Packers-Colts Preseason Game 3 Dope Sheet

*Two years after he co-founded the Packers with Curly Lambeau, George Calhoun began writing a piece called The Dope Sheet, which served as the official press release and game program from 1921-24.

Honoring Calhoun, the first publicity director, the Packers are running this weekly feature as their release, which is being made available to fans exclusively on Packers.com.

This is an abbreviated version of the Packers-Colts Preseason Game 3 Dope Sheet. To read the full version, download the PDF by **clicking here**.

Here are some highlights from the Packers-Colts Preseason Game 3 Dope Sheet:*

INDIANAPOLIS (0-2) at GREEN BAY (1-1)Thursday, Aug. 26 - Lambeau Field - 7 p.m. CDT

COLTS COME TO LAMBEAU FOR PRESEASON ACTION

• The Packers return home to take on the defending AFC champion Indianapolis Colts in a nationally televised contest at Lambeau Field.
• It will be the final home game of the preseason for Green Bay, and will give the team a longer look at its starters as well as some of the younger players fighting for a spot on the team with the first roster cut-down on the horizon.
• In the past under Head Coach Mike McCarthy, the starters have played into the third quarter in the third preseason contest, and the Colts should provide a good measuring stick for the Packers as they begin to look ahead to the regular season. The overall health of the team will surely factor into how much Green Bay's starters play on Thursday night.
• Over the past 18 preseasons, the Packers have appeared on national television at least once 17 of those years. The lone year that Green Bay did not appear on national TV during that span was 2009.
• For the second straight preseason, the Packers will face a Super Bowl participant from the previous season in their third preseason contest. In '09, the Packers traveled to Arizona to face the defending NFC champion Cardinals and came away with a 44-37 win.
• The teams have squared off seven times before in the preseason, with the Colts holding a 5-2 advantage in the series. The last preseason meeting between the teams came on Aug. 24, 1996, a 30-6 Colts victory in Indianapolis.
• The Packers beat Seattle, 27-24, on Saturday night at Qwest Field. QB Aaron Rodgers led the No. 1 offense on a pair of touchdown drives, completing 8-of-11 passes for 116 yards and two TDs. RB Brandon Jackson scored on a 12-yard run with 3:34 remaining to give Green Bay the win.
• The Colts lost to Buffalo, 34-21, on Thursday night in Toronto. QB Peyton Manning completed 8-of-15 passes for 91 yards and a TD, and RB Joseph Addai posted a 17-yard TD run.

BISHOP'S CHARITIES GAME

• Thursday night marks another Green Bay preseason tradition: the Bishop's Charities Game. It was first played in 1961 after Vince Lombardi was approached by the Diocese of Green Bay about playing a charitable contest in Green Bay (the Shrine contest was a fixture in Milwaukee).
• The series enjoys its 50th contest this year and has raised over $3.4 million.
• For more than 30 years, the church handled much of the game's business-related tasks, including game program and advertising sales, using a network of volunteers covering 14 Northeastern Wisconsin counties. The Packers assumed many of those tasks in 1994.  
• The Packers are 25-23-1 all-time in the series. They will be playing Indianapolis for the fourth time in the series, with the other meetings coming in 1984, 1989 and 1993.
• Green Bay got back to its winning ways last season when it defeated Buffalo, 31-21. Prior to that, the Packers had lost six consecutive Bishop's Charities contests. That six-game losing streak (2003-08) came on the heels of a 12-game winning streak (1991-2002) in the series.  

WITH THE CALL

• ESPN enters its fifth season as host of the most successful series in sports television history, Monday Night Football. Play-by-play man Mike Tirico is joined by analysts Ron Jaworski and Jon Gruden for the 41st season of MNF broadcasts, with Suzy Kolber and Michele Tafoya reporting from the sidelines.
• ESPN Deportes will broadcast the game with Spanish graphics and commentary provided by announcers Alvaro Martin and Raul Allegre, with John Sutcliffe as sideline reporter.
• The contest also will air as a simulcast locally on WBAY (Ch. 2) in Green Bay and WISN (Ch. 12) in Milwaukee.
• Milwaukee's WTMJ (620 AM), airing Green Bay games since 1929, heads up the 53-station Packers Radio Network, with Wayne Larrivee (play-by-play) and two-time Packers Pro Bowler Larry McCarren (color) calling the action. The duo enters its 12th season of broadcasts together across the Packers Radio Network, which covers 43 markets in five states.

