26-0 loss to the Chicago Bears. The Packers were wildly inconsistent throughout the season but managed to rattle off three consecutive wins in the month of December. If they could beat the Chicago Bears on New Year’s Eve, they would end the season with an 8-8 record and on a high note.

The Bears, with their dominant defense and special teams, were 13-2 going into the game and were favorites to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl.  Bears’ coach, Lovie Smith, announced before the game that all his starters would be playing (at least for the first half).
The Bears’ biggest weakness was quarterback, Rex Grossman, who played at a Jekyll and Hyde-like level. In the first month of the season, Grossman looked like a shoo-in for the Pro Bowl. It was during the month of October that “Bad Rex” began to show his ugly face – he was a turnover machine. If it wasn’t for the solid play of the Bears defense and special teams, their season might have ended earlier than expected. However, in the month of December, “Good Rex” had returned to the fold – he went three consecutive games without throwing an interception.

On the Packers opening drive, Brett Favre drove the Packers offense seventy yards for the first touchdown of the game (to Donald Driver). The Packers offense was efficient against the Bears defense, but the story of the game was the Packers defense and the reemergence of “Bad Rex.”  Grossman’s first half stats were: 2/12 33 yards and THREE interceptions. He also had a fumble that was recovered by the Packers defense. Two of his interceptions were returned for touchdowns by Nick Collins and Patrick Dendy.  At halftime the score was Packers 23, Bears 0. At that point, Lovie Smith threw in the towel and had the backup QB, Brian Griese, finish the game.  Griese fared slightly better than Grossman – he did throw a touchdown pass but he was also picked off twice.

Never had an 8-8 season been so satisfying. The Packers avoided consecutive losing seasons and had something they could build on for next season. The Bears, for their part, did end up representing the NFC in the Super Bowl, but they fell to the Indianapolis Colts. “Bad Rex” had, once again, shown up at the wrong time. 

3.        September 9, 2007 – Green Bay Packers 16, Philadelphia Eagles 13

“The Packers finally beat the Eagles.”
This will probably be the more baffling pick on my list – after all, the Packers offense was inefficient on this day (they only had 215 yards of total offense) and all the points came from special teams (the sole touchdown came from Tracy White recovering an Eagles fumble in the endzone). It requires some context: throughout the early 2000s, the Eagles were a constant thorn in the Packers side. The last time the Packers had beaten the Eagles was in 2000, in a low scoring 6 – 3 snoozefest. From 2003 to 2006, the Eagles had beaten the Packers five consecutive times (including the infamous “4^th & 26” Divisional playoff loss).

The Eagles fell behind 10-0 early on but managed to tie things up in the second quarter.  Midway in the third quarter, the Eagles took a 13 – 10 lead with a David Akers field goal. This is when Packers fans began to feel a bit uneasy. Was their team going to lose to Eagles, yet again? This set the stage for one of most memorable plays in Brett Favre’s long career, while driving down the field, it looked like Favre was about the get sacked by the Eagles defense, but at the last second, he dumped the ball off to running back, DeShawn Wynn, who then scrambled eighteen yards for the first down. This ridiculous play helped set up Mason Crosby’s game tying 37-yard field goal. The game looked like it might be headed into overtime but then, with 1:09 left in the game, Eagles player, J.R. Reed, muffed a punt, which was recovered by Jarrett Bush. This set up Mason Crosby’s 47-yard game winning field goal. The Packers had finally vanquished the dreaded Eagles!

4.        September 23, 2007 – Green Bay Packers 31, San Diego Chargers 24

“The Packers humble the San Diego Chargers.”
The Packers had begun the 2007 season with a 2-0 record. However, there were still many in the sports media who were skeptical of the Packers’ success.
“Just wait until they play REAL competition,” they all sneered, “then they will finally be exposed as the frauds they truly are. There is no way they will beat the Chargers.”
To be honest, their skepticism wasn’t entirely unfounded. The Packers beating the Eagles and Giants were nice, but the San Diego Chargers were a different beast.
In 2006, they finished with a 14-2 season, led the league in scoring, and had LaDainian Tomlinson, the league MVP (he scored a record 31 touchdowns).  This was going to be a tall order for the Packers defense.

The game lived up to the hyped – the two teams changed leads multiple times and with a little over two minutes left in game the Packers lead 24 – 21.  The Chargers took over at their own 21, with plenty of time left to either tie or win the game. However, their dreams of a comeback were short lived when, on the fourth play of the drive, Chargers QB, Phil Rivers, was picked off by the Packers linebacker, Nick Barnett, who returned the ball to the Chargers 2-yard line. Two plays later, Packers running back, Brandon Jackson, punched the ball into the endzone for the game winning down. The Chargers did add another field goal to their point total, but it came too little too late.  Brett Favre played an exception game, completing 28 out of 45 passes, throwing for 369 yards and three touchdowns. It appeared that, after two subpar seasons, the Pack was Back.

5.        November 22, 2007 (Thanksgiving) – Packers 37, Detroit Lions 26

       “Brett Favre completes twenty consecutive passes.”
Going into the Thanksgiving Game, the Detroit Lions looked like they might be a formidable opponent: they were 6 – 4 and a win on Thanksgiving would only put them two games behind the Packers in the divisional standings. Unfortunately, for Jon Kitna and the Lions, they just couldn’t cool Brett Favre’s hot hand – at one point in the game, Favre completed twenty consecutive passes.  The Lions did manage to make it a one score game late in the 4^th quarter (34 – 26) but any chance of mounting a comeback was dashed by Favre and company putting together a five-minute drive which ended with a Mason Crosby field goal. Sadly, after a promising 6­-2 start, the Lions completely fell off the map and finished the season with a 7-9 record.

6.        January 12, 2008 (NFC Divisional) – Green Bay Packers 42, Seattle Seahawks 20

“Packers overcome a rough start and rout the Seahawks. Also, Favre’s last win with the Packers.”
The Packers had finished the 2007 season with a 13-3 record and were the number two seed. Their opponent in the NFC Divisional Round would, once again, be the Seattle Seahawks.  The Seahawks were coming off a 35-14 win against the Washington Redskins, in the Wild Card Round, and were looking to avenge the 2004 playoff loss against the Packers. 

The game got off to a disastrous start for the Packers, with two Ryan Grant fumbles being converted into touchdowns by the Seattle Seahawks.
“How would this Packers team respond?” asked Daryl “Moose” Johnston in the booth. The answer: brilliantly. Brett Favre calmly led his team down the length the field and found Greg Jennings for a touchdown to cut the deficit down to seven. The Packers defense began to assert itself and gave the ball back to their offense, who tied the game 14 – 14 with a Ryan Grant touchdown. In fact, the Packers offense would score on six consecutive drives and blow out the Seahawks 42 – 20. Ryan Grant went from being the goat of the game (with his two fumbles) to being the hero after rushing for 201 yards and three touchdowns. Favre was also incredibly efficient:  18/23 173 yards and 3 touchdowns.  This would be Brett Favre’s last hurrah with the Green Bay Packers - after this dominating performance it seemed like the Packers were destined for the Super Bowl, but then the New York Giants happened (but more on that later).

7.        September 8, 2008 – Green Bay Packers 24, Minnesota Vikings 19

“The Aaron Rodgers Era officially begins with a win over the hated Vikings.”
After the overtime loss to the Giants in the NFC Championship Game, Brett Favre announced his retirement, and the Packers organization were ready to move onto Aaron Rodgers. Brett Favre gave a long, teary eyed press conference and all of Wisconsin wept, but then rumors began to swirl that Favre wanted to un-retire and come back. Finally, after weeks of speculation, Brett Favre announced that he, indeed, intended to come back into league. This created a huge rift between the Packers Organization (who wanted to move onto Aaron Rodgers) and the Favre Faithful in the fanbase. Finally, after months of bickering between both sides, the Packers traded Brett Favre to the New York Jets for a conditional fourth round pick. This created a huge divide in the fanbase – many of whom migrated to the New York Jets to follow Favre while actively cheering against Aaron Rodgers.

It is important to remember how much pressure Rodgers was at the start of the 2008 season – the media and fanbase were scrutinizing his every move and one misstep on the field would immediately be used against him.  In week one, the Packers were slated to play their divisional rival, The Minnesota Vikings, at Lambeau Field. The Vikings had a legitimate superstar with running back, Adrian Peterson and had the best run defense in the league. However, their quarterback, Tarvaris Jackson, was serviceable at best. 

Aaron Rodgers had a solid outing: 18/22 178 yards and one touchdown pass. He also had a rushing touchdown with six minutes in the 4^th quarter that gave the Packers a 24 – 12 edge. The most famous aspect of the broadcast was the announcer, Tony Kornheiser, making a Brett Favre reference every time Rodgers was on the field. When Rodgers threw a touchdown pass to Korey Hall, Kornheiser gushed, “OH MY GAWD!!! Doesn’t that remind you of Brett Favre?”
When Rodgers snuck the ball in for the touchdown, instead of referencing Bart Starr’s QB sneak in the Ice Bowl, he once again brought up Brett Favre. In fact, despite Aaron Rodger’s solid outing, he was still baffled as to why the Packers would choose him over Favre.
“How could you not want Brett Favre? HELLO! He said wanted to come back!”

With 2:30 left in the game, the Vikings managed to pull within five points of the Packers. However, their last chance at pulling off a miraculous comeback was thwarted by Atari Bigby, who picked off Tavaris Jackson’s pass with 1:08 left in the game. Aaron Rodgers took a couple of kneel downs and won his first start as an NFL QB. Unfortunately, the rest of the season wasn’t quite as memorable – the Packers finished with a 6 – 10 record, while the Vikings won the division with a 10-6 record. However, the 2008 season did prove that Rodgers could play in the league and, after he cleaned up a few things, could potentially be one of the best.

8.        November 15, 2009 – Green Bay Packers 17, Dallas Cowboys 7

“The Packers turn around their season by beating the hot Dallas Cowboys.”
Packers fans tend to engage in revisionist history regarding Aaron Rodgers. If you listened to the average Packers fan, you would believe that Aaron Rodgers was ALWAYS a Pro Bowl caliber QB. What they conveniently forget is that for his first season and a half as a starter, the Packers struggled (they had a 10 – 14 record).  In 2009, Packers fans’ worst nightmare came true when former Packers QB, Brett Favre, after another offseason contemplating retirement, signed with their hated rivals, The Minnesota Vikings.  The Packers began the season with a 4-4 record (two of those losses came at the hands of the Minnesota Vikings).  It also didn’t help that their four wins came against opponent with losing records.  If the Packers were to make the playoffs, they would have to turn their season around, quickly. Their first test would come in the form of the Dallas Cowboys.

      This would be no easy test – the Cowboys entered into this week ten match up with a 6-2 record and four game winning streak.   The Packer’s defense was going to have to pressure Cowboys QB, Tony Romo – the NFL’s new golden boy, and contain the Cowboys running backs (Marion Barber III and Felix Jones).  MISSION ACCOMPLISHED. The first three quarters were a defensive struggle (The Packers had a 3 -0 lead at the start of the 4^th).  The Packers offense finally came to life in the 4^th quarter and scored two touchdowns (a one-yard Aaron Rodgers run, and a two-yard touchdown pass from Rodgers to tight end, Spencer Havner – that was set up by a strip sack of Tony Romo by Charles Woodson). The defense played their best game of the season; they sacked Tony Romo five times and forced three turnovers. The Dallas Cowboys scored a garbage time touchdown in the closing seconds of the game, which made the game look closer than it was. This game was significant for two reasons:
1. It turned around the Packers seasons – they would go 7-1 in their last eight games and quality for the postseason.
2. It was the game that kicked off the Packers dominance over the Cowboys. Since this game, the Packers are 10- 1 (including the playoffs) against the Cowboys. In fact, this is the first of five games against the Cowboys that appear on this list. They have played a lot of epic games against each other (though, I’m sure Cowboys fans will disagree with that statement).

 

9.        January 10, 2010 (NFC Wild Card) – Arizona Cardinals 51, Green Bay Packers 45

“Packers lose to the Cardinals in overtime in one of the most exciting games ever played.”
This is the only loss that appears on this list. There are postseasons losses that are so painful that, years later, they still hurt. All sorts of “What Ifs” go through your mind, especially when you realize how close your team was to playing in the Super Bowl.
Then there are playoffs losses you can live with and even, in hindsight, learn to appreciate – the 2009 NFC Wild Card loss against the Arizona Cardinals is one of these games. 

The game had all the makings of a blowout – at the start of the third quarter, the Cardinals led the Packers 31 – 10.  However, the Packers rallied back and were able to tie the game 45 – 45 and force it into overtime. Of course, Packers fans know what happened next – the Cardinals Michael Adams sacked Rodgers and forced a fumble, that ball was scooped by Karlos Dansby and returned for a seventeen-yard touchdown (though, the refs missed a blatant facemask on Aaron Rodgers). However, despite the rather anti-climactic ending, Aaron Rodgers played remarkably well in his first playoff game: 28/42 423 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. These are the kind of numbers that normally win games, but unfortunately for Aaron Rodgers, Cardinals’ QB, Kurt Warner, played a near perfect game; he had more touchdowns passes (five) than incompletions (four).  The game was a downer at the time, but there was no denying it was one of the most exciting games ever played; plus, even if the Packers would have beaten the Cardinals, they would have matched up poorly against the New Orlean Saints and Minnesota Vikings. It was, oddly enough, this game that sold me on Aaron Rodgers – despite the poor offensive start, he never gave up and played his heart out. If the defense could play better, then there was a good chance this team could win a championship. 

 

10.   January 9, 2011 (NFC Wild Card) – Green Bay Packers 21, Philadelphia Eagles 16

“Tramon Williams picks off Michael Vick to seal a Packers victory.”
Going into the 2010 season, the Packers were heavy favorites to win the Super Bowl; this was largely due to quality play of Aaron Rodgers. However, late in the season, the Packers were 8-6 and were on the outside looking in at the playoff hunt – injuries to key Packers’ players threatened to derail their season.  They would need to win their last two games to even hope to qualify for the sixth seed – the first opponent they faced was the dreaded New York Giants, who were also vying for the sixth seed and were coming off an embarrassing loss to the Philadelphia Eagles (they managed to blow a 21-point fourth quarter lead). The Packers humbled the Giants by beating them 45 – 17. Even worse for the Giants’ players is that they would be stuck in Wisconsin for an additional day due to the bad weather. 

The following week, the Packers faced their hated rivals, The Chicago Bears, who had already won the division and wrapped up the number two seed.  However, despite having everything wrapped up, Bears’ coach, Lovie Smith, announced he was going to play his starters and was determined to knock Green Bay out of the playoffs. What followed was an epic defensive battle – The Bears led 3-0 at the half.  I will admit that as a Packers’ fan, I always dreaded playing against the Lovie Smith Bears – he understood the importance of the rivalry and his teams ALWAYS gave the Packers a hard time. In 2007, two out of the three Packers’ losses came against the Chicago Bears.  There was rarely an easy win against the Bears when Lovie Smith was the coach. The Packers tied the game 3-3 late in the third quarter. Finally, early in the 4^th quarter, Aaron Rodgers was able to connect with Donald Lee for a one-yard touchdown, which gave the Packers a 10-3 lead. Late, in the 4^th quarter, the Bears were driving and threatening to tie the game, when Packers’ safety, Nick Collins, picked off Bear’s QB, Jay Cutler, at the Green Bay eleven-yard line to ice the game.  THE PACKERS WON AND WERE IN THE PLAYOFFS!!!

