*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.
A complete edition of the Dope Sheet will be available each week during the season in PDF format, located in the Packers.com Game Centers.
Here are some highlights from the Packers-Cowboys Week 3 Dope Sheet:*
**DALLAS (2-0) at GREEN BAY (2-0)
Sunday, Sept. 21 | Lambeau Field | 7:15 p.m. CDT**
**
PACKERS VS. COWBOYS: EARLY SEASON SHOWDOWN
-Two of the NFL's preeminent franchises -- and two of the favorites in the NFC this season -- square off in primetime at Lambeau Field on Sunday night in front of a national audience.
-Green Bay comes into the contest fresh off a 48-25 victory over the Detroit Lions, its second division win in as many weeks. It was the Packers' sixth consecutive win over the Lions.
-For the second time in three weeks, the eyes of the NFL will be focused on Lambeau Field, as the Dallas Cowboys travel to Green Bay for the first time since 2004.
-Having as distinct a homefield advantage as there is in the league, the Packers have won 10 of their last 11 regular-season home games.
-The Packers hope to keep another winning streak going Sunday night against the Cowboys. They have never lost to Dallas at Lambeau Field (5-0 all-time).
-Included in that streak is the 'Ice Bowl', the 1967 NFL Championship, played between Vince Lombardi's Packers and Tom Landry's Cowboys. It is widely considered the greatest NFL game of all-time.
-After Lombardi and Landry turned it into one of the league's great rivalries, the series reached another peak in the 1990s with some great playoff battles.
-More recently, the teams met last year in the NFC's biggest regular-season game. That contest, won by Dallas 37-27, marked just the second time since 1970 that two 10-1 clubs met.
-The Packers and Cowboys represent two of the proudest and most popular clubs in the NFL. They have combined for 17 NFL championships (Green Bay 12, Dallas 5) and eight Super Bowl titles.
-Dallas comes into the contest off a short week, having beaten Philadelphia 41-37 on Monday night.
WITH THE CALL
-NBC Sports will broadcast the contest to a national audience on Sunday night. Play-by-play man Al Michaels joins color commentator John Madden in the broadcast booth with Andrea Kremer serving as the sideline reporter.
-Milwaukee's WTMJ (620 AM), airing Green Bay games since 1929, heads up the 56-station Packers Radio Network, with Wayne Larrivee (play-by-play) and two-time Packers Pro Bowler Larry McCarren (color) calling the action. The duo are in their 10th season of broadcasts together across the Packers Radio Network, which covers 47 markets in six states.
-Westwood One will air the game across the country. Dave Sims (play-by-play) and Jim Fassel (analyst) will call the action. Tommy Tighe hosts pregame and halftime shows.
-ESPN International will air the contest in three languages to over 180 countries.
-For out-of-town listeners, the broadcast is available to NFL Field Pass subscribers on www.packers.com as well as on Sirius Satellite Radio (channel 127 WTMJ feed) as part of the network's NFL Sunday Drive.
SO FAR, SO GOOD
-Thanks to game-changing plays from all three of its units, Green Bay has an early lead atop the NFC North.
-Special teams provided a spark in the season opener, while two defensive touchdowns sealed the victory last weekend. The offense hasn't missed a beat, producing six scores and over 380 yards per game.
-Last season, the club finished as the league's No. 2-ranked offense and its No. 6 scoring defense. The Packers also finished No. 7 in the Dallas Morning News special teams rankings, a dramatic jump of 25 spots from their last-place finish the previous two years.
-First-year starter Aaron Rodgers has attracted most of the headlines thanks to accurate and efficient performances in his first career starts. A look at his numbers, including those from last year's Cowboys game:
at Dal: 18-of-26, 201 yds, 1 TD, 0 INT, 104.8 RTG
vs. Min: 18-of-22, 178 yds, 1TD, 0 INT, 115.5 RTG
at Det: 24-of-38 328 yds, 3 TD, 0 INT, 117.0 RTG
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.