THE DOPE ON THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT:
Packers vs. Indianapolis Colts:
All-time regular season: 20-20-1
All-time, postseason: 1-0
All-time, in Green Bay: 7-3-0 (incl. 1965 Western Conf. Championship)
All-time, preseason: 2-5-0
Streaks: The two teams have split their last six regular-season meetings, dating back to 1988.
Last meeting, regular season: Oct. 19, 2008, at Lambeau Field; Packers won, 34-14
Last meeting, preseason: Aug. 24, 1996, at RCA Dome; Colts won, 30-6

COACHES CAPSULES
Mike McCarthy: 39-28-0, .582, (incl. 1-2 postseason); 5th NFL season
Jim Caldwell: 16-3-0, .842 (incl. 2-1 postseason); 2nd NFL season
Head to Head: Never met
vs. Opponent: McCarthy 1-0 vs. Colts; Caldwell 0-0 vs. Packers

MIKE McCARTHY…Is in fifth year as the Packers' 14th head coach.

• Has led his team to the playoffs two of the past three years.
• One of only two coaches, along with New Orleans' Sean Payton, to have his offense ranked in the top 10 in total yardage each of the last four years.
• Was named Packers head coach on Jan. 12, 2006, his first head coaching job after 13 years as an NFL assistant.
• Honored as the 2007 Motorola NFL Coach of the Year and NFL Alumni Coach of the Year.
• Became the first Packers coach since Vince Lombardi to lead the team to a championship game in his second season.

JIM CALDWELL…Is in second year as the Colts' 19th head coach.

• Led the team to a 14-2 record, two playoff wins, and a Super Bowl appearance in his first season.
• Became the only rookie head coach in NFL history to win his first 14 games, the second to post 14 regular-season wins overall (George Seifert, 1989), and the fifth to reach the Super Bowl.
• Previously served as the Colts' QB coach (2002-04) and as the assistant (2005-07) and associate head coach (2008) under Tony Dungy.
• Also served as QB coach at Tampa Bay (2001), head coach at Wake Forest University (1993-2000) and as an assistant coach at six other colleges, beginning in 1977 at his alma mater, Iowa, where he was a four-year starter at defensive back.  

THE PACKERS-COLTS SERIES

• The rivalry dates back to 1953, when the Colts were in Baltimore and played the Packers twice per season from 1953-1966.
• The most memorable game in that stretch came in the 1965 Western Conference Championship at Lambeau Field, won by the Packers 13-10 in overtime, the first sudden-death game in franchise history. Don Chandler's disputed FG at the end of regulation tied the game and led the NFL to raise the uprights the following year.  
• The two clubs have met just four times in the last 18 years but have staged two shootouts, both in Indianapolis, in that time. On Nov. 16, 1997, the Colts prevailed 41-38 on a FG at the end of regulation, handing the Packers their last loss that season until Super Bowl XXXII, vs. Denver. Then on Sept. 26, 2004, the Colts prevailed again, 45-31, as Brett Favre and Peyton Manning combined for 753 passing yards and nine TDs.