The first team they would play in the 2010 postseason was the Philadelphia Eagles, led by the much-improved quarterback, Michael Vick. The Eagles were one of the more exciting teams in the league but limped into the playoffs by inexplicably losing their last two games to vastly inferior opponents (The Minnesota Vikings and Dallas Cowboys, both of whom finished the season with 6-10 records).  This was the Packers opportunity to avenge the “4^th & 26” loss to the Eagles in the 2003 Divisional Round. Which, at the time, was still the most EMBARRASSING postseason loss by Packers (boy, times have changed).  

Aaron Rodgers played a solid game (18/27 180 yards and 3 TD), but the story of the game was running back, James Starks, who rushed for 123 yards on 23 carries. In the regular season, Starks only had 29 carries for 101 yards, but on this day, he looked like a Pro Bowler.
However, despite the solid play by Rodgers and Stark, the Packers’ offense failed to put the game away (they led 21 – 16) and late in the game, The Eagles had the ball and were threatening to take the lead. Michael Vick had driven the Eagles to the Packers’ 27-yard line, with a minute left on the clock. Would the Packers suffer another humiliating loss to the Eagles? On the next play, Michael Vick made an ill-advised throw, intended for Riley Cooper, that was picked off by Packers’ cornerback, Tramon William, to seal the Packers’ victory. The Packers had won their first playoff game in the Rodgers Era, in a highly dramatic fashion, and now had to prepare for the Atlanta Falcons.

 

11.   January 15, 2011 (NFC Divisional) – Green Bay Packers 48, Atlanta Falcons 21

“Packers embarrass the top seeded Falcons in Atlanta. Aaron Rodgers plays a near perfect game.”

The Atlanta Falcons were the top seeded team in the NFC, they had amassed a 13-3 record and had beaten the Packers earlier in the season, 20 – 17.  The Falcons were an unremarkable team, but they managed to beat teams by playing mistake free football and controlling the time of position.  In their first matchup with the Falcons, the Packers had outgained Atlanta by 124 yards, but costly penalties (eight total) and an Aaron Rodgers fumble in the redzone had sealed their doom.  Falcons QB, Matt Ryan, had been given the nickname “Matty Ice” by the Atlanta fan base and media, because of his ability to come through in the clutch. Unfortunately, that ability which had served the Falcons well in the past, was nowhere to be found in the NFC Divisional Round. This was also another opportunity for the Packers to avenge a playoff loss in the past – in the 2002 postseason, Michael Vick and the Atlanta Falcons came to Lambeau Field and completely embarrassed the Packers 27-7. This game was significant because this would be the first home playoff loss suffered by the Packers. Prior to this game, the Packers had gone 13-0 in home playoff games. After this loss, they would go 7-7 in home playoff games – The Lambeau Mystique had been shattered. On January 15, 2011, the Green Bay Packers were looking to return the favor to the Falcons.

The game initially seemed to be going in Atlanta’s favor – the Falcons converted a Greg Jennings fumble into a touchdown (a twelve-yard rush by Michael Turner). Aaron Rodgers and company responded with a touchdown drive of their own (a six-yard pass from Rodgers to Jordy Nelson). The Packers’ celebration was short lived when, on the next play, Eric Weems returned the kickoff 102 yards for a touchdown. This is the type of play that could easily demoralize the team; in fact, the Packers special teams had demoralized the team a few times in the regular season. However, Aaron Rodgers kept a cool head and calmly led his team down the length of the field for the game tying touchdown. It would be all Packers from here on out.

The game was still competitive going into the half, the score was Packers 21, Falcons 14. Matt Ryan was attempting to get the Falcons in field goal range in the closing seconds of the first half, but his pass intended for Roddy White was picked off by Tramon Williams, who returned it for a touchdown. At half time, the score was 28 – 14 in favor of the Packers. In the second half, Rodgers and the offense did not let up and, when the final whistle blew, the Packers had thoroughly beaten the Falcons 48 – 21. Aaron Rodgers played a near perfect game:  31/36 366 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Falcons’ offense, who had played mistake free football all season long, turned the ball over four times and lost the time of possession battle (the Packers controlled the ball for 38:19 minutes to the Falcons 21:41).  Matty Ice had melted under the spotlight of the NFL postseason. Though, the Falcons would suffer a far more traumatizing loss six years later.   

12.   January 23, 2011 (NFC Championship Game) – Green Bay Packers 21, Chicago Bears 14

“Packers beat their most hated rivals for a trip to the Super Bowl.”
The Packers were only one game away from returning to the Super Bowl, the only team that stood in their way was the Chicago Bears. I was a bit hesitant to put this game on this list, because, in all honesty, it should have been a blow out for the Packers. The Packers jumped out to a 14 – 0 lead and Bears QB, Jay Cutler, was knocked out of the game (after having thrown two interceptions). The Bears put in their back up, Todd Collins, and it was a complete disaster. Lovie Smith had no choice but to put in the third stringer, Caleb Hanie.

 This should have been an easy win for the Packers but, as I mentioned before, there was no such thing as an easy win against Lovie Smith’s Bears.  Despite being down two scores and without their starting quarterback, the Bears defense stiffened in the second half.  A potential game ending drive by the Packers was thwarted by Bears’ middle linebacker, Brian Urlacher, who picked off an Aaron Rodgers pass and returned it to middle field (only an amazing tackle by Aaron Rodgers prevented Urlacher from taking it to the house). 
Much to the annoyance of Packers’ fans, at the start of the 4^th quarter, the Bears managed to make it a one score game after Bears running back, Chester Taylor, ran the ball in for a one-yard touchdown; the score was 14 – 7.  A few minutes later, the Packers’ faithful breathed a sigh of relief after the Packers’ nose tackle, B.J. Raji, picked off a Hanie pass and returned it for an 18-yard touchdown. 

However, their celebration was short lived when, less than two minutes later, Caleb Hanie and company drove the ball down the field in six plays and scored a touchdown to once again make it a one score game.  What in the hell was going on? The Packers offense, on their next drive, went three and out (a tendency that would plague the entire Aaron Rodgers Era) and it would be up to the Packers’ defense to win the game. The Bears offense drove all the way down to the Packers’ 27-yard line with 1:15 left on the clock.  It was 4^th & 5 and the Bears’ offense needed one more play to keep their Super Bowl dreams alive.  Unfortunately, for them, their dreams were dashed when Packers’ defensive back, Sam Shields, intercepted a Caleb Hanie pass that was intended for Johnny Knox. THE PACKERS WON!!!!! THEY WERE GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL!!!! 

13.   February 6, 2011 (Super Bowl XLV) – Green Bay Packers 31, Pittsburgh Steelers 25

“Packers win the Super Bowl.”
After thirteen years, the Packers were going back to the Super Bowl. Their last appearance (Super Bowl XXXII) ended in disappointment, with them falling to the underdog, Denver Broncos, 31 – 24. This loss would mark the beginning of the end of the Holmgren Era; the following season, they would go 11-5 and lose in the NFC Wild Card to the San Francisco 49ers. After this heartbreaking loss, Holmgren would leave for Seattle, Reggie White would briefly retire (before playing for the Panthers for one seasons) and the Packers would spend the next few seasons in limbo. The Packers would consistently make the postseason but were always denied that ticket to the Super Bowl.

In 2010 postseason, they finally punched that ticket to the Super Bowl by winning three straight road games. This still wasn’t good enough for the Favre Faithful/Aaron Rodgers skeptics, who would only be satisfied if, and ONLY IF, the Packers won the Super Bowl.
There were the usual rumblings for the anti-Rodgers pundits, “Brett Favre would have easily won multiple Super Bowls with this Packers team.”  Ignoring the fact that Favre failed to make it to the Super Bowl in 2007 (with the Packers) and 2009 (with the Vikings). In both NFC Championship Games, he threw a bone headed interception which cost both teams a trip to the big game. A Super Bowl win would finally allow Rodgers to step out of Brett Favre’s shadow and take his place among the elite quarterbacks.

The Packers’ opponents would be the Pittsburgh Steelers, who were already two-time Super Bowl champs (Super Bowl XL and Super Bowl XLIII). The Steelers had a franchise QB in Ben Roethlisberger but were defined by their hard-hitting defense (who were number one in scoring and number two in total defense).  In the 2005 postseason, the Steelers had become the first sixth seeded team to win the Super Bowl and now, five years later, they were facing an opponent looking to perform an identical feat.

In the first half, had all the makings of a rout after the Packers jumped up on the Steelers 21 – 3 (one those scores included a memorable pick six by Packers safety, Nick Collins). However, the Packers got bitten by the injury bug when receiver, Donald Driver, and safety, Charles Woodson, getting knocked out of the game. Woodson would spend the entire second half watching from the sideline, with his arm in a sling. The Steelers, much like the Bears two weeks earlier, proved to be a resilient bunch and, at the start of the 3^rd quarter, managed to pull within four points of the Packers, making the score 21 – 17. The Packers offense stalled for the entire third quarter. Meanwhile, across the country, Packers fans were pulling their hair and screaming at their televisions, “DON’T F___ THIS UP! DO SOMETHING, PLEASE!!!!”  The Packers defense would hear their pleas and, at the start of the 4^th quarter, Packers linebacker, Clay Matthews, and defensive end, Ryan Picket, slammed into Steelers’ running back, Rashard Mendenhall, and forced a fumble that was recovered by linebacker Desmond Bishop, who returned the ball to the Green Bay 45. Eight plays later, Aaron Rodgers would find receiver, Greg Jennings, in the end zone for an eight-yard touchdown pass. The Packers were up 28-17 with 11:57 left in the game.
However, those pesky Steelers refused to give up and four minutes later, they pulled within three points, after Ben Roethlisberger connected with Mike Wallace for a 25-yard touchdown, and receiver, Antwaan Randle El, executed a perfect two-point conversion. 

There were seven and a half minutes left in Super Bowl XLV and the Packers offense desperately needed to step up and give the defense a breather.  The drive got off to a disastrous start after Rodgers was sacked by Steelers defense end, Evander Hood, for a loss of four yards.  On the next play, Rodgers found receiver Jordy Nelson for a nine-yard game, however, a false start penalty against left guard, Daryn Colledge, moved the offense back five yards. Aaron Rodgers was facing a 3^rd and 10 at his own 25-yard line, against one of the premier defenses, and with Ben Roethlisberger, a QB who frequently came up in the clutch, staring on from the sidelines; a three and out at this moment would be devastating.
Packers’ fans anxiously chewed on their nails and prayed to the heavens as the Packers’ offense broke the huddle – this was the moment of truth. Aaron Rodgers rewarded their faith by completing a 31-yard pass to Greg Jennings which kept the drive alive and, more importantly, kept the game clock ticking. The drive stalled at the Steelers’ five-yard line and the Packers were forced to settle for a Mason Crosby field goal. The score was Packers 31, Steelers 25. 

The Steelers had about two minutes left on the clock to put together a game winning drive. The Steelers were built for this type of scenario: in Super Bowl XLIII, with 2:37 remaining in the game, the Steelers were trailing the Arizona Cardinals 23 – 20.  Ben Roethlisberger and company took over at their own 22-yard line and, eight play later Big Ben found receiver, Santonio Holmes, in the corner of the endzone for the go-ahead touchdown. The final score was Steelers 27, Cardinals 23.  However, history would not repeat itself for the Pittsburgh Steelers; the Packers defense stood its ground, and the Steelers offense would turn the ball over on downs at their own 33-yard line. THE PACKERS WERE SUPER BOWL CHAMPS!!!! WOOOOOOOO!!!! Aaron Rodgers was awarded the game MVP and Packers fans across the nation celebrated nonstop for the next 24 hours. It was a good time to be a Packers’ fan.

14.   December 15, 2013 – Green Bay Packers 37, Dallas Cowboys 36

“Packers overcome a 23-point deficit and beat the Cowboys, thanks to questionable coaching by Jason Garrett.”
The Green Bay Packers followed their Super Bowl victory with a 15-1 season and pulled off an epic choke job in the Divisional Round against the 9-7 New York Giant. They went 11-5 in the 2012 season, beat the Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Card Round, and then got humiliated by the 49ers in the Divisional Round (45 – 31).  49ers quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, ran all over the hapless Green Bay defense and the Packers offense disappeared in the second half (they did manage to pad their stats by scoring a garbage touchdown in the final minutes of the game).

The Packers began the 2013 season with a 5-2 start. In week eight, they were facing the Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field. This was a different looking Chicago Bears team – Lovie Smith had been fired after the 2012 season after the Bears failed to make the postseason (despite having a 10-6 record).  The 2012 Bears got off to a 7-1 start, but fell apart in the second half, hence the reason for Lovie’s dismissal. The coach they hired to replace Lovie was Marc Trestman, who had spent the last five seasons coaching in the Canadian Football League. Trestman was an offensive minded coach and was hired to improve the Bears’ stagnant offense. In his first season, he succeeded in that goal – the Bears ended the season number two in scoring and eighth in total offense.  This Monday Night Matchup also had playoff ramifications – the Bears were 4-3 and were hoping to tie with Packers and Lions in the divisional standings. The Packers’ worst nightmare came true when, on the opening drive, Aaron Rodgers was knocked out of the game with a collarbone injury. He would not only miss the rest of the game but most of the season, as well. Despite a heroic effort from running back Eddie Lacy (who rushed for 150 yards), the Packers fell to the Bears 27 – 20. 

The Packers would lose their next two games – against the Eagles, Packers backup QB, Seneca Wallace, would get knocked out of the game with injury and be replaced with Scott Tolzien, who threw a nice deep ball but was also a turnover machine. After playing musical chairs at QB, the Packers finally brought back former back up, Matt Flynn (who had a set a Packers’ record for passing yards (480) and touchdowns (6) against the Lions on New Year’s Day, 2012). With Flynn at the helm, the Packers overcame a 16-point deficit against the Minnesota Vikings and tied the game, effectively keeping their playoff hopes alive.  Four days later, they were playing in Detroit for the Thanksgiving game.  The Lions destroyed the Packers, 40 – 10. This humiliating loss seemed to put a cork in the Packers playoff hopes. 
Ten days later, Flynn and company overcame an 11-point deficit and beat the Atlanta Falcons, 22 – 21 (I was at this game with my friends, and it was freezing. Also, it was snowing heavily, which led to bad driving conditions. The drive home was miserable, but the exciting come from behind win made it worthwhile).

This set up the stage for one of the most exciting, and improbable wins, in Green Bay Packers history. The Packers went into AT&T stadium as four-point underdogs. The Dallas Cowboys were a wildly inconsistent team, they were 7-6 going into this game and were coming off a 45-28 loss to the Chicago Bears. The Dallas Cowboys suffered from a porous defense (they would finish the season ranked 32 in total yards). This meant that a lot of pressure was put on Tony Romo to win games. Tony Romo was a statistical monster, but he also tended to turn the ball over at the most inopportune moments. Earlier in the season, he had played brilliantly against the high-flying Denver Broncos (he threw for over 500 yards and five touchdowns), but an interception late in the game helped set up a game winning field goal by Broncos kicker, Matt Prater.  Fair or not, the “Choker” label haunted Romo his entire NFL career. 