-McCarthy stated consistently that one of the team's goals was to reclaim the mystique of playing at Lambeau Field. Mission accomplished.
-The team finished 7-1 at home last season, a marked improvement over the prior three seasons (10-14 combined).
-With the Monday night victory over Minnesota to open the season, Green Bay has now won 10 of its last 11 regular-season home games.
-Since Ron Wolf and Mike Holmgren began the revitalization of the franchise in 1992, no NFL team has enjoyed more consistent success at home. A look at the top home W-L records since the '92 season:
Team (W-L record) Pct.
Green Bay (98-31-0) .760
Denver (96-33-0) .744
Pittsburgh (93-35-1) .725
Kansas City (92-37-0) .713
Minnesota (86-43-0) .667
AMERICA'S TEAM?
-Since Harris Interactive began its poll asking fans to identify their favorite NFL team in 1998, the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys have routinely shown to have the two largest fan bases in the country.
-Both clubs have owned the title of the NFL's 'most popular team' four times, including in 2003 when both clubs shared the honor.
-Neither club has ever finished outside of the top four in the poll.
-In a Sports Illustrated poll rating the game-day atmosphere for each NFL team, the experience of seeing the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field ranked first. Fans were asked to grade every aspect of the game-day experience, including ticket prices, team performance, tailgating, stadium atmosphere and the surrounding neighborhoods.
ROMO RETURNS HOME
-Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo returns to his home state of Wisconsin and will start at quarterback for the first time at Lambeau Field.
-It will not be the first appearance at Lambeau for Romo. He served as the backup quarterback in the Cowboys' 2004 appearance and saw action as the holder.
-Raised in Burlington, Wis., about two and a half hours south of Lambeau Field, Romo is a graduate of Burlington High School.
-He lettered three seasons for the Demons' football team, passing for nearly 4,000 career yards and 42 touchdowns. As a senior, he earned All-Racine County honors as a quarterback, but earned all-state honors on the basketball court.
IN THE 'BLACK AND BLUE' DIVISION
-The Packers and McCarthy must be up to a new task this season. For the first time in his three seasons as coach, McCarthy must get a team ready to defend its division crown.
-The club is off to an early start with two wins over division opponents. Since division play opened in 1967, the team has opened the season only one other time with two divisional wins: 1998.
-Green Bay won't play another NFC North opponent until Week 10 when it travels to the HHH Metrodome to play the Vikings.
-They'll continue division play in Week 11, hosting the Bears, before stepping outside the NFC North for another month.
-In games that ultimately could decide playoff seeding and the division crown, Green Bay wraps up the regular season with a trip to Chicago and a home contest against the Lions.
-McCarthy's solid 11-3 record in the NFL's 'black and blue' division is noteworthy because he's undefeated against two of the division opponents: Detroit (5-0) and Minnesota (5-0). The Packers are just 1-3 against Chicago over the past two seasons.
NO ONE'S BETTER AFTER THE CATCH THAN THE 'FAB FIVE'
-Head Coach Mike McCarthy utilized a number of four- and five-wide sets last season to take advantage of his receivers' abilities after the catch.
-Called the 'Big Five' or 'Fab Five' formation by McCarthy, it proved a nightmare for opposing defenses with its matchup problems.
-It was the matchups - such as a wideout isolated on a linebacker - that Green Bay utilized to its advantage.
-Led by wide receivers Donald Driver, Greg Jennings, James Jones, Ruvell Martin and tight end Donald Lee, Green Bay led the league in yards after the catch.
-The Packers amassed a league-best 2,294 yards after the catch, 51.4% of their total passing yards. The NFL average in 2007 was 1,596 yards.
-The only other teams to surpass 2,000 yards after the catch were New Orleans (2,112) and New England (2,052).
-The big-play ability of the group didn't come as a total surprise. Green Bay finished second in yards after the catch, behind New Orleans, in 2006.