NOTABLE CONNECTIONS
Colts DT Dan Muir played for the Packers in 2007, while Colts WR Taj Smith spent the 2008 training camp in Green Bay, and Packers WR Charles Dillon spent the 2008 offseason and part of training camp with the Colts...Packers WR coach Jimmy Robinson held the same position with the Colts from 1994-97...Packers offensive coordinator Joe Philbin was on the staff at Iowa when Colts TE Dallas Clark and S Bob Sanders played for the Hawkeyes...Colts OL coach Pete Metzelaars and QB coach Frank Reich played for Carolina in '95 when Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers was in his first season as head coach there...Colts DL coach John Teerlinck was Packers OLB coach Kevin Greene's position coach with the Rams in '91...The two teams feature several veterans who were college teammates, including Colts QB Peyton Manning and Packers T Chad Clifton (Tennessee), Colts RB Joseph Addai and Packers QB Matt Flynn (LSU), Colts WR Anthony Gonzalez and Packers LB  A.J. Hawk (Ohio State), Colts T Tony Ugoh and Packers LS Brett Goode (Arkansas), and Colts S Jamie Silva and Packers S Will Blackmon and NT B.J. Raji (Boston College)...Two pairs of college teammates are rookies who were both drafted this past April: Colts DE Jerry Hughes and Packers G/T Marshall Newhouse (TCU) and Colts LB Pat Angerer and Packers T/G Bryan Bulaga (Iowa); Colts DT Mitch King also was a teammate of Bulaga's at Iowa...Colts DT Fili Moala and Packers LB Clay Matthews were both 2009 draft picks out of USC; Colts DB Kevin Thomas was drafted out of USC in 2010...Packers P Tim Masthay began 2009 training camp with the Colts, and was a college teammate of Colts TE Jacob Tamme at Kentucky...Other former college teammates include Colts QB Curtis Painter, DB Brandon King and Packers DE Mike Neal (Purdue), Colts LB Philip Wheeler and Packers S Morgan Burnett (Georgia Tech), Colts DB Melvin Bullitt and Packers LB Cyril Obiozor (Texas A&M), Colts DE Keyunta Dawson and Packers QB Graham Harrell (Texas Tech), Colts LB Cody Glenn and Packers RB Brandon Jackson (Nebraska), Colts G Jacques McClendon and Packers DE Justin Harrell (Tennessee), Colts DT Marlon Favorite and Packers FB Quinn Johnson (LSU), Colts DB Jarraud Powers and Packers CB Pat Lee (Auburn), Colts RB Javarris James and Packers CB Sam Shields (Miami), Colts T Jeff Linkenbach, DT Ricardo Matthews and Packers CB Brandon Underwood (Cincinnati), Colts RB Devin Moore and Packers S Derrick Martin (Wyoming), and Colts G Jamey Richard, DB Mike Newton and Packers RB James Starks (Buffalo).

INDIVIDUALLY VS. COLTS
WR Donald Driver has 11 receptions for 123 yards and a TD in three career games against the Colts...CB Charles Woodson has 20 tackles (16 solo) in four career games against the Colts, three of those while with the Raiders...RB Brandon Jackson established his single-game career high with six receptions in the 2008 meeting.

LAST MEETING, REGULAR SEASON
Oct. 19, 2008, at Lambeau Field; Packers won, 34-14.

• Safeties Nick Collins (62 yards) and Aaron Rouse (99 yards) both ran back interceptions for long touchdowns as Green Bay won going away.  
• QB Aaron Rodgers was an efficient 21-of-28 for 186 yards and a TD, a 12-yarder to TE Donald Lee early in the second quarter that gave the Packers the lead for good.
• RB Ryan Grant carried 31 times for 105 yards and a TD.
• Colts QB Peyton Manning was 21-of-42 for 229 yards and the two INTs. RB Dominic Rhodes rushed for 73 yards and two TDs.

LAST MEETING, PRESEASON
Aug. 24, 1996, at RCA Dome; Colts won, 30-6.

• In what eventually became their Super Bowl championship season, the Packers ended the preseason with a thud against a former Green Bay coach, Lindy Infante, who was beginning his first season at the Colts'  helm.  
• Indianapolis scored on three long TD passes. QB Jim Harbaugh connected with WR Marvin Harrison on a 54-yard score and with WR Sean Dawkins for a 39-yarder. QB Paul Justin added a 64-yard TD to WR Aaron Bailey in the fourth quarter.  