In the first half of the game, the Cowboys defense looked like an elite unit – they had stifled the Packers offense and held them to a field goal. At half time, the game appeared to be over, the Cowboys had a commanding 26 – 3 lead over the Packers. However, the Cowboys were experts in the art of “snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.”  The second half of the game was defined by Cowboys coach, Jason Garrett, making some of the most baffling calls in NFL history. Coming sense dictates that if your team is playing with a huge lead, you want to run the ball as much as possible and keep the clock running. Garrett did the exact opposite, he abandoned the run and kept on passing the ball. What made this decision even more baffling was that Cowboys running back, Demarco Murray, was gashing the Packers defense (he had 134 yards on 18 carries). Yet, Garrett was hell bent on throwing the ball.  To shake things up a little bit, let’s look at the second half of the game from the point of view of a Dallas Cowboys fan:

When the Packers scored at the start of the third quarter, they probably shrugged it off.
“No worries, we got this game under the control. This is Matt Flynn we’re facing, not Aaron Rodgers.”
After the Cowboys kicked a field goal to make the score 29 – 10,
“THREE SCORE GAME!!! Yup! This game is in the bag.
After Matt Flynn found tight end, Andrew Quarless, in the end zone for a touchdown to pull within twelve points.
“It’s getting closer than I like, but we still got this. It’s not like Matt Flynn is going to turn into Aaron Rodgers.”
Less than three minutes later, after James Stark rushes in the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown.
“WHAT IN THE HELL IS GOING ON? ALSO, WHY AREN’T WE RUNNING THE BALL?”
A few minutes later, they breathe a sigh of relief after Tony Romo hits receiver Dez Bryant with a five-yard touchdown pass.
“PHEEWWWWW!!!!”
However, they soon realize their team is not out of danger yet, after Matt Flynn connects with receiver, James Jones, to pull within five points, making the score, Cowboys 36, Packers 31.
“OKAY! We just need to close out the game. Just hand the ball off to Demarco Murray a few times and we should be good. Wait!!!  WHY ARE WE STILL PASSING? What are you doing, Tony Romo?  SON OF A B_______!!!! Did he just throw an interception? HE DID!!! Unbelievable.”
A few minutes later, Eddie Lacy scores the go-ahead touchdown for the Packers, making the score, Packers 37, Cowboys 36.
“OKAY! There is still plenty of time on the clock. We just need a field goal to win this thing. Now, is the time for Tony Romo to………. DID HE JUST THROW ANOTHER INTERCEPTION?”

In all fairness to Tony Romo, the second interception by Tramon Williams was an incredible play – Romo’s pass looked like it was going to fall incomplete, but Williams dove at the ball and managed to snatch and secure it before it hit the ground. Matt Flynn then took a couple of kneel downs and the Packers had successfully completed their greatest come from behind win in franchise history. More importantly, this win over the Cowboys kept their playoff hopes alive.

15.   December 29, 2013 – Green Bay Packers 33, Chicago Bears 28

“Rodgers to Cobb on 4^th & 8.”
The Packers followed up their dramatic win against the Cowboys by falling to the Pittsburgh Steelers in an exciting 38 – 31 slugfest. Despite this stumbling block, the Packers playoff hopes were still alive, thanks to a Detroit Lions late season collapse and the Chicago Bears getting blown out by the Philadelphia Eagles, 54 – 11.

The Detroit Lions collapse was truly baffling – they had a 7-5 record going into the month of December and had a winnable schedule coming up – if they could win two of these games, the division would be theirs. However, it wasn’t to be, and the Lions lost all four games – their last three losses came by a grand total of six points. This late season collapse led to the firing of Lions’ head coach, Jim Schwartz, who in his five seasons as a head coach had only one winning season. 

Heading into this rematch against the Chicago Bears, there was a good reason for Packers’ fans to be optimistic – Aaron Rodgers was back. Matt Flynn’s solid leadership had saved the Packers season, and it was now up to Aaron to finish the job.  However, it was apparent from the get-go that Rodgers was a little bit rusty; the Packers offense struggled in the first quarter and the Bears jumped up to a 7-0 lead. The Packers offense came alive in the second quarter – in one memorable play, Packers receiver, Jarrett Boykin, scooped up an Aaron Rodgers fumble and ran it in for a touchdown, while the Bears defenders just stood there and watched him do it. The Bears assumed that Rodgers had thrown an incomplete pass, but the replay showed that Rodgers had, indeed, fumbled the ball, and then urged Boykin to pick up it and run it in for a touchdown. The Packers led 13 – 7 at the half.  

In the second half, there were three lead changes and late in the 4^th quarter, the Bears led the Packers, 28 – 27.  With 6:30 minutes left in the game, the Packers offense took over at their own thirteen-yard line, thus beginning one of the greatest drives in Packers’ history. Twice, the offense converted on fourth down to keep the drive alone, but it looked like it was about to hit a dead end at the Chicago Bears’ 48.  With 51 seconds left in the game, the Packers offense was facing a 4^th & 8. Aaron Rodgers snapped the ball, successfully evaded Bears defensive end, Julius Peppers, and found a wide-open Randall Cobb for a 48-yard touchdown pass.
A Hail Mary attempt by Jay Cutler was picked off by Packers cornerback, Sam Shields, and the game was over. Final score: Packers 33, Bears 28.

The Packers had won the NFC North for the third consecutive year and were going to the playoffs. The following week they lost to the 49ers in a 23 – 20 nail biter.  Still, 2013 was one of those seasons where making the playoffs was good enough; it had all the makings of a trainwreck, but the team had managed to keep it together and persevere.

16.   November 30, 2014 – Green Bay Packers 26, New England Patriots 21

“Packers frustrate the New England Patriots at home.”
In 2014, the Packers had gotten off to a slow start; they began the season with a 1 – 2 record and had lost to the Seahawks and Lions. However, after their week four matchup against the Chicago Bears, the offense began to heat up and Aaron Rodgers was back to MVP form.
After their bye week, the Packers had back-to-back games where they scored 50+ points (the Sunday Night Massacre against the Bears, where they lead 42 – 0 at the half, and a 53-20 beatdown of the Philadelphia Eagles). At Lambeau Field, they were completely unstoppable.

However, that homefield dominance was going to be tested in the week thirteen matchup against the New England Patriots. In fact, there were many pundits who considered this match a potential Super Bowl preview. The Patriots were coming into this game on a seven-game winning streak (their last four wins had been complete blow outs, including a 51 – 23 win over the Chicago Bears). This was also the first time that Aaron Rodgers would be starting against Tom Brady.  Rodgers saw brief action against the Patriots in 2006, in a game the Packers lost, 35 – 0.  In 2010, Rodgers was placed on injured reserve when the Packers played the Patriots in week fifteen. Matt Flynn was given starting duties and managed to make a game of it, but the Packers fell short and lost, 31 – 27.

The most famous image from this game is of Tom Brady cussing on the sidelines, after the Packers’ defense, once again, stifled a Patriots drive. The Packers offense jumped up on the Patriots early and never looked back – at halftime, they led 23 – 14.  The second half of the game turned into a defensive battle, with neither offense being able to generate anything in the third quarter.  In the fourth quarter, Tom Brady managed to hit receive, Brandon LeFell, for a fifteen-yard touchdown pass to pull the Patriots within two points of the Packers. The score was Packer 23, Patriots 21. Aaron Rodgers and the offense responded with a drive of their own, but it stalled at New England 10, and the Packers were forced to settle for a Mason Crosby field goal. This gave Tom Brady plenty of time (over eight minutes) to engineer his patented game winning drive. The Patriots drove all the way down to the Green Bay 20, but on third down, Brady was sacked for a nine-yard loss by Packers’ linebacker, Mike Neal, and defensive end, Mike Daniels. This set up a 47-yard field goal by Patriots kicker, Stephen Gostkowski, but the kick went wide right, and the Packers offense was able to run out the clock, thus securing the Packers victory. It was a game that had lived up to the hype and maybe, just maybe these two teams would be meeting again in February. Well, we all know what happened, but I will get to that later.

17.   December 28, 2014 – Green Bay Packers 30, Detroit Lions 20

“The Packers beat the Detroit Lions to clinch the NFC North and the number two seed.”
The Detroit Lions, with a new head coach in Jim Caldwell, were a formidable foe in 2014; they had beaten the Packers,19-7, in week two and both teams headed into the week 17 matchup with an 11-4 record. Whoever won this game would win the NFC North and the number two seed.

Despite having an offense that featured Matthew Stafford at quarterback and Calvin Johnson (Megatron) at wide receiver, the Lions biggest strength in 2014 was their defense (who were ranked third in scoring, number two in total yards, and number one against the run).  The other factor going into the Lions’ favor was that Aaron Rodgers was starting this game with a strained left calf. This would limit his ability to escape from the pocket and extend plays; it also meant the Packers would probably have to lean more on the rushing attack.  However, the Lions also suffered from a weird quirk – under Matthew Stafford, they were 0-15 on the road against teams with a winning record. This is stat that brought up multiple throughout the broadcast by commentators Troy Aikman and Joe Buck.
“That is just unbelievable, Joe!”   

On the Packers offense opening drive, they moved the ball effectively against the Lions’ defense; running backs Eddie Lacy and James Starks rattled a few nice runs and it looked like it would be smooth sailing. However, once the Packers got near the Detroit goal line, the Lions defense stiffened. The Packers were denied a touchdown three times, but a holding penalty on the Detroit defense gave the Packers offense a new set of downs. The Lions defense didn’t budge a bit and on 4^th and goal, Packers coach, Mike McCarthy, took a roll of the dice and opted to go for it…..AND WAS DENIED!!! The Lions defense did their part, but their offense stalled.
 
The first points by the Packers were not scored by the offense, but by special teams when Micah returned a Lions punt for a touchdown. A few minutes later, a potential scoring drive by the Packers was thwarted by the Lions, when Packers running back, Eddie Lacy, was stripped of the ball and the Lions defense recovered the fumble. The Packers had dominated the first quarter, but only had seven points to show for it. 

Finally, late in the second quarter, the Packers offense got going and managed to go up 14 – 0, after Aaron Rodgers found Randall Cobb in the endzone for the touchdown. However, this celebration was short-lived when, to horror of the Packers faithful, Aaron Rodgers was lying on the ground in the pain. Rodgers had reaggravated his strained calf, when he scrambled to his right to find Cobb. It certainly didn’t improve morale when the cameras showed Rodgers being carted off the field. 

The Lion used this deflating moment to their advantage and managed to tie up the score 14-14 (on a pair of Calvin Johnson touchdowns). However, Packers fans breathed a huge sigh of relief when Rodgers walked back onto the field early in the third quarter. As good as the Lions’ defense had been, they were no match for Aaron Rodgers, who proceeded to pick apart the Detroit secondary, despite playing on an injured calf. The Packers scored sixteen unanswered points (on a Randall Cobb touchdown reception; an Aaron Rodgers quarterback sneak; and a safety).  The Lion scored a touchdown with 1:45 left on the clock, but their two-point conversion attempt came up short by inches. The Packers recovered on the onside kick and any chance of Lions comeback had been sufficiently squashed. 

The Packers won the NFC North for the four consecutive year and were the number two seed in the NFC Playoff picture. This game officially cemented Aaron Rodgers as the league MVP.  Though, even more impressive, was that the Packers offense was able to amass 152 rushing yards against the league’s number one run defense.  The number two seed also meant the Packers would have a week to rest. They could only watch and see who their opponent would be in the NFC Divisional Game.

18.   January 11, 2015 (NFC Divisional) – Green Bay Packers 26, Dallas Cowboys 21

“The ‘Dez Caught It’ game.”
This is probably the most controversial game on this list; one that still makes Cowboys fans’ blood boil. Under head coach, Jason Garrett, the Cowboys had been wildly inconsistent – they had finished the three previous seasons with an 8-8 record – but in 2014, they had pulled it together and had finished the regular season with a 12-4 record (but due to tiebreakers they were given the third seed). The Dallas Cowboys had their own little quirk, as well – they were 8-0 on the road. Cowboys quarterback, Tony Romo, was having a MVP caliber season of his own: he led the league in completion percentage, yards per attempt, and passer rating. He also threw 34 touchdown passes to just nine interceptions.  In the Wild Card Round, the Cowboys beat the Detroit Lions by a score of 24 – 20. Though, even this game wasn’t without controversy – in the 4^th quarter, the Lions were driving down the field with a 20 – 17 lead, the Lions had reached midfield and on third down, Stafford threw a pass to Brandon Pettigrew that fell incomplete, but it looked like Cowboys linebacker, Anthony Hitchens, had face guarded Pettigrew, which is a form of pass interference. The refs initially thrown a penalty flag, but seconds later, the flag was picked up and the penalty was marked off. This, understandably, created all sorts of confusion on the Lions’ sideline, but their protests fell on deaf ears, and they were forced to punt the ball. On the next play, Lions’ punter, Sam Martin, shanked the punt and the Cowboys took over at midfield. The Cowboys offense capitalized on this Lions mistake and with 2:39 left in the game, Tony Romo found Terrance Williams in the endzone for an eight-yard touchdown pass.  The Cowboys had survived the Detroit Lions and now they were headed to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers.

In the first quarter, the two teams exchanged touchdowns – Aaron Rodgers connected with Andrew Quarless for a touchdown and Tony Romo found Tyler Clutts for a one-yard touchdown pass.  Midway through the second quarter, Tony Romo threw a short pass to Terrance Williams, who evaded Green Bay defenders and took it to those to make the score Cowboys 14, Packers 7.  The Packers offense stalled on the next drive, and they were forced to punt the ball back to the Cowboys offense, who took over at their 19-yard line. The Cowboys drove all the way to the Green Bay 27, but a false start penalty on L.P. Ladouceur, drove the Cowboys back to the Green Bay 32-yard line. With 34 seconds left in the half, Dan Bailey attempted a 50-yard field goal, but it was blocked by Datone Jones. The Packers offense took over at their own 40-yard line, with 29 seconds on the clock and three times left. With 16 seconds left in the half, Aaron Rodgers connected with Randall Cobb for 31-yard pass. This put the Packers in the field goal range and with three seconds left in the half, Mason Crosby trotted onto the field to attempt a 40-yard field goal. The kick was good, and the score was the Cowboys 14, Packer 10 at the half.  In the middle of the third quarter, the Packers would add another field goal to their point total. The Cowboys responded with a drive of their own that ended with a one-yard touchdown by DeMarco Murray. 

Aaron Rodgers, who struggled for most of the game, developed a hot hand late in the third quarter and pulled the Packers within one point when he completed a 46-yard touchdown pass to Davante Adams. It was now up to the defense to make a stop, and they came through with flying colors – on the Cowboys next possession, Tony Romo was sacked on back-to-back plays, forcing the Cowboys to punt. On the Packers next drive, Aaron Rodgers completed seven consecutive passes in a drive the culminated with a thirteen-yard touchdown reception by tight end, Richard Rodgers. However, the Packers two-point attempt failed, and the Packers led with a narrow 26-21 lead with a little over nine minutes left in the game.

This sets up the most controversial call in the game; Tony Romo and friends took over at the own 19 and managed to drive the all the way down to the Green Bay 32-yard line. On 4^th & 2, the Cowboys opted to go for it, and it appeared that Dez Bryant had hauled in a Tony Romo pass, that would have put the Cowboys offense at the Green Bay one-yard line. Mike McCarthy challenged the play and after minutes of deliberation, the refs ruled the pass as incomplete. The replay showed the while Dez was going to the ground the ball had bobbled a bit, though it never actually hit the ground. Dez pled his case to the refs, but they remained firm in their ruling.  The Packers offense took over at their own 33-yard line and successfully ran out the clock (thanks to two clutch catches on third down by Davante Adams and Randall Cobb). This game also marked the end of the Tony Romo Era in Dallas; the rest of his career would be marked by injuries, and in 2016 the starting job was given to rookie quarterback, Dak Prescott (who I will get to later).

 The Green Bay Packers were on their way to the NFC Championship Game, where they would battle the Seattle Seahawks for a chance to play in the Super Bowl. It was their chance to make history – and they sure did make history, but not in a good way.