-Added in the draft was All-America wideout Jordy Nelson from Kansas State. Originally a walk-on safety, he went on to produce the most prolific single season in school history in 2007. His 122 receptions and 1,606 receiving yards both ranked second nationally. He caught 11 touchdowns, returned two punts for scores and threw for two more TDs.
-Nelson got his first chance to contribute on offense against Detroit, hauling in his first career catch for a 29-yard score, his first "big play" in Green Bay.
GETTING AFTER THE QB
-Led by two-time Pro Bowl defensive end Aaron Kampman, the defense generated five sacks against Detroit. That total matched a season high from a year ago.
-Kampman recorded a sack for the second consecutive game, twice getting to Lions QB Jon Kitna.
-A.J. Hawk established a new career high Sunday with two sacks, including one in which he leaped over a diving block attempt from running back Kevin Smith. The third-year player from Ohio State leads the club with 19 tackles, including 17 solo stops.
-The club has six sacks on the season, while only surrendering one.
-Over the past two seasons, only San Diego's Shawne Merriman has more sacks than Kampman. Kampman and DeMarcus Ware, who will line up against the club Sunday night, are two of the best pass rushers in the NFL:
Player, Team, 2006-07 Sacks
Shawne Merriman, San Diego, 29.5
Aaron Kampman, Green Bay, 27.5
DeMarcus Ware, Dallas, 25.5
Jason Taylor, Miami (now Wash.), 24.5
Jared Allen, K.C. (now Minn.), 23.0
**
THE DOPE ON THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT:
Packers vs. Dallas Cowboys:
All-time regular season: 10-11-0
All-time, postseason: 2-4
All-time, at Lambeau Field: 5-0 (incl. 1967 NFL Championship, the 'Ice Bowl')
Streaks: The two teams have split their last four meetings. Prior to that, the Cowboys won seven straight, including three in the postseason.
Last meeting, regular season: Nov. 29, 2007, at Texas Stadium; Cowboys won, 37-27
Last meeting, regular season, at Lambeau Field: Oct. 24, 2004; Packers won, 41-20
COACHES CAPSULES
Mike McCarthy: 24-12-0, .667, (incl. 1-1 postseason); 3rd NFL season
Wade Phillips: 63-46-0, .578 (incl. 0-4 postseason); 7th NFL season
Head to Head: Phillips 1-0
vs. Opponent: McCarthy 0-1 vs. Cowboys; Phillips 2-1 vs. Packers
MIKE McCARTHY...Is in third year as the Packers' 14th head coach.
-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.
-Tied franchise record for most victories by a coach in his first two seasons (21).
WADE PHILLIPS...Is in second year as the Cowboys' seventh head coach.
-In 2007, became the third head coach since the NFL merger to reach 13 wins in his first season with a club. Has had only one non-winning season as a head coach.
-Also served as head coach for the Denver Broncos (1993-94) and Buffalo Bills (1998-2000), with last season becoming his fourth postseason trip overall.
-Before Dallas, spent three seasons (2004-06) in San Diego as defensive coordinator.
-Has 31 years of NFL coaching experience, including stops in Atlanta (2002-03), Philadelphia (1986-88) and New Orleans (1981-85). Phillips began coaching in the NFL under his father, Bum Phillips, in Houston from 1976-80.
THE PACKERS-COWBOYS SERIES
-These clubs squared off in the most famous game in league history, the 1967 NFL Championship, dubbed the 'Ice Bowl.' Kickoff temperature was recorded as 13 below zero with a minus-46 wind chill, the coldest game in league annals. Bart Starr's game-winning touchdown, a 1-yard dive with 13 seconds left, sealed Green Bay's third straight championship en route to its second consecutive Super Bowl title.
-Green Bay won 10 of the first 15 in the series, in which Tom Landry and Vince Lombardi - former assistants on the same New York Giants staff in the 1950s - turned into one of the NFL's preeminent rivalries.