CONTINUING TO CLICK

• Last year during the preseason, Green Bay's No. 1 offense put together a string of impressive performances that it carried over into the regular season. The Packers are only two games into this preseason, but the offense appears to be building momentum once again.
• On its six possessions in the first two preseason contests, the first-team offense has scored four touchdowns, including TDs on both of its drives (71 and 76 yards) Saturday night in Seattle.
• Leading the way has been QB Aaron Rodgers, who ranks No. 1 in the NFL during the preseason with a 154.0 passer rating. Rodgers has completed 20-of-24 passes (83.3 percent) for 275 yards and three TDs with no INTs.  
• "I think he has been excellent," Head Coach Mike McCarthy said. "He has been sharp, and he's doing all of the little things that are necessary to continue to spread the ball around and keep our offense in good looks.He's doing an excellent job."
• Rodgers posted similar numbers during the 2009 preseason, registering a 147.9 passer rating as he completed 29-of-41 attempts (70.7 percent) for 465 yards and six TDs with no INTs. The No. 1 offense scored nine TDs and a FG on 13 possessions during the '09 preseason.
• Credit must be given to the Packers' offensive line, as it has yet to allow a sack of Rodgers through the first two preseason games. The No. 1 line didn't yield a single sack in the 2009 preseason on Rodgers' 41 attempts.

AHEAD THIS WEEK

• Thursday night's contest will feature two of the more productive quarterbacks in the league in Rodgers and Peyton Manning.
• Rodgers and Manning are two of only four QBs in the NFL to throw for 4,000 yards each of the last two seasons, joining San Diego's Philip Rivers and New Orleans' Drew Brees.
• In 2009, Rodgers became the first QB in NFL history to throw for more than 4,000 yards in each of his first two seasons as a starter.
• Rodgers has a ways to go before he can match Manning, who posted a 4,000-yard passing season an NFL-record 10th time in 2009.
• Both quarterbacks rank among the top five in several categories over the past two seasons (2008-09).

Player - Passing Yards
Drew Brees - 9,457
Peyton Manning - 8,502
Aaron Rodgers - 8,472
Kurt Warner - 8,336
Philip Rivers - 8,263

Player - Passing TDs
Drew Brees - 68
Philip Rivers - 62
Peyton Manning - 60
Aaron Rodgers - 58
Kurt Warner - 56

Player - Passer Rating
Philip Rivers - 105.0
Drew Brees - 102.2
Aaron Rodgers - 98.5
Peyton Manning - 97.5
Matt Schaub - 96.3

EXCERPTS FROM COACH MCCARTHY - SEATTLE POSTGAME

(How did you feel about the team responding to the deficit and working its way back in the second half?)
"I thought our guys just kept battling. Everybody had an opportunity to play; I thought Matt Flynn did a good job, I thought Graham [Harrell] did a good job those last two drives to get us in the end zone, and our defense was getting the ball back, so we were very pleased with the team's effort tonight."

(What did you tell the team after the game?)
"'Hurry up, drink some water and let's get on the plane.' We have a long ride home, and we have a number of things that we will correct as a football team on Monday. We have a short week next week – we play on Thursday – so I'm more concerned with how we bounce back from this game out here on the West Coast. We'll take Monday morning and we will spend that on the corrections from Seattle."

(What did you get out of seeing so many different players in the starting lineup on defense tonight?)
"We talk about this all the time: preseason games are much different than regular-season games because there is so much more information you're trying to gather. This will give us more information on any individuals that had an opportunity to play earlier than they probably would have if the other players were here. Some of the things that we did, schematically, are we improving? Because Dom Capers and the defensive staff haven't changed the game plan or the ready-list since Family Night, so we'll look at all of those things."

(What did you see from your special-teams units tonight?)
"[I got] lot of information; a lot of positives, some negatives. We played everybody on kickoff coverage again this week like we did last week, so I'm looking for some individuals to probably separate themselves from others because we have two games of information in that particular area. I thought the punt [unit] was solid. We've got to handle the football. Ball security is a premium not only for our offense and we didn't do that, so we'll get it corrected and move on to Indianapolis."