19.   January 15, 2017 – (NFC Divisional) – Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31

“Rodgers to Cook.”
The Green Bay Packers had begun the 2016 season with a 4-6 record; they had lost four consecutive games and were trailing the Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions in the divisional standings. Yet, despite their struggles, Aaron Rodgers was convinced that this team could “run the table.” The bold declaration by Rodgers was laughed at by all the pundits. How could this team “run the table” with a historically awful defense?
Aaron Rodgers proceeded to silence his critics as the Packers won their last six games and the division. In the last six games, Aaron Rodgers played near perfect football, and the Packers defense, that had been so porous earlier in the season, had transformed into an opportunistic, turnover producing machine.  It was a remarkable turnaround. 

In the NFL Wild Card, the Green Packers faced their old foes the New York Giants, the team that had twice cost them a Super Bowl appearance. Would history repeat itself?

The game was a defensive battle for the first two quarters, but late in the 2^nd, the Packers offense came alive and managed to score two touchdowns in the final minutes (including a memorable touchdown catch by Randall Cobb on an Aaron Rodgers’ Hail Mary).  In the second half, the Green Bay offense took over the game and the Packers demolished the Giants, 38-13.  The Packers were now on their way to Arlington, Texas to take on the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Divisional Round.

The Cowboys finished the 2016 season with a league best 13-3 record. Much like the 2010 Atlanta Falcons, the 2016 Cowboys were an underwhelming team, who won games by playing mistake free football and controlling the time of possession. They went into this game as 5.5 favorites. However, in the first half, the Packers offense looked to be unstoppable, as they jumped up to 21 – 3 on the home team. The Cowboys, unlike the 2010 Falcons, proved to be a resilient lot and by half time, they had climbed back into the game, making the score Packers 21, Cowboys 13. 

At the start of the third quarter, the Packers went up 28-13 after tight end, Jared Cook, hauled in a third yard pass from Aaron Rodgers. A Dak Prescott interception on the Cowboy’s next drive seemed to spell disaster for the Cowboys. If the Packers offense could capitalize on this turnover and go up another touchdown, that would be the end for Dallas. However, the Cowboys defense stood its ground and, on the eighth play of the Packers drive, Cowboy safety, Jeff Heath, intercepted an Aaron Rodger pass that was intended for Davante Adams. The Cowboys were still alive, and the offense took over at their own 41-yard line. Dak Prescott went 7/7 on the Cowboys next drive, that ended with a six-yard touchdown pass to tight end, Jason Witten.  The score: Packers 28, Cowboys 20.

The Packers following drive ended on a Barry Church sack of Aaron Rodgers. The Packers were forced to punt, and this gave the Cowboys offense over nine minutes to tie the score.
The Cowboys offense proceeded to do just that – Dak Prescott threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to Dez Bryant and then successfully snuck the ball into the endzone for the two-point conversion. It was tied ball game: 28 – 28.

The Packers offense finally woke up from their slumber and managed to drive the ball to the Cowboys 38 yard-line to set up a 56-yard Mason Crosby field goal. The kick was good, and the Packers had a three-point lead with a 1:38 left on the clock. However, the Cowboys refused to go away, and they responded with a field goal of their own.  The score was tied, 31-31, and the Packers offense took over at their own 25-yard line with 35 seconds left on the clock. It appeared the game might go into overtime, when on first down, Aaron Rodgers was sacked by Jeff Heath for a ten-yard loss. On second down, a pass intended for Jared Cook fell incomplete. With twelve seconds left in regulation, and facing a 3^rd & 20, common sense dictates that the offense takes a kneel down and allows the game to go into overtime, but that type of logic does not apply to Aaron Rodgers (both to his credit and detriment). On 3^rd & 20, Aaron Rodgers rolled out to his left and threw the ball deep to Jared Cook, who made a tightrope catch on the sidelines that placed the ball on the Dallas Cowboys 32-yard line with three seconds left on the clock. Mason Crosby was trotted onto the field to attempt a 51-yard field goal attempt. Cowboys head coach, Jason Garrett, attempted to ice Crosby by calling a time out. After the timeout, Crosby regrouped and lined up to attempt the field goal - it was up and…. GOOD!!!!  The Packers won 34 – 31. This was the eighth consecutive win for Rodgers and company. 

Unfortunately, the following week, in the NFC Championship Game, they ran into a buzzsaw when they faced the top ranked Atlanta Falcons offense. It was a complete mismatch that favored the Falcons, and they handily beat the Packers 44 – 21.  It was disappointing end, to be sure, but this playoff loss doesn’t hurt like the other ones; Packers fans were treated to eight weeks of exciting Packers’ football. They also got to witness the Packers avenge their two playoff losses to Giants and upset the hated Cowboys on the road.  There were plenty of reasons to be optimistic. Or so they thought.

20.   September 9, 2018 – Green Bay Packers 24, Chicago Bears 23

“Packers overcome a 20-point deficit to beat the Bears in the season opener.”
The Packers entered the 2018 season on with an optimistic outlook; in the previous season, Aaron Rodgers missed most of the 2017 season with a fractured right collar bone, after being slammed into the ground by Vikings linebacker, Anthony Barr, in the week six matchup in Minnesota. The Packers finished the season with a 7-9 record. 
In the 2018 season opener, the Packers faced the Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field. This was a different looking Bears team, with a new head coach, Matt Nagy, and a new quarterback, Mitch Trubisky.  On the defensive side of the ball, the Bears had acquired linebacker, Khalil Mack, in free agency.

The Chicago Bears dominated the first half of the game; Mitch Trubisky rushed for a two-yard touchdown, Bears kicker, Cody Parker, made a 26-yard field goal, and Khalil Mack picked off an Aaron Rodgers pass and returned it for a 27-yard touchdown. The score was Bears 17, Packers 0 at the halftime. At the top of the third quarter, the two teams exchanged field goals to make the score, 20 – 3, in favor of the Bears. It looked like the Bears were finally going to claim victory over their long-time nemesis.

However, in the 4^th quarter, Rodgers began to heat up, at the Packers scored touchdowns on back-to-back drives (on a 39-yard pass from Rodgers to Geronimo Allison and a twelve-yard touchdown reception by Davante Adams).  The score was, 20 – 17, with over nine minutes left in the game. The Bears added another field goal to the point total and with 2:42 left on the clock, the Packers trailed by six. Thirteen seconds later, Aaron Rodgers connected with Randall Cobb on a short pass, but Cobb managed to shake off Bears defenders and ran it in for a 75-yard touchdown. The Mason Crosby extra point gave the Packers a 24-23 lead with 2:13 left in the game. The Packers defense stiffened at midfield and the Bears offense turned it over on downs after Mitch Trubisky was sacked by Nick Perry. Lambeau erupted as the Packers offense ran out the clock. The Green Bay Packers had won in an improbable fashion, and it was against their hated rivals, The Chicago Bears. 

Sadly, this game would prove to be one of rare highlights in an otherwise dismal season. The Packers finished the season with a 6-9-1 record. This led to the firing of Mike McCarthy after the week thirteen loss to the Arizona Cardinals; offensive coordinator, Joe Philbin, took over coaching duties in the final month of the season, but didn’t fare any better (he went 2-2). It was the first time in over a decade that the Packers looked to the future with uncertainty.

21.   January 12, 2020 (NFC Divisional) – Green Bay Packers 28, Seattle Seahawks 23

“Packers avenge the 2014 NFCCG by beating the hated Seattle Seahawks.”
After the 2018 season, the Packers were in the need of a new head coach and, after months of searching, settled on Matt LaFleur. This hiring baffled the Packers’ faithful.
“Who is Matt LaFleur,” they asked out loud.  Would he get along with Aaron? Could he turn things around? Packers fans went into the 2019 with low expectations; hence it was genuine surprise when their team finished the season with a 13-3 record.

 Now, it needs to be said that the 2019 Packers maybe the worst 13-3 team in NFL history – they didn’t beat their opponents, they survived them. Both Packers’ victories against the Detroit Lions were marred by bad officiating – questionable calls against the Lions’ defense helped keep Packers drives alive. Their record may have been 13-3, but they looked and played more like a 9-7 team. Still, regardless of as to how they got there, the Packers had qualified for the playoffs and were the number two seed. In the Divisional Round, they would be facing the Seattle Seahawks, the same team that had stolen a trip to the Super Bowl away from the Packers five years earlier. This was a chance for revenge!

The Packers dominated the first half and jumped up on the Seahawks 21 – 3. Despite the three-score lead, there was still a lingering doubt in the minds of most Packers fans. After all, in 2014 NFC Championship Game, the Packers led 16 – 0 at the half.  Their worst fears seem to come true, when the Seahawks came roaring back in the second half; not even an Aaron Rodgers touchdown pass to Davante Adams, midway through the third quarter, could alleviate these fears. It the fourth quarter, the Seahawks offense pulled within five points of the Packers, making score 28-23, with nine minutes left the game.

The following drive by the Packers offense stalled at the Seattle 48 yard-line and the Packers were forced to punt.  The Seahawks took over at their own 23-yard line with 4:54 left on the clock. However, the Packers defense finally stood their ground and on 3^rd & 5, Preston Smith sacked Seattle quarterback, Russell Wilson, for a six-yard loss.  The Seahawks punted and the Green Bay offense took over at their own 20 with 2:32 left in the game. The Packers offense successfully ran out the clock, thanks to two third down conversions by Davante Adams and Jimmy Graham.  The Packers were victorious! Davante Adams had the game of his career: he finished the game with 160 yards receiving and two touchdowns.  The Packers were, once again, advancing to the NFC Championship Game. Their opponent would be the San Francisco 49ers, who had thoroughly whooped the Packers in the regular season, 37 – 8. The NFC Championship Game would prove to be no different; the 49ers led 27 – 0 at half time and were generous enough to allow Aaron Rodgers to pad his stats in the second half, to make the final score: 49ers 37, Packers 20.  It was another disappointing end to a great season, but there were also plenty of reasons to be optimistic. The Packers had greatly exceeded everyone’s expectations and the tandem of LaFleur/Rodgers just might work, after all.  

22.   September 27, 2020 – Green Bay Packers 37, New Orleans Saints 30

“The Packers beat the Saints in an exciting nail biter.”
The emergence of the New Orleans Saints and the resurgence of the Green Bay Packers coincided with one another. In 2006, both teams hired a new head coach: the Saints hired Sean Payton, and the Packers hired Mike McCarthy. Both head coaches would lead their teams to Super Bowl championships: the Saints won it all in 2009 and the Packers championship came the following year, in 2010.  Both franchises suffered heart breaking playoff losses in the last decade (the Saints lost to the Minnesota Vikings, twice, and to the Rams in the 2018 NFC Championship Game).  Both teams would end up losing, in their home stadiums, to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2020 postseason.

In week three, two teams faced off against each other at Lambeau Field. They both had high flying offenses led by Hall of Fame QBs, Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees, but also highly questionable defenses.  Indeed, throughout most of their careers, both Rodgers and Brees had been plagued with porous defenses. Brees had missed the playoffs multiple times, largely due to the poor play of his defense. 

This was an exciting back and forth game, that featured great play from both quarterbacks, and late in the 3^rd quarter the score was tied, 27 – 27.  A Mason Crosby field goal in the 4^th quarter made the score, 30 – 27, with 8:52 left on the clock. The Saints went three and out on their next drive and the Packers offense had the ball on their own 36-yard line with 6:36 left to play. On the first play of the drive, Aaron Rodgers connected with Jace Sternberger for a 23-yard gain, which put the ball on the New Orleans 41-yard line. Packers running back, Aaron Jones, rushed for nineteen yards on the next play, and the Packers were now at the New Orleans 22-yard line. The Packers would cap off this drive with a one-yard touchdown reception by tight end, Robert Tonyan. The score was Packers 37, Saints 27 with two minutes left to play. The Saints added another field goal to their point total, but any hope of comeback was dashed when the Packers recovered the onside kick.

The Packers were now 3 – 0 and not only did their offense look unstoppable, but Aaron Rodgers was back in MVP form. The Packers finished the season with a 13-3 record (the Saints finished 12-4 and had to settle for the third seed). Aaron Rodgers had one of his best seasons, statistically: he completed seventy percent of passes and threw 48 touchdown passes to only five interceptions. The Packers ran all over the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Divisional Game but fell short to the Buccaneers a week later.  Yet another disappointing end to a great season; this was becoming a broken record.  This would also prove to be Drew Brees NFL swansong; after the loss to Buccaneers, he announced his retirement.  Before the arrival of Drew Brees and Sean Payton, the Saints had only won in playoff win in their entire history. The tandem of Payton/Brees had transformed this hapless franchise into contenders and created one of the more exciting offenses in the league.

23.   November 23, 2023 (Thanksgiving) - Green Bay Packers 29, Detroit Lions 22

“Packers upset the Lions on Thanksgiving.”
The Packers finished the 2021 season with a 13-4 record. Rodgers, once again, won the MVP and, once again, the Packers blew it in the postseason, losing to the 49ers in the Divisional Game, 13 – 10 (a game I had the misfortune of witnessing in person).
The 2022 season, the Packers finished the season 8-9; their playoff hopes had been dashed by the surging Detroit Lions in the week eighteen match up.  There was plenty of drama in the offseason, which ultimately led to Aaron Rodgers being traded to the New York Jets.
It was officially the Jordan Love Era. Packers’ fans had no idea what to expect. When the Packers front office drafted Love in the first round of the 2020 draft, this led to many people scratching their heads. Why would you draft Jordon Love when you have Aaron Rodgers? Also, who was this Jordan Love? Why did the Packers waste such a high draft pick on him? They could have drafted a receiver instead.

The Jordan Love Era, seemingly, got off to a promising start after the Packers embarrassed the Chicago Bears, at Soldier Field, 38 – 20. However, optimism quickly turned into cynicism when the Packers struggled the next month – they lost four consecutive games and had gone five straight games without scoring a touchdown in the first half. Jordan Love showed signs of promise, but he was also mistake prone – back-to-back games, against the Raiders and Broncos, ended with him throwing an interception on a potential game winning drive. A win against a banged-up Rams team didn’t do much to ease the fans’ skepticism. The following week, the Packers lost to Pittsburgh Steelers (despite outgaining them) when Jordan Love, once again, threw an interception on a potential game winning drive. The Packers were 3-6 and their season appeared to be over. In the week eleven match up against the Chargers, Jordan Love had played his best game of the season (throwing for over 300 yards) and had managed to engineer a game winning drive to make the final score: Packers 23, Chargers 20.  

It was a nice win, but now they would face their biggest challenge of the season when they played the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving.  Under the leadership of head coach, Dan Campbell, and quarterback, Jared Goff, the Lions had successfully changed their fortunes and, going into the Thanksgiving matchup, they were on a three-game winning streak and had an 8-2 record. They had already beaten the Packers at Lambeau Field, 34-20. The Lions would also end the season on with a 12-5 record (tied with the 49ers and Cowboys for the best record in the NFC).

However, their Thanksgiving match up against the Packers was characterized by mistakes and questionable play calling. The normally reliable Jared Goff fumbled the ball three times – one of which was returned for a touchdown by Packers safety, Jonathan Owens. The most baffling call came in the third quarter, when Dan Campbell, from the Lions’ own 23-yard line, attempted a fake punt that was immediately sniffed out by the Packers special teams unit and was well short of the first down marker.  The Packers offense took over with a short field and four plays later, the Packers made the Lions pay for this mistake, when receiver, Christian Watson, brought in a 16-yard touchdown pass from Jordan Love. The Packers led 29 – 14 and never looked back. The Lions scored a touchdown and two-point conversion with 46 seconds left in the game. The Packers recovered the onside kick and had pulled off the upset. Jordan Love had a solid day: 22/32 268 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also had a 37-yard run in the 4^th quarter that extended a Packers drive and took precious time off the clock.