-The Packers have never lost to the Cowboys in Green Bay (5-0 all-time), but the series is almost as one-sided in games played in Dallas. Green Bay has lost 12 of the last 13 games against the Cowboys in Dallas, including three postseason games. Their lone win during that time came on Christmas eve in 1989, a 20-10 Packers victory.
-Last year's matchup marked the eighth time in league history that two 10-1 clubs met, just the second such instance since 1970.
{sportsad300}NOTABLE CONNECTIONS
Wade Phillips first coached in the NFL as linebackers coach in Houston, where he coached Packers GM Ted Thompson, who played 10 seasons at linebacker (1975-84) for the Oilers...Thompson is a native of Atlanta, Texas, about 175 miles east of Dallas, and attended Southern Methodist University in Dallas...Among Packers players, native Texans include K Mason Crosby (Georgetown), WR Donald Driver (Houston), TE Jermichael Finley (Diboll), QB Matt Flynn (Tyler), DT Johnny Jolly (Houston), DE Michael Montgomery (Center) and S Charlie Peprah (Plano)...Cowboys QB Tony Romo is a Burlington, Wis., native, while OT Doug Free is from Manitowoc, Wis., and backup QB Brooks Bollinger played collegiately at Wisconsin...Cowboys wide receivers coach Ray Sherman spent five seasons in Green Bay (2000-04) at the same position...Linebackers A.J. Hawk (Green Bay) and Bobby Carpenter (Dallas) played together at Ohio State...Packers C Scott Wells and Cowboys TE Jason Witten were college teammates at Tennessee...Packers public relations intern Jonathan Butnick is a Dallas native and recent graduate of Texas Tech University.
INDIVIDUALLY VS. COWBOYS
Aaron Rodgers threw his first NFL touchdown pass at Dallas last season, to Greg Jennings...Ryan Grant's 62-yard TD run in last year's game was his longest career rush, until topping it three weeks later with a 66-yarder at Chicago...Donald Driver made his NFL debut in Dallas in 1999, but did not make a catch...One of Mason Crosby's three 50-plus field goals as a rookie came at Dallas, from 52 yards...Al Harris has two career interceptions against the Cowboys, one last year and the other in 2001, with Philadelphia...Cullen Jenkins recorded his first career sack against the Cowboys, one that was split with defensive end Aaron Kampman, in 2004.
LAST MEETING, REGULAR SEASON
Nov. 29, 2007, at Texas Stadium; Cowboys won, 37-27.
-In a battle of two 10-1 teams, playing on a Thursday in prime time, Dallas got the edge in the race for the NFC's No. 1 playoff seed.
-The Cowboys led 27-10 in the second quarter when Aaron Rodgers took over at QB for an injured Brett Favre (shoulder, elbow) and led the Packers to two touchdown drives, pulling Green Bay within 27-24 late in the third quarter.
-Tony Romo's fourth TD pass of the night, and second to Patrick Crayton, put the Cowboys up 34-24 midway through the fourth quarter and they hung on from there. Romo finished 19-of-30 for 309 yards with four TDs and one interception (123.5 rating).
-Rodgers was 18-of-26 for 201 yards and his first NFL TD pass, to Greg Jennings, without an interception (104.8 rating).
-Ryan Grant's 62-yard TD run late in the first quarter was the first of his two touchdowns. He finished with 14 carries for 94 yards.
LAST MEETING, AT LAMBEAU FIELD
Oct. 24, 2004; Packers won, 41-20.
-Green Bay scored on its first seven possessions as Favre defeated the Cowboys for just the second time in 10 tries.
-Favre threw two TD passes, Ahman Green ran for his first two scores since opening day and the halfback option pass produced points for the second straight week. Tony Fisher's first NFL toss found Bubba Franks alone in the end zone to make it 27-6 in the third quarter.
-Green Bay produced 480 yards of offense and didn't punt until midway through the fourth quarter. Green ended a month-long funk by rushing for 163 yards, including a 90-yard score that was the longest Dallas had ever surrendered.