CAMP BREAKS

• The Packers moved out of the dorms at St. Norbert College last Wednesday, and had their final "two-a-day" on Thursday, marking an unofficial end to training camp.   
• The team now moves into a schedule that more closely resembles the regular season. It will hit the practice field twice this week – Monday night and Tuesday morning – before hosting Indianapolis on Thursday.
• After a quick turnaround in preparation for the Colts, Green Bay will have a full week before the preseason finale at Kansas City on Sept. 2.

SAVE THE DATE
Important dates to remember (all times local):

• Tuesday, Aug. 31 – Final practice open to public, 10:15 a.m.,
• Nitschke Field; NFL-mandated roster reduction, to 75 players, by 3 p.m.
• Thursday, Sept. 2 – Preseason game at Kansas City Chiefs,
• 7 p.m., Arrowhead Stadium
• Saturday, Sept. 4 – NFL-mandated roster reduction, to 53
• players, by 3 p.m.
• Sunday, Sept. 5 – Clubs may establish eight-player practice
• squad, 11 a.m.

RODGERS AND NO. 1 OFFENSE CONTINUE TO PRODUCE

• It's hard to imagine quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers' No. 1 offense playing any sharper halfway through this preseason.
• Rodgers and his first unit looked seemingly unstoppable for the second week in a row as they scored two touchdowns in two possessions, getting the Packers off to a fast start in what became a 27-24 victory over the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday night at Qwest Field.
• Rodgers produced with both the quick strike and a long, methodical drive. He hit Greg Jennings on a 56-yard bomb on the Packers' first offensive play, leading to a 1-yard touchdown toss to John Kuhn just four snaps later.
• Then, he directed a 12-play, 76-yard drive that chewed up nearly seven minutes on the clock. His favorite target on the march was tight end Jermichael Finley, who caught three 12-yard passes, the last one a bullet over the middle on third down for a touchdown and a 14-7 lead as the first quarter concluded.
• "The line does a great job, and it starts with those guys up front," Rodgers said. "We were able to move the pocket a little bit, run the ball effectively when we had to, and keep the defense guessing. When they're guessing, we're going to strike."
• Finley also had a key third-down conversion on the opening drive, snagging a 12-yard completion on third-and-8 from the Seattle 13. Finley, whom Rodgers credited with running more detailed routes in his third year in the offense, finished with four catches for 48 yards in his one quarter of action.
• Rodgers finished 8-of-11 for 116 yards with the two scores. That puts his two-game preseason totals at 20-of-24 for 275 yards with three TDs for a QB rating of 154.0. A perfect rating is 158.3.
• "That just means that the way I'm seeing the game is how I want it to be going into the season," Rodgers said. "The checks I'm making at the line of scrimmage are the correct checks, I'm getting us in good situations, and accuracy wise I'm throwing the ball pretty well. But I think it really starts up front. When those guys give me time, we're tough to stop."
• For the second straight game, Rodgers wasn't sacked, and wasn't pressured much at all. The No. 1 offense has now scored four touchdowns in a little more than two quarters of play this month.
• Meanwhile, the first-string defense isn't quite there yet but it got off to a better start in this game than last week's, forcing a three-and-out on the opening possession.
• But Seattle scored touchdowns on its next two drives, the first one courtesy of a short field when Josh Wilson ran back a kickoff 54 yards to the Green Bay 49-yard line. Matt Hasselbeck's 11-yard TD pass to Deion Branch tied the game at 7.
• The Seahawks then tied it at 14 as well with an 80-yard drive, this one helped by two defensive penalties against a cornerback group minus Charles Woodson. A pass interference call on Tramon Williams counted for 14 yards and a third-down illegal contact foul on Pat Lee gave Seattle a first down. Leon Washington's 11-yard TD run off the left side capped the drive.
• "Defensively, we had a lot of great flashes out there," cornerback Brandon Underwood said. "But the big word I'm going to use tonight is consistency."
• Underwood was speaking about ups and downs for both himself and the unit as a whole, which did keep the Seahawks off the board on their final two possessions of the first half. Like last week, the defense played its base, nickel and dime packages without a lot of exotic looks, but it still doesn't like getting scored upon.
• "We know we can do it; it's just a matter of getting everything cleaned up," defensive end Cullen Jenkins said. "We're killing ourselves out there with some of the mistakes we're making. We know that's not like us, that's not how we play, and we've got to get it corrected."
• From there the game remained a close, back-and-forth affair the rest of the way. Backup quarterback Matt Flynn directed a field-goal drive against Seattle's No. 1 defense to give the Packers a 17-14 lead at halftime
• Seattle then scored 10 straight points in the second half to go up 24-17, as quarterback Charlie Whitehurst drove the Seahawks 60 yards for a TD and 29 yards for a field goal following a sack/fumble of Flynn. That was the Packers' second turnover in their first three possessions of the second half, with Flynn also throwing an interception on a deflected pass. In addition, Flynn had to deal with starting two drives backed up to his own 1-yard line, so nothing came easy.
• Late turnovers for the defense helped the Packers rally to win. Linebacker Spencer Havner's interception inside the Green Bay 10-yard line turned away a golden opportunity for the Seahawks, who had recovered a fumbled kickoff by Sam Shields. Havner's big play led to a 51-yard field goal by Mason Crosby that was good with plenty of distance to spare, cutting the deficit to 24-20 midway through the fourth quarter.
• No. 3 quarterback Graham Harrell then led the game-winning drive on the Packers' next possession. He hit rookie receiver Chastin West for 23 yards before running back Brandon Jackson, filling in for rookie Quinn Porter after Porter left with an ankle injury, broke off consecutive runs of 26 and 12 yards to get the ball in the end zone with 3:34 left.
• Finally, Shields redeemed himself by intercepting Whitehurst on Seattle's final drive when a pass deflected off tight end Anthony McCoy. That was the Packers' fourth interception through two preseason games, which they've coincidentally split in the won-loss column by identical 27-24 scores.
• "It's a good win," Head Coach Mike McCarthy said. "Anytime you win a football game, it's a positive for your football team, but we'll continue to work on the fundamental aspects of our blueprint for success: taking care of the football – we need to do a better job with that, even though we did a good job of taking it away – and making sure we win the field-position battle."