24.   December 3, 2023 – Green Bay Packers 27, Kansas City Chiefs 19

“Packers upset the defending Super Bowl champs. Jordan Love outplays Patrick Mahomes.”
Now, it is one thing to upset the upstart Detroit Lions, but it is a different thing entirely to upset the defending Super Bowl champs. The Kansas City Chiefs rode into Lambeau Field with an 8-3 record and one of better defensive units in the league. The Chiefs’ offense was another story; except for their blow out win against the Chicago Bears, they had struggled throughout the first half of the season. Still, you could never rule out Chiefs’ superstar quarterback, Patrick Mahomes. The Chiefs were favored to win by five points. 

The Packers offense dictated the game from the get-go; on their opening drive, they marched down field on the thirteen plays that ended with Ben Sims hauling in a one-yard Jordan Love touchdown pass. The Chiefs responded with a thirteen-play drive of their own, but it at hits a brick wall at the Green Bay nine-yard; after Patrick Mahomes was sacked on 3^rd &9 by Preston Smith. The Chiefs were forced to settle for a field goal and the first quarter ended, Packers 7 Chiefs 3.

The Packers second drive also ended on a touchdown, with Jordan Love completing a nine-yard touchdown pass to Christian Watson. This baffled the NBC Sunday Night Crew, who couldn’t believe what they were seeing. “What is going on with the Kansas City Chiefs?” asked Cris Collinsworth. The Chiefs added another field goal to their point total to make the score, 14 – 6, at the half. 

The Chiefs began the third quarter with a nine-play, 75-yard drive that culminated with a one-yard touchdown by running back, Isiah Pacheco. However, their two-point attempt was denied, and the score was, 14 – 12.  
“It is time for the Chiefs defense to make a step,” opined Cris Collinsworth.
However, they didn’t take his advice to heart and Jordan Love calmly drove the Packers down the field, which included Love completing a 33-yard pass to Romeo Doubs on 4^th & 1. 
“THAT’S JUST UNBELIEVABLE!” screamed a bewildered Collinsworth.
Two plays later, Christian Watson brought in another Jordan Love touchdown pass.
The score was now Packers 21, Chiefs 12.
However, the Chiefs weren’t going to go away that easy and they responded with a touchdown drive of their own – Mahomes completed a two-yard pass to Noah Grey.
The Chiefs had pulled within two points of the Packers, with 14:51 remaining in the game.
The two teams exchanged punts on their next two drives.
“This has been an exciting game,” laughed Cris Collinsworth.

The Packers next drive ended in a 40-yard field goal by Anders Carlson. The score was now 24-19, in favor of the Packers with 6:07 left in the game. This is usually when Patrick Mahomes performed his magic. In the previous six seasons, it would be hard to name a more clutch quarterback. However, it was not meant to be and, on the third play of the Chiefs’ next drive, Packers cornerback, Keisean Nixon intercepted a Mahomes pass that was intended for Skyy Moore. The Packers offense effectively bled the clock and, with 1:09 left in the game, settled for a 48-yard Anders Carlson field goal. The score was Packers 27, Chiefs 19.  A last gasp effort by the Chiefs to tie the game ended in futility. Chiefs’ fans bemoaned the missed pass interference call on Marquez Valdes-Scantling by Packers’ CB, Corey Ballentine, but they also conveniently overlooked the bogus unnecessary roughing call on Jonathan Owens that helped keep the Chiefs final drive alive. In the end, the Packers were victorious.  They also overlooked that Jordan Love completely outplayed Patrick Mahomes.
Here are the two stats side by side:
Jordan Love   25/36   267 yards 3 TD
Patrick Mahomes: 21/33 210 yards 1 TD 1 INT
Still, this game would only prove to be a slight inconvenience for the Chiefs; they still won their division and, more importantly, won their third Super Bowl championship. But for one glorious night, the Green Bay Packers were the better team.

25.   January 14, 2024 (NFC Wild Card) – Green Bay Packers 48, Dallas Cowboys 32

“Packers become the first 7^th seed (and youngest) team to ever win a playoff game. They embarrass the Dallas Cowboys who were seven-point favorites.”
After their exhilarating Sunday night win against the Chiefs, the Packers stumbled against the New York Giants and Tampa Buccaneers. Joe Barry’s defense had allowed for flash-in-the pan Giants QB, Tommy DeVito, to run all over them and had surrendered a perfect passer rating to Buccaneers QB, Baker Mayfield. After these two embarrassing defensive performances, many were calling for Joe Barry’s job. The defense didn’t do much to silence the critics after they gave up 30 points to the one-win, Carolina Panthers (who also were the bottom ranked offense in the league). The Packers were 7 – 8 and would need to win their next two games to qualify for the postseason. 

Their dominant 33-10 win over the Minnesota Vikings brought their record up to .500. They just had to beat the Chicago Bears, and they would be in the playoffs. The Bears had already been eliminated from the playoffs but were hoping to play spoiler for the Packers (just like the Detroit Lions had done the previous season).  The Bears had won four out of their last five games (including an impressive win over the Lions), thanks to their much-improved defense. This game all the makings of a potential upset……NOT!!!!!   The Bears, improved defense and all, were still not match for the Packers and Jordan Love had a field day, by completing 27 out of 32 passes, throwing for 316 yards and two touchdowns. The Bears offense could only muster up nine measly points. The Packers had finished the regular season 9-8, but more importantly qualified for the playoffs as the 7^th seed. Their opponent in the NFC Wild Card would be a familiar foe, The Dallas Cowboys.

On paper, this was a statistical matchup that heavily favored the Dallas Cowboys; they had a top five offense and defense, led the league in scoring, had won sixteen consecutive home games, had seven players voted to the Pro Bowl (the Packers had zero), and a MVP caliber season from quarterback, Dak Prescott. The Cowboys head coach was a familiar face, Mike McCarthy.  Dak Prescott had greatly reduced his number of interceptions in 2023, thanks to Mike McCarthy’s newly installed offense. The Dallas Cowboys were seven-point favorites and practically every analyst predicted them to curb stomp the lowly Green Bay Packers. Indeed, many pundits predicted that the Cowboys would finally return to the NFC Championship Game after a 28-year drought. This Cowboys team was different…..then the actual game happened. 

Things went awry for the Cowboys from the very start, after the Packers offense efficiently drove the ball down the field, on their opening drive, which ended with a three-yard touchdown run by Aaron Jones. The Dallas Cowboys opening drive stalled at midfield after receiver, CeeDee Lamb, dropped a Dak Prescott pass on third down. The Cowboys defense managed to make a stop on the Packer’s next drive and Green Bay was forced to punt; this gave the Cowboys the ball at their own eight-yard line. On 3^rd & 5, Dak Prescott dropped back to pass and was intercepted by cornerback, Jaire Alexander. The Packers offense had the ball as the Dallas 18. Even a holding penalty on tight end, Tucker Craft, couldn’t stop the Packers offense and two plays later, Aaron Jones added another rushing touchdown to his postseason career. The Packers led 14 – 0. 

The following Cowboys drive stalled at midfield (again) after Dak Prescott took an unnecessary sack on 3^rd & 5. The Cowboys punted and the Packers offense had the ball at their own 7.  Jordan Love cooly drove the Packers 93-yards on ten plays and connected with Dontayvion Wicks for a twenty-yard touchdown pass. A missed Anders Carlson extra point made the score Packers 20, Cowboys 0.  It was now time for the Cowboys offense to respond – they desperately needed points before the half.  A twenty-point deficit in the modern NFL was not necessarily a death sentence, especially for a big play offense like the Dallas Cowboys. A touchdown here would make it a two-score game, which was easily doable. The Cowboys drive began promisingly enough, with Dak driving his offense to the Green Bay 48, with 2:06 left in the half.  On 2^nd & 2, Dak Prescott dropped back to pass and was picked off by Darnell Savage, who returned it for a touchdown. This was essentially the game! The Cowboys would score a touchdown before the half and begin the third quarter with a field goal, but their defense couldn’t stop the avalanche of Green Bay points. By the start of the 4^th quarter, the Packers led 48-16. The Cowboys would score two garbage time touchdowns, which made the score look closer than it was and allowed for Dak Prescott to pad his stats, but neither of these could gloss over this embarrassing loss at home (to a 7^th seed team). 

Jordan Love had played the game of his career: 16/21 272 yards 3 touchdowns. Aaron Jones had the best game of his postseason career, he rushed for 118 yards on 21 carries and scored three touchdowns. This was also the most impressive win of the Matt LaFleur Era. He had weathered the storm early in the season and had molded the youngest team in the league into postseason contenders. Very few expected the Packers to make the playoffs, let alone win a playoff game. 

5 Most Painful Losses

This is the part of the article that most Packers fans will want to skip, and Packers’ haters will relish. The reason I included the five most painful losses in this article is to show that being a football fan is not all sunshine and lollipops, it is also marked by frustration and disappointment. Part of being a fan is that you must take the bad with the good. It is easy to cheer for your team when they are winning championships, but it’s a bit different when each season ends in disappointment. The better your team does in the regular season, the higher the expectations. When they fall short of their goal, it is often easy to ignore the regular season and focus on the postseason losses.  Packers’ fans have actually been fortunate, in the last twenty years the Packers have only suffered four losing seasons (2005, 2008, 2017, 2018), but if you talk to average fan, they will bring up the “What Ifs.”  I will keep this section as short possible.

1.        January 20, 2008 (NFC Championship Game) Giants 23, Packers 20 (overtime)

After dominating the Seattle Seahawks in the 2007 Divisional Game, everyone was expecting a rematch between the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Championship Game. The two teams met up in week thirteen and the Cowboys won 37 – 27. However, the game offered Packers’ fans a glimpse of Aaron Rodgers’ potential after he took over for an injured Brett Favre. Rodgers played remarkably well and managed to make it a competitive game (despite facing a 17-point deficit when he entered the game).  The prospect of facing the Cowboys in the NFC Championship Game made Packers’ fans nervous, because Brett Favre had never won in Texas Stadium. However, this dreaded rematch was not to be after the one seeded Cowboys fell to fifth seeded, New York Giants, 17 – 14.  Packers fans rejoiced!  This meant that the NFC Championship Game would be hosted at Lambeau Field. All the Pack had to do was beat the Giants and they would be going to the Super Bowl.

Well, that didn’t happen. The game went into overtime and on 2^nd & 8, Brett Favre threw a bone headed interception, on pass intended for Donald Driver. Even worse was that Brett Favre missed a wide-open Ryan Grant in the middle of the field. The Giants capitalized on this massive boner by Favre with a 47-yard game winning field goal by Lawrence Tynes. The final score: Giants 23, Packers 20. This would also prove to be Brett Favre’s final game with the Green Bay Packers.

2.        January 15, 2012 (NFC Divisional Round) Giants 37, Packers 20 

The 2011 Packers had set team records for most wins in a season (15) and most points scored in a season (560).  Aaron Rodgers would win his first league MVP by lighting up the league with 45 touchdowns to just 6 interceptions. It was truly a remarkable regular season. 
In the NFC Divisional Game, their opponent would, once again, be the New York Giants, who were arguably one of the worst teams to ever make the postseason – they had a 9-7 record and were negative six in point differential.  
“This should be a cake walk for the Packers,” the fans told themselves. However, the 2007 NFC Championship Game still haunted the memories of the Green and Gold faithful, and though they appeared to have confidence in their team, inwardly they were feeling uneasy. 
“What if we lose to the Giants again?”

Let me relate a personal story: In the week fourteen matchup against the Oakland Raiders, I was watching the game at a bar in Madison, with my friend Brad. While everyone was celebrating the Packers beatdown of the Raiders, we were fixated on the Sunday Night game between the Dallas Cowboys and Next York Giants. The Cowboys had a twelve-point lead late in the 4^th quarter.  Brad and I were rooting for the Cowboys to win, because it would have, essentially, ended the New York Giants season. The other Packers’ fans in the bar were foolishly rooting for the Giants, and when quarterback, Eli Manning, was able to engineer a come from behind, the bar erupted in applause. Little did these Packers’ fan know they had just cheered on their team’s own demise. 

The Giants came into Lambeau on January 15^th and thoroughly embarrassed the Packers, 37 - 20. The Green Bay Packers made history as the first 15-1 team that failed to win a single playoff game. 

3.        January 18, 2015 (NFC Championship Game) Seahawks 28, Packer 22 (overtime)

Two words: Brandon Bostick. His bobbling the onside kick into the arms of a Seattle player perfectly sums up the postseason futility of the Green Bay Packers.

4.        January 24, 2021(NFC Championship Game) Buccaneers 31, Packers 26

Aaron Rodgers vs. Tom Brady for a trip to the Super Bowl? Well, let’s just say that was a battle between the greatest QB to wear number twelve and Aaron Rodgers. Tom Brady did everything in his power to give this game to the Packers, by throwing three interceptions in the second half, but Aaron Rodgers refused this generous gift and opted to go three and out on multiple possessions. However, this was a team loss - the defense played poorly in the first half and the Packers' offense disappeared in the 4th quarter.  

5.        January 22, 2022 (NFC Divisional Round) 49ers 13, Packers 10

The Packers were, once again, the number one seed. Rodgers was, once again, the league MVP and, once again, the Packers lost at home to a dark horse, wild card team. The defense did their job by holding the San Francisco 49ers to just two field goals, it was the offense and special teams who screwed the pooch. Late in the 4^th quarter, the defense dug in their heels and stuffed the 49ers on 4^th& 1. This was a golden opportunity for the Aaron Rodgers and offense to win the game – a couple of first downs and the game was theirs. This is the type of scenario that the league MVP should excel in. Isn’t this why Aaron Rodgers is paid huge sums of money? For moments like this. Instead, Rodgers and the offense went three and out and,even worse, Rodgers took a sack. This helped set up a blocked punt by the 49ers, which Talanoa Hufanga scooped up for the touchdown. The score was 10 – 10.  

However, despite this unfortunate event, Aaron Rodgers was in a prime position to win the game. It was time to prove to the world why he was the league MVP.  All he needed to do was get the Packers in field goal and give Mason Crosby a shot at the game winning field goal. However, the moment proved to be too big for Rodgers and he went three and out, yet again. On third down, he ignored a wide-open Allen Lazard and tried to force the ball to Davante Adams in double coverage.  49ers quarterback, Jimmy Garopollo, did what Rodgers couldn’t do and drove his team into field goal range.  Robbie Gould connected on a 45-yard field goal and the 49ers had beaten the hapless Green Bay Packers. In true fashion, Packers’ fans blamed everyone except Aaron Rodgers. The league MVP could only muster up ten points and, when his team needed him most, he folded.  This would be the final playoff game Aaron Rodgers would start for the Green Bay Packers. The following season, the Packers would go 8-9 and Aaron would be traded to the Jets in the offseason.

A   

Flower Boys Next Door (2013)

 

After my review of Backstreet Rookie, I thought I would take a break from writing about K-dramas (I was initially thinking about doing a review of Psycho II). I changed my mind after watching Flower Boys Next Door. On the surface, it is your standard romantic comedy – it follows the formula to perfection: boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy wins girl back. Yet, like most K-dramas, there are a lot of interesting things going on beneath the surface.  Flowers Boys Next Door is populated with interesting characters, all of whom are incredibly different, at least on the surface, but also very similar, especially when it comes to insecurities and ambitions.

