1973 Green Bay Packers season

The 1973 Green Bay Packers season was their 55th season overall and their 53rd season in the National Football League. The defending division champions posted a 5–7–2 record under third-year head coach Dan Devine, earning them a third-place finish in the NFC Central division.

1973 Green Bay Packers season
Head coachDan Devine
Home fieldLambeau Field
Milwaukee County Stadium
Results
Record5–7–2
Division place3rd NFC Central
Playoff finishDid not qualify

As of 2024. The 1973 Packers are the last team to records 2 ties in a single season. Overtime was introduced the following year, and ties decreased.

Offseason

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Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke retired during training camp in late August.[1] Bart Starr left as quarterbacks coach to other business interests, which included a network broadcasting position with CBS.

NFL draft

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1973 Green Bay Packers draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 21 Barry Smith  Wide receiver Florida State
3 74 Tom MacLeod  Linebacker Minnesota
6 152 Tom Toner  Linebacker Idaho State
7 177 John Muller  Tackle Iowa
8 202 Hise Austin  Cornerback Prairie View A&M
9 230 Rick Brown  Linebacker Iowa
10 255 Larry Allen  Linebacker Illinois
11 280 Phil Engle  Defensive tackle South Dakota State
12 308 Larry McCarren *  Center Illinois
13 333 Tim Alderson  Defensive back Minnesota
14 358 James Anderson  Defensive tackle Northwestern
15 386 Reggie Echols  Wide receiver UCLA
16 411 Keith Pretty  Tight end Western Michigan
17 436 Harold Sampson  Defensive tackle Southern
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Undrafted free agents

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1973 Undrafted Free Agents of note
Player Position College
James Bulger Quarterback Notre Dame
Steve Hammitt Center Nevada

Roster

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1973 Green Bay Packers roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams

Practice squad

Reserve

Rookies in italics

Regular season

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Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 17 New York Jets W 23–7 1–0 Milwaukee County Stadium 47,124
2 September 23 Detroit Lions T 13–13 1–0–1 Lambeau Field 55,495
3 September 30 at Minnesota Vikings L 3–11 1–1–1 Metropolitan Stadium 48,176
4 October 7 at New York Giants W 16–14 2–1–1 Yale Bowl 70,050
5 October 14 Kansas City Chiefs T 10–10 2–1–2 Milwaukee County Stadium 46,583
6 October 21 at Los Angeles Rams L 7–24 2–2–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 80,558
7 October 28 at Detroit Lions L 0–34 2–3–2 Tiger Stadium 43,616
8 November 4 Chicago Bears L 17–31 2–4–2 Lambeau Field 56,267
9 November 11 St. Louis Cardinals W 25–21 3–4–2 Lambeau Field 52,922
10 November 18 at New England Patriots L 24–33 3–5–2 Schaefer Stadium 60,525
11 November 26 at San Francisco 49ers L 6–20 3–6–2 Candlestick Park 49,244
12 December 2 New Orleans Saints W 30–10 4–6–2 Milwaukee County Stadium 46,092
13 December 8 Minnesota Vikings L 7–31 4–7–2 Lambeau Field 53,830
14 December 16 at Chicago Bears W 21–0 5–7–2 Soldier Field 29,157
Monday (September 17, November 26), Saturday (December 8)

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

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Week 1

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1 234Total
Jets 0 007 7
• Packers 3 1037 23

[2]

Week 4

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1 234Total
• Packers 7 063 16
Giants 7 007 14

[3]

Week 9

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1 234Total
Cardinals 7 0014 21
• Packers 10 1203 25

[4]

Week 12

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1 234Total
Saints 0 370 10
• Packers 3 10710 30

[5]

Week 14

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1 234Total
• Packers 7 707 21
Bears 0 000 0
  • Date: December 16
  • Location: Soldier Field, Chicago
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: 24 °F (−4 °C), wind 13 mph (21 km/h)

[6]

Standings

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NFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Minnesota Vikings 12 2 0 .857 6–0 10–1 296 168 W2
Detroit Lions 6 7 1 .464 3–2–1 6–4–1 271 247 L1
Green Bay Packers 5 7 2 .429 1–4–1 4–6–1 202 259 W1
Chicago Bears 3 11 0 .214 1–5 1–9 195 334 L6

References

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  1. ^ "'No hard feelings' says Ray Nitschke". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. August 29, 1973. p. 17.
  2. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
  3. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
  4. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
  5. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
  6. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com