GAME NOTES
Five of Green Bay's linebackers sat out the game, with Nick Barnett resting his surgically repaired knee and A.J. Hawk (ankle), Clay Matthews (hamstring), Alex Joseph (quad) and Brad Jones (shoulder) all sidelined. Also sitting out due to injury were RB Kregg Lumpkin (hamstring), and the three players on the PUP list – CB Al Harris (knee), S Atari Bigby (ankle) and RB James Starks (hamstring). A pair of veterans, WR Donald Driver and CB Charles Woodson, also sat out.

A LOOK AT THE SCHEDULE

• The Green Bay Packers' 90th NFL regular-season schedule – headlined by six nationally televised games – was released in late April.
• Though the 2010 opponents have been known since the end of last season, the arrival of the complete NFL schedule is a day circled on the calendar of all football fans.  
• Green Bay will open the 2010 slate on the road at Philadelphia before kicking off the home schedule with the Buffalo Bills in Week 2.
• Its first prime-time appearance – against the rival Bears in Chicago on Monday Night Football – will come in Week 3. The NFL's oldest rivalry will be on display in prime time for a fifth straight season, with this first meeting of the year marking game No. 180 in the all-time series.  
• 2010 marks the 18th consecutive season the Packers have appeared on Monday Night Football, the NFC's longest streak.
• Three games are slated for Sunday night on NBC, including home games against the Minnesota Vikings (Week 7) and Dallas Cowboys (Week 9). In Week 15, the Packers are scheduled to take on the Patriots on Sunday night in Foxborough, though the game is subject to the NFL's flex scheduling.
• The Packers will get their first look at the new stadium in New Jersey in Week 8 against the Jets, where they may experience some cool fall temperatures. While games at Lambeau Field later in the season always provide a home-field advantage for the Packers, the 2010 schedule is nearly void of cold-weather road games. After the Jets, three consecutive road contests will be played in domes (Minnesota, Atlanta, Detroit).    
• That's good news for a Green Bay offense that seems to thrive in domes. Including playoffs, the Packers played in a dome five times last season, exceeding 400 total net yards in four of those games.
• A number of games on the Packers' 2010 schedule – namely those on national TV – are beginning to have a familiar feel. In addition to taking on the Bears for a fifth consecutive year in prime time, Green Bay will take on Minnesota in prime time for a third straight season. The Packers and Cowboys will meet on national TV for the fourth straight season.
• The schedule concludes with two home games for the first time since 2005. One of the NFL's best teams in regular-season games played in December and January, Green Bay may need to call upon that previous success for what could prove to be two very important contests surrounding the Christmas and New Year's holidays. Games against the Giants (Week 16) and Bears (Week 17) could determine not only the NFC North Division crown but conference playoff seeding.