Go Dok-mi (Park Shin-hye)

Dok-mi edits manuscripts for a living - one of the benefits of her job is that she can work from home. She rarely leaves her apartment, except when it is necessary (in one of the earlier episodes she runs out of toothpaste and toilet paper).  She also tries to avoid interacting with people – she has lived in her apartment for three years but has never said a word to any of her neighbors.  However, despite her distant nature, she does harbor a massive crush on Tae-joon, a doctor who lives in the apartment across the street, opposite of hers. She watches him from her window every morning, often using binoculars to get a close look at him. I have always said there is a thin line between horror movies and romantic comedies – in a different series this act of voyeurism could have more sinister implications and lead to truly bad things. However, in Dok-mi’ s case, due to her introverted nature, she is content with watching him from afar.  When Tae-joon’s cousin, Enrique – a popular video developer – catches her spying on them, Dok-mi’s life changes drastically. Park Shin-hye is effectively cast in the role of Dok-mi, with her expressive eyes she is often able to convey a lot by doing very little. It’s also interesting to note that, like three previous Korean actresses I have written about (Park Bo-young, Kim So-hyun, and Kim Yoo-jung), was once given the title of the “Nation’s Little Sister.”  

Enrique Geum (Yoon Shi-yoon)

Enrique is a famous video game developer, who moved to Spain, with his mother, at the age of ten. He is visiting his cousin Tae-joon with his friend, Seo-young, in tow.  His plan is to play cupid with Seo-young and Tae-joon. Seo-young was Enrique’s first love but she threw him over in favor of Tae-joon. However, rather than remain bitter about her rejection, Enrique decided he would help her out.  Though, it turns out to be more difficult than he imagined, because it turns out his cousin is kind of a dick.

Enrique is defined by his upbeat, hyperactive demeanor. He is the opposite of Dok-mi – she internalizes all her emotions while Enrique wears his emotions on his sleeve. His enthusiastic nature can be annoying at times – he is constantly laughing and bouncing around – but this is largely a mask to hide his insecurities.  He is also an empathic soul – when we are first introduced to Enrique he is on a plane and cheering up a crying child by performing a makeshift puppet show.  While Dok-mi avoids people, Enrique genuinely likes them and wants to cheer them up. 

He initially believes that Dok-mi is a pervert, but when he witnesses her current situation, he is determined to help her come out of her shell and embrace the outside world.

Oh Ji Rok (Kim Ji-hoon)

Ji Rok is a webtoon artist who lives next door to Dok-mi. He has a massive crush on Dok-mi but has never worked up the nerve to talk to her, because he was afraid that he would scare her away.  He begins to write a webtoon called “Flower Boys Next Door” based on Dok-mi and the men in her life.

 
Even before they meet, he is already connected to Enrique – he was accused of plagiarizing Enrique with his webtoon, “Zombie Soccer.”  He also has legally changed his name from Jae-weon to Ji Rok, because of the scandal associated with his former name. It is also revealed that he comes from a wealthy family, who disavowed him when he became a webtoon artist – his older brother keeps pressuring him to relinquish his inheritance.

When Enrique enters Dok-mi’ s life, this makes Ji Rok jealous – it annoys him how “easy” it was for Enrique to break the ice with her. He desperately wants to White Knight for Dok-mi, by ridding her of this nuisance, but much to his annoyance, he finds himself liking Enrique. When he confronts Enrique on apartment roof, he concludes that Enrique is a “decent guy.” He wants to hate him, but it proves to be difficult.  In fact, Enrique initially has no romantic interest in Dok-mi and even tries to play cupid for Ji Rok and Dok-mi – he gives the former tips on how to talk to her and he speaks highly of Ji Rok when he is around Dok-mi. Yet, Ji Rok still hesitates to make a move and, predictably, Dok-mi and Enrique fall for each other. 

Cha Do-hwi

Do-hwi owns a clothing store and has her sights set on Ji Rok – she knows about his true identity and desperately wants to hook up with him.  She was also Dok-mi’ s best friend growing up, but the two of them had a falling out in high school. They both had a crush on their literature teacher and when he showed interest in Dok-mi (in a pure academic sense), Do-hwi got jealous and started a salacious rumor about Dok-mi and him. The teacher threw Dok-mi under the bus and transferred to another school, while Dok-mi was shunned and bullied for the rest of her high school experience. When she learns that Dok-mi lives next door to her crush, Do-hwi tries to rekindle their friendship, but Dok-mi is suspicious about her motives. 

Oh Dong-hoon (Go Kyung-pyo)

Dong-hoon is Ji Rok’s roommate and assistant on the webtoon. He also works a part time job at night, as a designated driver, to help pay the bills.  He is often the voice of sanity – he often questions Ji-Rok’s motives and is baffled by his friend’s constant rejection of Do-hwi.  He also has a love/hate relationship with the editor of their webtoon, Seul-gi, who is simultaneously annoyed and infatuated with him.

Kim Seul-gi (webtoon editor) (Kim Seul-gi)

Seul-gi is the stressed-out editor of Ji-Rok’s and Dong-hoon’s webtoon, Flower Boys Next Door. She gets very little sleeps and always has rings under her eyes. She becomes infatuated with Dong-hoon and even co-signs a $5800 loan for him after he damages his car. 

Yoon Seo-young (Kim Yoon-hye)/ Han Tae-joon (Kim Jung San)

Seo-young is Enrique’s best friend (and first-time love) who has romantic designs on Enrique’s cousin, Tae-joon – she specifically came to South Korea with Enrique so she could be with Tae-joon.
However, it proves to be a rather toxic relationship – Seo-young pours her heart out to Tae-joon but he just shrugs her off. He also decides to leave the country to fulfill his dream of being an island doctor and, unfortunately, there is no place for Seo-young in Tae-joon’ s dream, and he leaves her flat. Seo-young’s main reason for coming to South Korea has left and she wants to go back to Spain and insists that Enrique come back with her. These are the two least interesting characters in Flower Boys Next Door and, mercifully, very little time is devoted to their drama.  Indeed, they both exit the series midway through.

Mitzuke Kouki (Watanabe Ryu)

Mitzuke is the super friendly Japanese tenant whose main reason for coming to South Korea is the cuisine. He offers cooking classes in his apartment and befriends the tenants on his floor – he forms a close bond with Enrique.  He may be the only character who doesn’t have a major hang up. 

Hong Song-chul (Lee Dae-yeon)/ Jung Im (Kim So-yi)
Song-chul is the friendly apartment security guard who is in love with Jung Im – a classy middle-aged woman, who many suspect is the landlord.  Song-chul constantly tries to court Jung Im and always falls on his ass – he has the best intentions, but he is also incredibly awkward.  Jung Im is an agreeable person, who is interested in her neighbors (especially the younger males) and even makes a few friends. 

While Flower Boys Next Door is a romantic comedy, it is often a painful show to watch. This is in large part due to the characters’ troubled histories and their inability to move on from them. Dok-mi was betrayed and bullied by her best friend in high school and, understandably, has trust issues.  The main characters, despite their different backgrounds and personalities, have a few things in common:

Loneliness
They are all lonely individuals. Dok-mi has become content with isolating herself from the rest of humanity by hiding in her apartment. When Enrique takes an interest in her, at first, she is baffled by his presence – she doesn’t know what to make of him. When she begins to like him, this causes her to panic, and she pushes him away – she doesn’t want to risk having her heart broken. Enrique begins to mistake her quiet nature for indifference and even gets mad when, after he tells her he is leaving for Spain, she can only muster up a simple “Goodbye.”

Enrique has a legion of devoted fans and is often recognized on the street but has never had any meaningful relationships – he loves Seo-young, who in turn loves his cousin.  Enrique’s spastic behavior can be off putting at times, but he genuinely means well.  He is a fish out of water – he has grown up in Spain, so South Korea is like a foreign country to him. That’s probably why his behavior – like incessantly ringing on Dok-mi’s doorbell and knocking on her door – baffles everyone else. He is not really concerned with social customs, especially when he believes a person needs help. It genuinely annoys Ji Rok that Enrique’s “annoying” behavior ends up working on Dok-mi, while his more sensitive and methodical approach has failed to make any progress. 

Ji Rok, like Dok-mi, mostly confines himself to his apartment. Though, he at least has a handful of friends and often interacts with his neighbors. He has admired Dok-mi from afar but, other than a few exchanges in the elevator, has never made any effort to talk to her.  He does leave drawings on the milk cartons that are left outside of her door, but never reveals to her that he is the artist (even though she likes the drawings).  His extremely cautious approach annoys Dong-hoon, who wishes he would just work up the courage to talk to her. It’s only when Enrique enters Dok-mi’s life that Ji Rok FINALLY breaks the ice with her.  

Do-hwi surrounds herself with hangers-on and enablers but she doesn’t have a genuine friend. She betrayed the one real friend she had in high school and all her attempts on winning back Dok-mi are massive fails. She tries to appeal to nostalgia by giving Dok-mi a box filled with pictures and other mementos from their teenaged years. She throws a party in Dok-mi’s honor but only ends up pushing Dok-mi away further when she invites their literature teacher (the man who threw Dok-mi under the bus).  I initially wondered if Do-hwi was deliberately trying to traumatize Dok-mi, but it turns out that she is a stupid woman who can’t read the room. It was also revealed the reason the teacher showed up to the party was to apologize to Dok-mi. 

Unrequited Love/Idolization
The themes of idolization and unrequited love constantly pop up in Flower Boys Next Door; every character is inflicted with one or another (or sometimes both).  Dok-mi idolizes Tae-joon – she admires him from afar because on the surface he is the ideal male: young, handsome, and successful. The idea of Tae-joon is attractive and, I suspect, the main reason she never contacted him was the reality of Tae-joon could never live up to her illusion. She put him so high on a pedestal that any interaction with him would only knock him down a few pegs. 

The same applies to Ji Rok – he is in love with the idea of Dok-mi – the quiet, helpless girl who needs his sensitive guiding hand.  The few times they do interact, he treats her with kid gloves, out of fear that any sudden move or suggestion might traumatize her for life.  He mistakes her silence for weakness. His overly cautious approach towards her ends up opening the door of opportunity for Enrique. In fact, Enrique tells Ji Rok to confess his feelings to Dok-mi, because if he waits too long someone else will come along. Enrique never believed that “someone else” would be him. 

It is also sad that Enrique can learn more about Dok-mi in a couple of days than Ji Rok has in three years.  This is largely because Enrique doesn’t idolize Dok-mi; his intentions are not initially romantic in nature – he sees a lonely woman who he wants to help.

While Enriques doesn’t idolize anyone, he is idolized by his devoted fans. This is represented in the form of Bae Bok, a passionate fan who Enrique befriends at the restaurant MItzuke works at.  However, Bae Bok’s fandom turns completely toxic when she learns about his relationship with Dok-mi.  Enrique was initially supposed to be in South Korea for a month, then he was supposed to return to Spain to begin work on an animated film based off one of his video games. He prolongs this trip after Dok-mi and him begin to date. This enrages Bae Bok, who first sprays paints “DIE” on Dok-mi’s apartment door and then post pictures of Dok-mi on the fan forums to rile up the fanbase.  They are so angered over an animated movie that they are willing to ruin the life of woman who has done nothing wrong. It’s only a matter of time that the salacious rumors that haunted Dok-mi throughout high school make their way to the internet. They can’t believe their idol would date a woman “like that.”  Enrique calls a meeting of the local fans (including Bae Bok) and sets them straight on a few things. Basically, he tells them to “grow up” and assures them that he will return to Spain to being work on his animation project, but they need to stop attacking Dok-mi.  He also brings Dok-mi with him to put a human face to the woman they irrationally despise – it is easy to attack someone online but it is very difficult when they are in the same room as you. This subplot also gives Do-hwi her character arc, when the vicious rumors make their way to the internet, Doh-wi goes online to defend Dok-mi.

Enrique’s affection for Seo-young falls under unrequited love because he has poured his heart and soul out to her, but she only sees him as a friend and has feelings for his cousin.  Seo-young and Tae-joon are also a more clear-cut case of unrequited love – she is constantly by his side, pleading her case, and he just gives her the cold shoulder. Every time the two of them are seen together, Tae-joon looks annoyed and just views Seo-young as an inconvenience.

Do-hwi constantly throws herself at Ji Rok, but he spurns her advances. Once he learns that Do-hwi is responsible for Dok-mi’s introverted lifestyle, he tries to avoid her like the plague.  Do-hwi also mistakenly believes that Ji Rok is wealthy, unaware that his family has disavowed him. 

To a lesser degree, we see this theme of unrequited love play out between Sung-chul and Jung Im; he is constantly looking for reason to talk to her, but she remains oblivious towards his feelings. 

However, as painful as Flower Boys Next Door can be, it is also extremely uplifting at times. It’s hard not to cheer for Dok-mi as she slowly begins to embrace the outside world and make new friends. She is a character who has been through so much that when something finally goes her way, you can’t help to smile. There is also a nuance to Park Shin-hye’s performance – there is a scene, early on, where Enrique convinces her to go on a road trip and he takes her to the beach, and you can briefly see a smile flash across her face. Yet, despite this heart-warming moment, Dok-mi’s cynicism takes over and she asks Enrique if they can pretend that they never met. What I like about this series is that Dok-mi transition from being a cynical hermit to open minded individual is a gradual process; there is no scene where she gets invited to a party, gets shit faced, and, in her drunken state, becomes the life of the party.  She does get drunk in one scene, but she is more of a quiet drunk, and never becomes the focal point. 

The American equivalent to Flower Boys Next Door would be She’s All That, where the extremely dorky Laney Boggs is given a radical makeover by popular jock, Zack, and overnight becomes the most talked about woman on campus. Despite her introverted nature, she is magically able to make friends with a few of the popular girls and is nominated for Prom Queen. There is no scene in Flower Boys Next Door where Dok-mi is given a radical makeover. There is a scene later in the series where Enrique and she go clothing shopping, but that is about it. She is already a pretty woman and doesn’t need a makeover to emphasize that point. Her shopping for clothes is more about diversifying her wardrobe rather than compromising her personality.  She doesn’t magically morph into a social butterfly by the series end; she is still a bit awkward but is happy with Enrique and her handful of friends.  This leads me to two other themes that are prominent throughout the series:

Real Love
To quote Haddaway, “What is love?”  This is a question that constantly gets tossed around throughout the series.  The characters often express their love for individuals, because often they mistake attraction for love.  Dok-mi is attracted to Tae-joon and likes the idea of him, but chances are if she got to know the guy, she would gradually despise him.  It is easy to claim you love someone when times are good, or when you know very little about them, but the true test is when the shit hits the fan. 

Real love is often forged in fire – Dok-mi and Enrique get into multiple fights and witness each other’s worst qualities, but at the end of the day are still there for each other. In one of the show’s more realistic moments, after they have agreed to start dating, both are initially at a loss over what to do. This is a new experience for them.  Enrique doesn’t just magically transform into a passionate lover; he plays his romance with Dok-mi by ear.  The most interesting thing about their relationship is that they can communicate without words: Enrique often knows what Dok-mi is thinking just by the look in her eyes and body language; later, Dok-mi also learns this same skill with Enrique. 

There is an interesting role reversal in the second half of the series – in the first half, it is Enrique who pesters Dok-mi and gradually melts her icy heart.  In second half, after Enrique gets attacked by an outraged mother, he begins to have a crisis of faith and believes that he has a negative influence on the youth; when he shows this darker side to Dok-mi, she pleads for the old Enrique to come back and then is determined to cheer him up.  