2010 SCHEDULE NUGGETS

• Green Bay's bye week comes in Week 10, the latest possible week for NFL teams. It marks the latest time in which the Packers have had a bye in franchise history, besting the Week 9 bye in 2004. The Packers will play nine games before the bye and seven after the open date.  
• Three of four games before the bye come at Lambeau Field, while four of five games after the bye are road contests.
• Immediately following the bye comes an important division game against Minnesota, the first of three straight road games played in domes. Under McCarthy, the team has won three of four games after the bye week and 10 of its last 14 after the bye dating back further.  
• Green Bay has always been a successful team after the bye and 2009 was no different, as the team compiled a 9-3 (.750) mark after the bye week. Since 2000, the team is 61-36 (.629) overall after the bye.
• Fifteen games are slated for Sunday, the most since 1993 (also 15).  
• Seven of the final eight games are against NFC opponents.
• The Packers have six games on the schedule against 2009 playoff teams, beginning right away in Week 1 at Philadelphia. Beginning in Week 7 vs. Minnesota, Green Bay has a stretch of four straight games against playoff teams from a year ago. The team will travel east to take on the Jets in Week 8 and host the Cowboys in Week 9 before the bye.  The stretch concludes in Minnesota in Week 11.   
• The NFL's oldest rivalry will see a first in 2010. For the first time in series history, Green Bay will host Chicago in the regular-season finale, set to be game No. 181 between the Packers and Bears.  

THE LAMBEAU ADVANTAGE

• The crown jewel of the National Football League, Lambeau Field has long been known as one of the tougher venues to play in, particularly during the harsh Wisconsin winter.   
• Re-establishing home-field advantage after a 4-4 mark in 2008 was one of the goals of 2009, and with the Packers finishing at 6-2 at home, they accomplished that goal.
• Head Coach Mike McCarthy stated consistently upon his arrival in Green Bay that one of the team's goals would be to reclaim the mystique of playing at Lambeau Field. Mission accomplished. The team is 19-7 at home since 2007, a marked improvement over the prior three seasons (10-14 combined).
• Since Ron Wolf and Mike Holmgren began the revitalization of the franchise in 1992, Green Bay owns the best home record in the NFL. A look at the top home W-L records since the '92 season:

Team, W-L record (Pct.)
Green Bay, 107-37-0 (.743)
Pittsburgh, 104-39-1 (.726)
Denver, 103-41-0 (.715)
Minnesota, 100-44-0 (.694)
Dallas, 97-47-0 (.674)

285 AND COUNTING

• Another packed house at Lambeau Field against the Seahawks in the regular-season home finale brought the stadium's consecutive sellouts streak to 285 games (269 regular season, 16 playoffs).
• The league's longest-tenured stadium, Lambeau Field will host its 54th season of football this year. A total of 565,666 fans made their way through the turnstiles in the eight home contests in 2009.
• Across American professional sports, only Boston's Fenway Park (1912) and Chicago's Wrigley Field (1914) have longer tenures.