Their relationship is, to a lesser extent, mirrored with Dong-hoon and Seul-gi – they initially start off as being combative towards one another. Seul-gi constantly screams up a storm over how unsatisfied she is with Ji Rok’s and Dong-hoon’s webtoon. However, as the show progresses, the two of them become fond of one another (Seul-gi co-signs a long for Dong-hoon and he gives her polite tips on how to improve her image) and it eventually turns into love. It’s a relationship that was formed in the trenches and can survive because both have already witnessed each other’s worst traits. More importantly, Dong-hoon falls in love with Seul-gi when she still looks like shit – he even comments that the permanent rings under her eyes are “kind of cute.”

Community
This theme is prominent in most K-dramas – the protagonist begins the series as a loner and by the end has built a small community around him/her.  In some instances, like the entertaining Birdie Buddy, they already belong to a strong community, and this is what props them up in their toughest moments.  Flower Boys Next Door begins with Dok-mi alone in her apartment and ends with her outdoors, walking on the sidewalk with Enrique and a handful of friends (including Ji Rok).  This a literal representation of the phrase “strength in numbers.”  Dok-mi begins the series believing that she can do everything on her own, but once she gets to know Enrique, and the joy he usually brings to the proceedings, she realizes this is a fallacy – especially after Enrique pronounces his love for to his less than receptive fanbase. He is willing to alienate his fans and potentially derail his career, because his love for Dok-mi is more important.  When she sees what he is willing to sacrifice, she can’t help but be moved. Early in the show, she states that her high school experience would have been bearable if only ONE person had stood by her side. Just one person she could lean on and pour out all her troubles to. It turns out that Enrique is that one person and she is perfectly okay with it. However, it certainly helps to have some back up and her fellow tenants at the apartment perfectly fill those roles. 

This theme of community extends to Mitzuke – he is a foreigner in another country, but rather than alienate himself from everyone, the first thing he does is make friends. He introduces himself to his neighbors and invites him to his apartment for cooking lesson. In fact, it is these weekly gatherings at his apartment that help cement the bonds the characters form. In one scene, Jung Im is bummed that Enrique is not there, because he is the one who makes the gatherings fun. This is not to say communities are inherently good – after all, the fanbase are a community and they behave in a toxic manner towards Dok-mi – but it certainly helps surrounding yourself with a handful people who understand and support you.

Flower Boys Next Door is not a perfect show. It often suffers from two tropes that annoy me: an overreliance on flashbacks to drive home a point – it often flashbacks to a scene that happened seconds ago. It also is heavily reliant on creating drama by people either missing a phone call or ignoring it. However, despite these flaws, it is still a pleasant diversion, and it does fly at a fast pace. Like most K-dramas, it is addictive – it is difficult to watch just one episode. 

Cast: Park Shin-hye (Go Dok-mi), Yoon Shi-yoon (Enrique Geum), Kim Ji-hoon (Oh Jin Rok), Park Soo-jin (Cha Do-hwi), Go Kyung-pyo(Oh Dong-hoon), Koki Mizuta (Watanabe Ryu), Kim Seul-gi (webtoon editor), Lee Dae-yeon (Hong Soon-chul), Kim So-yi (Jung Im), Kim Yoon-hye (Yoon Seo-young), Kim Jung San (Han Tae-joon), Kim Da-ye (Bae Bok).

Director: Jung Jung-hwa
Writer: Kim Eun-jung
16 episodes ~ 60 minutes

Backstreet Rookie (2020)

Hollywood, before it became obsessed with pushing ideology and rebooting every IP on the planet, used to make movies that catered to the middle class – in the 1980s there was a whole genre of “slobs vs. snobs” comedies that resonated with middle America. Now that activists have taken over the industry, they have abandoned making these types of movies and have figured their best path to success is to alienate this audience and try to win over a non-existent modern audience.  They are no longer in the business of entertainment but lecturing their audience in a desperate attempt to win them over to their cause. 

Therefore, it is interesting to see the “slobs vs. snobs” get adopted by South Korean television.
In the past two weeks, I watched two Korean TV shows, My Roommate is a Gumiho and Backstreet Rookie, and while these two shows are thematically very different, they do feature a female protagonist who is part of the working class. In My Roommate is a Gumiho the protagonist is a college student, Lee Dam, who (like most college students) on the weekends goes out to the bars with her two best friends– her two biggest vices are fried chicken and beer.  She also takes a part time job at Subway to supplement her income – this is something that many college students can relate to.  In fact, it is interesting that, despite the language barrier and cultural differences I find Lee Dam more relatable than most of the characters that populate American television/cinema.  My Roommate is a Gumiho is a highly entertaining show, but for the sake of brevity, this review is going to focus on Backstreet Rookie because it is an interesting (and often funny show) that is filled with all twists and turns. It is impossible to write about Backstreet Rookie without breaking down the main characters.  They are a fascinating bunch and are each worthy of analysis:

Jung Saet-byul (Kim Yoo-jung)

Our first introduction to Jung Saet-byul is her beating the crap of bullies. One could easily mistake her for the boring Girl Bosses that have dominated American culture for the last few years. Yet, as the series progresses, we realize that Saet-byul is more complicated than we initially believe.  She didn’t just magically learn how to fight – she was taught Tai Chi by her father, who owned a dojo. After her father was killed in a car accident this left Saet-byul and her younger sister, Eun-byul, parentless (their mother passed away when they were kids).  Saet-byul is a member of the Have Nots – she has spent most of her adult life having to work menial jobs (delivery girl, handing out fliers, part time convenience store employee) just so she can support Eun-byul and herself. 
While Saet-byul is presented as a badass, she never starts fights – she only uses her fighting skills on bullies. She also harbored a crush on Cho Dae-hyun ever since she was twelve years-old – after he pulled her out of the way to save her from being crushed by a falling punching bag. She later runs into him seven years later while she is smoking with her friends outdoors.  Dae-hyun is distraught after his girlfriend has broken up with him, and throws a teddy bear he bought her into a dumpster. The three girls witness this and then ask Dae-hyun if he can buy them cigarettes.  However, instead he buys them candy and scolds them about how cigarettes are bad for them.  Dae-hyun appreciates his concern and gives him a kiss on the lips.  Three years later – Dae-hyun is the owner of a convenience store and is looking to hire a part timer.  Saet-byul sees the “Help Wanted” sign and applies.

Choi Dae-hyun (Ji Chang-wook)

When we first meet Choi Dae-hyun, he is  a bit off putting (he constantly in the habit of scolding people) but as the show progresses, we realize that he is a good-natured guy. In fact, he may be a bit too good-natured as people constantly take advantage of his kindness.  He is initially suspicious of Saet-byul; he mistakenly characterizes her as a juvenile delinquent and even suspects her of taking money from the register.  However, once he gets to know her better, he realizes that she is a victim of circumstance and is genuinely kind person.  Dae-hyun is the kind of man who is willing to admit he was wrong and tries to atone for his mistake – once he realizes Dae-hyun’s plight, he genuinely wants to help her – not for an ulterior motive but because he legitimately cares about her.  He is also dating the older, and extremely wealthy, Yoo Yeon-joo, and their relationship is less than ideal – she constantly suspects that he is fooling around behind her back.   Dae-hyun does have a habit of being caught in compromising positions – at one-point Yeon-joo catches him getting drunk with Saet-byul and her friends outside the convenience store.  He initially was going to scold Saet-byul for getting drunk on the job, but Geum Bi and Eun Joo, sensing that he is a pushover, play the sympathy card and next thing you know is drinking with them. There is also another scene, after Saet-byul has been awarded “employee of the month,” she persuades Dae-hyun into giving her a piggyback ride, and who should walk in at that very moment but Yeon-joo.  He is also constantly apologizing, even when he hasn’t done anything wrong. 

Yoo Yeon-joo (Han Sunhwa)

When the series begins, Yeon-joo is Dae-hyun’s girlfriend – they have been dating for two years. She works at the corporate headquarters as the Public Relations team leader. She also comes from a wealthy family (her father owns the second most stocks in the company) and is two years older than Dae-hyun (ironically, in real life Han Sunhwa is three years younger than Ji Chang-wook). However, she begins to have second thoughts about her relationship with Dae-hyun; him hiring Saet-byul as a part timer certainly doesn’t help matters. The biggest problem is that they inhabit two different worlds– Yeon-joo belongs in the world of corporate board meetings, fancy restaurants, and other high society functions, but she is at a loss when it comes to the common folk and their hang outs.  It is interesting to note that Dae-hyun inhabited both worlds – he used to work at the corporate headquarters but resigned and opted to open a convenience store.  Yeon-joo is so embarrassed by the last part that she has never introduced Dae-hyun to her parents – because she knows they would disapprove of her dating a convenience store owner. 
It is to the credit of the writers (and actress) that Yeon-joo is not a one-dimensional bitch – in most American sitcoms, such a character would be utterly irredeemable. She makes questionable decisions, but a lot of that can be chalked up to her upbringing. She is the type of girls who has never heard the word “no.”  When she pressures Dae-hyun to fire Saet-byul, he is initially receptive to the idea but has a change of heart when he learns about Saet-byul’s situation. This upsets Yeon-joo and she concludes that the two of them are fooling around behind her back. In fact, Dae-hyun has rejected Saet-byul’s advances because he is committed to his relationship with Yeon-joo. He desperately wants to make it work, but Yeon-joo is too consumed with self-doubt to notice.  The irony is that while Dae-hyun has resisted Saet-byul’s many comes on, it is Yeon-joo who fools around behind Dae-hyun’s back – she has a brief fling with the company boss, and her childhood friend, Seung-joon.  He catches her in an extremely vulnerable moment and makes his move on her. Not to mention, her domineering mother keeps pressuring her to dump Dae-hyun and hook up with Seung-joon.  To her credit, she regrets the affair and wants to make amends to Dae-hyun, but she just can’t trust him being alone with Saet-byul.  She eventually breaks up with Dae-hyun, because she can’t overcome her suspicions.  After seeing his blossoming romance with Saet-byul, she realizes made a huge mistake and is determined to win him back. However, her idea of winning back Dae-hyun’s love is by bribing him with a cushy executive job and pushing Saet-byul out of the picture. 

Han Dal Sik (Eun Moon-suk)/ Hwang Geum Bi (Seo Ye-hwa)

These two characters are each other’s counterparts – Dal Sik is Dae-hyun’s best friend while Geum Bi is Saet-byul’s best friend. Dal Sik is the author of an erotic webtoon – though, he only views it as a job, he would rather write romance stories.  He is Bob Marley fan and has co-opted the whole Rastafarian look – he has dreadlocks, wears Hawaiian t-shirt, and has a bad tan. He uses a pseudonym “Reggae Boy” while writing his webtoon.  It turns out that Geum Bi is the biggest fan of his webtoon and often leaves an encouraging comment. In the real world, they are oblivious to each other’s online personalities and can’t stand one another – every time they run into each other, usually at the convenience store, it often turns violent – Geum Bi gets offended by a comment he makes and slaps him.  Geum Bi is kind of the inverse of Yeon-joo – she also comes from wealth, but she is far more comfortable hanging out with Saet-byul and frequenting all sorts of dive bars.  When Dal Sik and Geum Bi finally figure out each other’s identities, they are, at first, appalled but, as they spend more time together, they begin to realize they have a lot in common and eventually fall in love.

Gong Boo-hee (Kim Sun-young)

Boo-hee is Dae-hyun’s mother, who sells insurance for a living. She is also a character of contradictions – a woman who is often angry (and abusive towards her husband), yet who is also capable of showing great warmth and compassion to people who need it.  When she finds out that Saet-byul has been evicted from her apartment and forced to live in a sauna, Boo-hee takes Saet-byul under her wing and allows her to live with the family.  Boo-hee becomes a surrogate mother to the parentless Saet-byul.
Boo-hee’s violent streaks stem from resentment at the way her life turned out – she had great aspirations in her youth but was forced to settle selling insurance while struggling to raise her family. It doesn’t help that her husband, Yong-pil, has been unemployed for a long time, making her the only breadwinner in the family. She views herself as a total failure.  She simultaneously resents the upper class while desperately wanting to become a member of it.  When Yeon-joo tries to get back together with Dae-hyun, she tries to get to Dae-hyun through his mother – the two of the meets up, enjoy a few drinks together, and then Yeon-joo drops the bomb she wants to back together with Dae-hyun. Boo-hee is elated and then proceeds to pressure Dae-hyun into taking back Yeon-joo, while Saet-byul is standing in the same room. She views this as a shot at upward mobility, if Dae-hyun marries into wealth it would solve all their problems. 

Choi Yong-pil (Lee Byung-joon)

Yong-pil is Dae-hyun’s father who has spent most of his adult life as a stay-at-home. He does help Dae-hyun run the convenience store – often working shifts when his son is unavailable. He is also reckless when it comes to money – he buys a message chair behind his wife’s back. He is also a man who is stuck in past – he, along with his three best friends (and former bandmates), plans on taking a trip to China to visit their one-time lead singer/Yong-pil’s first love, Jang-mi (who was also Doo-hee’s best friend before they had a falling out).  His heart is often in the right place, but he is extremely clumsy. 
His luck seems to take a turn for the better when he gets a chauffeur job. He is hired to drive around Yeon-joo and her mother. However, it is revealed that the only reason Yeon-joo’s mother hired Yong-pil was to spite Dae-hyun. It’s her way of dangling carrot in front of Yong-pil – give him a taste of the finer things in life before taking them away – she plans on firing him for the most trivial thing. However, Yong-pil doesn’t give her that satisfaction; when he learns he is a pawn in her game, he quits the job. He may be absent minded, but he still has his pride.

Jung Eun-byul (Ahn Sol-bin)

Eun-byul is Saet-byul’s younger sister. She is seventeen years old and attends high school. She also hangs out with bullies, who take compromising pictures of her on their phones, so they can control her.  Eun-byul’s true ambition is to be a K-pop idol. She passes the audition process and becomes a trainee. She must resort to dubious methods to achieve her dream – she steals all her sister’s money and hires an actress to pose as her mother.  Unfortunately, her a past comes back to bite her in the ass, when the bullies, feeling that she has shunned them, leak the compromising photos of Eun-byul online. Overnight, Eun-byul is labelled a bully (one of the photos is staged photo of Eun-byul stepping on her friend’s knee).  As we have learned from the T-ara scandal, South Koreans take their bullying allegations seriously.

However, it isn’t just Eun-byul’s reputation that is sullied, but Saet-byul’s and Kang Ji-uk’s (a childhood friend), as well.  A video surfaces of Saet-byul beating up bullies – but it is taken out of context, and everyone assumes Saet-byul is the bully.  A tabloid journalist takes a picture of Kang Ji-uk comforting Eun-byul, and everyone assumes the two of them are in a romantic relationship. Kang Ji-uk is a famous actor, with a huge fan following, but when his fanbase sees him supposedly romancing an alleged bully, they quickly turn on him.  Eventually, all three of them are vindicated, thanks to Saet-byul contacting the tabloid journalist and presenting her with evidence that contradicts all these claims, and Eun-byul can resume her K-pop career.

Kang Ji-uk (Kim Min-kyu)

As mentioned above, Kang Ji-uk is a famous actor, who is also a childhood friend of Saet-byul and Eun-byul – he was a student at their father’s dojo. He also has a massive crush on Saet-byul and is, naturally, jealous that she reserves all her affection for Dae-hyun. This irritates him in the early going, when Dae-hyun seems oblivious to Saet-byul’s feelings.  He does call out Dae-hyun on his cavalier attitude and Dae-hyun, to his credit, listens to Ji-uk’s criticisms.  He doesn’t mind Saet-byul choosing another man, if that man treats her right.
I initially believed he would end up with Eun-byul, the show seems to be setting up this fact, especially after he promises Saet-byul that he will look after her younger sister.  Instead, he ends landing an acting gig in the United States and promptly exits the series.

Kim Hye-ja -Yoo Yeon-joo’s Mother (Gyeon Mi-ri)

Kim Hye-ja is the main antagonist of the series – she is also Yoo Yeon-joo’s domineering mother. She is an extremely cold-hearted woman who views people as commodities. When Yeon-joo breaks up with Dae-hyun that isn’t enough for Hye-ja, she decides to rub salt in the wound by dragging Dae-hyun’s into the mix.  This appalls even Yeon-joo, who scolds her mother for going too far. Yet, for all Hye-ja’s wealth, she is a lonely woman; her distant personality only succeeds at driving Yeon-joo.

Jo Seung-joon (Do Sang-woo)

Seung-joon is the secondary antagonist of the series – he is the convenience store’s head office director, a role given to him by his father – who is the owner of the company. He has known Yeon-joo his entire life and has romantic designs on her – he tries to lure her away from Dae-hyun multiple times.  He was also responsible for Dae-hyun resigning from the head office – he persuaded Dae-hyun to take the fall for Yeon-joo. Interestingly, there isn’t any real animosity between Dae-hyun and him; there is no scene where they engage in a shouting match nor fisticuffs.  He doesn’t dislike Dae-hyun, he just doesn’t think Yeon-joo and Dae-hyun are a good match (to his credit, he is correct).

Now that I got the characters summaries out of the way, I would like to explore the themes that an inherent throughout Backstreet Rookie. Despite its sitcom structure, there is a lot of emotional depth in Backstreet Rookie. There are four principal themes that I would like to explore:

Jumping to the Wrong Conclusions
A common theme that occurs throughout Backstreet Rookie is characters often jumping to the wrong conclusion often due to a misunderstanding.  When Saet-byul starts working at the convenience store, Dae-hyun is initially suspicious of her; he still thinks of her as that delinquent girl who asked him to buy her a pack of cigarettes. When money goes missing from the cash register, Dae-hyun assumes Saet-byul is the culprit – he saw her leaving the convenience store with bills sticking out of her back pocket. However, it turns out that Bong-hee took the bills; she borrowed the money to pay for the bills and then paid it back. He becomes more suspicious of Saet-byul when Dal Sik records a video of her beating up shoplifters in a back alley. Dae-hyun is not giving the proper context of this event, he just assumes she picked a fight with random strangers.

When three bullies accost Yeon-joo in the woman’s restroom, Saet-byul arrives on the scene and teaches them a lesson. However, Yeon-joo is so frightened by the incident, and spent the entirety of the fight hidden in the stall, that when Saet-byul opens the door to assure her everything is okay, Yeon-joo assumes she is one of the bullies.  Saet-byul also desperately needs to use the toilet and because Yeon-joo is too busy freaking out, Saet-byul tries to pull her out of the stall. It is at this exact moment that Dae-hyun arrives on the scene; he is wondering what is taking Yeon-joo so long and goes to investigate. Right when he is outside of the restroom door, one of the bullies’ crashes through the door. This arouses his curiosity and walks into to find Saet-byul, apparently, assaulting his hysterical girlfriend.

Based off these two incidents, and at the urging of Yeon-joo, Dae-hyun decides he is going to fire Saet-byul. It looks like he is going to go through with the plan when Saet-byul’s two friends, Geum Bi and Yoon So, approach Dae-hyun and set the record straight. Once Dae-hyun learns about Saet-byul and her current situation, he is determined to help her.  Dae-hyun may be a square but he is a good-hearted square. 

When Yeon-joo learns that Dae-hyun resigned from the head office to take the fall for her, she is determined to make amends by getting him an executive job (to represent all the convenience store owners).  However, she has an ulterior motive for this - she is hoping this gesture will win him back. She also persuades Dae-hyun and his family to sign over the ownership of the convenience store to the head office; this allows Yeon-joo to pick her own store manager (corporate lackey, Bae) and she specifically instructs him to treat Saet-byul badly, so that she will quit. Yet, despite all her efforts, Dae-hyun has no interest getting back together with Yeon-joo. He doesn’t hold a grudge against her, he has just moved on with his life and has found Saet-byul, who is a better match for him. No amount of money or power can get Dae-hyun to change his mind and Yeon-joo, grudgingly, accepts this fact. 

When the bullies leak the compromising photos of Eun-byul, the entire public jumps to the wrong conclusion and believes she is a bully. Overnight, her entire world comes crashing down. When the video leaks of Saet-byul beating up bullies, the convenience store takes a huge hit; customers can’t believe Dae-hyun would hire such a terrible person.  Yet, Dae-hyun refuses to budge and stands by Dae-hyun. Eventually the truth comes out and the two sisters can resume their normal lives. 

Finally, Saet-byul mistakenly believes that she has been a burden to Dae-hyun and his family and packs up her belongings to work at a farm.  This comes after Bong-hee urges Dae-hyun to back together with Yeon-joo and after Yeon-joo has laid a massive guilt trip on Saet-byul (“Think of what’s best for Dae-hyun.”)  Of course, we, the audience, know better and, more importantly, so does Dae-hyun – she has not been a hindrance on his life, she has massively improved it.  He finds Dae-hyun – it is revealed that Dal Sik’s father owns the farm she works on – and he pours his soul out to her.  He even quits his comfy job at the head office and regains ownership of the store, just so he can be with Saet-byul.  Yeon-joo, realizing she has lost, gets a job in the United States. 

Class

This is one of the more obvious themes that pops up through the series, but it is interesting how the series is approaches it. All three classes are depicted in this series: the upper class (Yeon-joo and her mother), the middle class (Dae-hyun and family), and the lower class (Saet-byul and her sister). The upper class looks down on both the middle class and lower class; in their mind there is no real distinction. When Yeon-joo is dating Dae-hyun, they are often the subject of gossip; her co-workers at the head office can’t believe she would date a convenience store owner.  Even though Yeon-joo has dated Dae-hyun for two years, she has hidden him from her parents, because she knows they would disapprove.  Her mother desperately wants her to get together with Seung-joon, because he belongs to the same class as her.  When they are shooting a promo video at Dae-hyun’s convenience store (starring Ji-uk), Yeon-joo comments that she can’t wait until it’s over, because she “hates places like this.”  Dong-hee overhears this and gives her a scolding. This is an interesting exchange because Yeon-joo wasn’t trying to be disparaging, she just isn’t comfortable in that type of setting, but Dong-hee interprets it as her denigrating the working class.  Later, after the shoot is finished, Yeon-joo is talking on her cell phone and walks past Dong-hee, who thinks that Yeon-joo is ignoring her. She then calls out Yeon-joo and makes a scene out of it, much to the confusion of Yeon-joo. 

As I mentioned in Bong-hee’s description, she simultaneously resents the upper class but also wants to be a member. She completely changes her tune when Yeon-joo tries to get back together with Dae-hyun.  In Bong-hee’s mind, even though her family has been disrespected by Yeon-joo’s mother, she would rather be that dreadful woman’s in-law than wallow in middle class mediocrity.
This brings up the other half of this theme: the middle class often looks up to the rich while resenting the poor. Dae-hyun initially assumes the worst about Saet-byul, solely due to her poor upbringing – she has no parents, dropped out of high school, and has gotten into many street fights, so his is naturally suspicious of her.  It is a bias he initially struggles to get past, because, from his point of view, she seems to have a knack for getting into trouble.  Ironically, it turns out that his older sister is the one who has been stealing from the store and register. 

However, there are characters who really don’t belong in any class – they just go where they please. Both Geum Bi and Dal Sik come from wealth yet choose to hang out in dive bars with the Saet-byul and Yoon So.  It is implied that Dae-hyun could easily join the elite crowd, but he gives up that opportunity so he can be with Saet-byul. Hell, even Yeon-joo, for all her faults, would rather be with Dae-hyun than Seung-joon, but she is just not good at expressing her true feelings – rather than scheming to get Saet-byul out of the picture and buttering up his mother, she should have just directly told him how she feels. At the end, despite her efforts, Yeon-joo can’t overcome the class barrier. 

Destiny

Destiny is a theme that often pops up in K-dramas; in shows like My Roommate is a Gumiho and May I Help You, it is explicit. In the former show, there is a Mountain Spirit who oversees people’s destinies.  In Backstreet Rookie, it is implied that destiny is at work.  The first time Saet-byul meets Dae-hyun she is a preteen practicing at her father’s dojo, and Dae-hyun happens to walk in at just the right time to save her from a falling punching bag.  Years later, the two of them meet again – after Dae-hyun has been dumped by his then girlfriend. He is distraught and aimlessly wanders the streets when he stumbles upon Saet-byul and her friends. This is an amazing coincidence, or is it?  Saet-byul has harbored a crush on Dae-hyun ever since that eventful day at her father’s dojo and immediately recognizes him.  Three years later, when Dae-hyun is looking for part time help at his convenience store, Saet-byul sees the “HELP WANTED” sign and takes advantage of this opportunity.  She certainly doesn’t see it as coincidence but rather as destiny working in her favor.

The same applies to Dal Sik and Geum Bi; they are destined to be a couple. The two of them are a huge presence in each other’s lives without realizing it – they both play the same dance game at the arcade and often beat each other’s scores.  They are always annoyed that someone has bested their score and immediately work to regain the top score.  Later, they work together as a team and are in perfect sync with each other.  More importantly, Geum Bi just happens to be a huge fan of Dal Sik’s webtoon. After she finds out his true identity, she even helps him come up with a resolution for his webtoon.  They are the perfect team, yet had they not been at the right place at the right time, they would still be lonely. 

Destiny in Backstreet Rookie is more of a guiding force - it can only take you so far, but it’s up to you what to do with it. Saet-byul recognizes destiny is at work and immediately seizes upon it to make her dreams come true.  Destiny seemed to be working in Yeon-joo’s favor, but she shrugs it off and breaks up with Dae-hyun (a man who was truly devoted to her).  When she recognizes her mistake, it is too little too late.   

Family

The most important, and obvious, theme of Backstreet Rookie is family.  Dae-hyun’s family may be a dysfunctional bunch, but they are always there for each other – they question Dae-hyun running a convenience store, but they are willing to help him. The same applies to Dal Sik – he is often working shifts to cover for Dae-hyun.  Dae-hyun’s mother comes across as strict and confrontational, but she is willing to take Saet-byul, and later Eun-byul, when they desperately need a place to stay.  While Dae-hyun is often annoyed by his family, Saet-byul is charmed by them and reminds him how lucky he truly is. 

Saet-byul has a turbulent relationship with Eun-byul, they are constantly butting heads.  Eun-byul tries to keep her K-pop trainee status a secret from her older sister, and when Saet-byul finds out she initially disapproves. However, she changes her mind when she sees a viral video of Eun-byul at her first showcase; while performing a song and dance number with her girl group, Eun-byul slips and falls, bloodying her nose in the process. However, she gets right back up and finishes the number, bloody nose and all. This turns her into a huge internet sensation but, more importantly, earns the respect of her older sister.  How can Saet-byul ruin the dreams of someone who is that dedicated?  When the bullies nearly derail Eun-byul’s K-pop career, Saet-byul is by her side to offer her moral support.

The Saet-byul/ Dae-hyun relationship is an interesting one. Saet-byul has proven she can fight her own battles, so she doesn’t need Dae-hyun to stand up for her.  What attracts Saet-byul to Dae-hyun is that he is often pushing her to better herself.  When he finds out that she dropped out of high school, he encourages her to continue her education by taking a G.E.D.  He also encourages her to go to a university and offers to pay for her education himself.  He often scolds Saet-byul, not because he hates her, but because he has high expectations for her. He knows she can do better.  He is probably the first person since her late father, who openly expresses his belief in her.

It is not a one-sided relationship:  Dae-hyun helps Saet-byul with her education and she helps boost the business at his convenience store. It is her agreeable personality that helps create a loyal customer base – she always has a smile on her face and is willing to help when asked.  The two of them take turns looking after one another – when Saet-byul is hospitalized for appendicitis, Dae-hyun pays her hospital and even doubles her work pay, so she will be able to cover her bills.  Later, when Dae-hyun is hospitalized for exhaustion, Saet-byul is sitting by his side making sure he recovers. 

The most tragic character in Backstreet Rookie is Yeon-joo; she may come from a wealthy background and have a good paying job, but she has no real family.  Her father is rarely around, and her mother is a cold woman, who views her daughter more as a commodity rather than a person. Yeon-joo’s “friends” are also the type of people who would have no qualms throwing her under the bus if it benefitted them to do so. She is truly a lonely soul….and yet, she could have found happiness had she been more trusting of Dae-hyun.  She briefly experiences “family life” when Bong-hee invites her over to the house for dinner, but by then Dae-hyun has moved onto Saet-byul. 

Backstreet Rookie wasn't without its controversies; many keyboard warriors were offended by the character of Dal Sik and his appropriation of Jamaican culture. They kind of miss the point of the character - Dal Sik loves the IDEA of Jamaican culture rather than the actual culture itself, to the point where he adopts the more superficial aspects of it (dreadlocks) without ever bothering to learn their true meaning. It's fitting that once he reveals his true self to Geum Bi, he is finally able to find love. 

The other controversy was the age gap between the lead actors - in real life Ji Chang-wook is twelve years older than his co-star, Kim Yoo-jung. This an instance where the public confuses the characters for the actors that portray them- in the context of the TV show, there is a seven-year gap between Dae-hyun and Saet-byul; he is 29 years old while she is 22. It also interesting to note than in The K2, another drama starring Ji Chang-wook, the leading actress in that series, Song Yoon-ah, was his senior by fourteen years, and yet the two of them were praised for their remarkable chemistry. Granted, she was the villain of the piece, but there is still a lot of sexual tension between their two characters. 

There was also controversy over the fact that Saet-byul kisses Dae-hyun in the very first episode. The formula for most K-dramas is that two romantic leads usually don't share a kiss until midway through the series- it's a moment that the show builds to and the characters have to earn it.  Yet, Saet-byul just casually kisses Dae-hyun like it is nothing. I bring this up to emphasize the cultural differences between the United States and South Korea; in the United States very few people would think twice about this scene. They would watch it and then move onto the next scene. In South Korea, this moment was a bit too much for the viewers. How can she be kissing a man she hardly knows? This is not meant to be ridiculing Korean culture; indeed, I think one of the many flaws of American culture is that we have thrown all the standards out the window.  

Cast: Ji Chang-wook (Choi Dae-hyun), Kim Yoo-jung (Jung Saet-byul), Han Sunhwa (Yoo Yeon-joo), Kim Sun-young (Gong Bon-hee), Lee Byung-joon (Choi Yong-pil), Seo Ye-hwa (Hwang Geum Bi), Eum Moon-suk (Han Dal Sik), Ahn Sol-bin (Jung Eun-byul), Kim Min-kyu (Jang Ji-wook), Do Sang-woo (Jo Seung-joon), Yoon So (Cha Eun-joo), Kim Ji-hyun (Choi Dae-soon), Gyeon Mi-ri (Kim Hye-ja – Yeon-joo’s mother), Heo Jae-ho (Department Head Bae), Park Jin-joo (Bully group leader).

Director: Lee Myoungwoo
Writer: Son Geun-joo. Based off the webtoon by Active Volcano
16 episodes ~ 60 minutes.