2003 Green Bay Packers season
NFL team season
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The 2003 Green Bay Packers season was the franchise's 85th season overall and their 83rd in the National Football League (NFL).
| 2003 Green Bay Packers season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Mike Sherman |
| Home stadium | Lambeau Field |
| Results | |
| Record | 10–6 |
| Division place | 1st NFC North |
| Playoffs | Won Wild Card Playoffs (vs. Seahawks) 33–27 (OT) Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Eagles) 17–20 (OT) |
| All-Pros | 1
|
| Pro Bowlers | |
| Uniform | |
 | |
The Packers won the division on the last play of the season. Needing a win and a Minnesota Vikings loss to clinch the division, the Packers routed the Denver Broncos 31–3, while the Vikings lost 18–17 on a last second touchdown by the 3–12 Arizona Cardinals.
The Packers defeated the Seattle Seahawks in the wild card round in overtime off an interception return for a touchdown by Al Harris after Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck proclaimed "We want the ball and we're going to score!" after the overtime coin toss. However, the season finished with an overtime loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the Divisional round of the playoffs after failing to stop the Eagles on 4th and 26, where a defensive stand on the play would have sealed the team a trip to the NFC Championship Game for the first time since 1997 as the Eagles had only one timeout remaining and just over a minute left in regulation.
In the Week 16 Monday night game, Brett Favre threw for 399 yards and four touchdowns in a 41–7 win over the Oakland Raiders, one night after his father died of a heart attack.
Offseason
The Packers were able to add Al Harris to their starting lineup from a trade with Philadelphia. They lost starters Terry Glenn to a trade and Vonnie Holliday to free agency.[1]
| Additions | Subtractions |
|---|---|
| FB Nick Luchey (Bengals) | LB Nate Wayne (Eagles) |
| LB Hannibal Navies (Panthers) | S Matt Bowen (Redskins) |
| C Grey Ruegamer (Patriots) | CB Tyrone Williams (Falcons) |
| DE Chukie Nwokorie (Colts) | CB Tod McBride (Falcons) |
| OT Reggie Coleman (Bengals) | DE Vonnie Holliday (Chiefs) |
| RB Lamar Smith (Panthers) | WR Terry Glenn (Cowboys) |
| OT Marcus Spriggs (Dolphins) | LB Hardy Nickerson (retirement) |
| CB Al Harris (Eagles) |
NFL draft
| 2003 Green Bay Packers draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 29 | Nick Barnett | LB | Oregon State | |
| 3 | 79 | Kenny Peterson | DE | Ohio State | |
| 5 | 147 | James Lee | OT | Oregon State | |
| 5 | 166 | Hunter Hillenmeyer | LB | Vanderbilt | |
| 6 | 212 | Brennan Curtin | OT | Notre Dame | |
| 7 | 245 | Chris Johnson | CB | Louisville | |
| 7 | 253 | DeAndrew Rubin | WR | South Florida | |
| 7 | 256 | Carl Ford | WR | Toledo | |
| 7 | 257 | Steve Josue | LB | Carson-Newman | |
| Made roster | |||||
Undrafted free agents
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Keith Burnell | Cornerback | Delaware |
| Tommy Collins | Fullback | UConn |
| Quentus Cumby | Safety | Kentucky |
| Cullen Jenkins | Defensive end | Central Michigan |
| Shantee Orr | Linebacker | Michigan |
| David Porter | Guard/Tackle | Iowa |
| Eric Powell | Defensive end | Florida State |
| Jamil Soriano | Guard/Tackle | Harvard |
| J. R. Taylor | Running back | Eastern Illinois |
Personnel
Staff
|
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
Roster
Preseason
Tony Fisher and others, August 28
Regular season
The Packers finished the season 10–6 and advanced to the Divisional round of the playoffs.
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Game site | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 7 | Minnesota Vikings | L 25–30 | Lambeau Field | 70,505 | |
| 2 | September 14 | Detroit Lions | W 31–6 | Lambeau Field | 70,244 | |
| 3 | September 21 | at Arizona Cardinals | L 13–20 | Sun Devil Stadium | 58,784 | |
| 4 | September 29 | at Chicago Bears | W 38–23 | Soldier Field | 61,500 | |
| 5 | October 5 | Seattle Seahawks | W 35–13 | Lambeau Field | 70,365 | |
| 6 | October 12 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 34–40 (OT) | Lambeau Field | 70,407 | |
| 7 | October 19 | at St. Louis Rams | L 24–34 | Edward Jones Dome | 66,201 | |
| 8 | Bye | |||||
| 9 | November 2 | at Minnesota Vikings | W 30–27 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 64,482 | |
| 10 | November 10 | Philadelphia Eagles | L 14–17 | Lambeau Field | 70,291 | |
| 11 | November 16 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 20–13 | Raymond James Stadium | 65,614 | |
| 12 | November 23 | San Francisco 49ers | W 20–10 | Lambeau Field | 70,250 | |
| 13 | November 27 | at Detroit Lions | L 14–22 | Ford Field | 62,123 | |
| 14 | December 7 | Chicago Bears | W 34–21 | Lambeau Field | 70,458 | |
| 15 | December 14 | at San Diego Chargers | W 38–21 | Qualcomm Stadium | 64,978 | |
| 16 | December 22 | at Oakland Raiders | W 41–7 | Network Associates Coliseum | 62,298 | |
| 17 | December 28 | Denver Broncos | W 31–3 | Lambeau Field | 70,299 | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text | ||||||
Game summaries
Week 1: vs Minnesota Vikings
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vikings | 10 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 30 |
| Packers | 0 | 3 | 8 | 14 | 25 |
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Date: September 7
- Game time: 12:00pm local
- Game weather: clear, 71 °F (22 °C), 78% humidity, wind 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h)
- Game attendance: 70,505
- Referee: Pete Morelli
- TV announcers (Fox): Kenny Albert, Brian Baldinger & Drew Smith
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 2: vs Detroit Lions
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lions | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Packers | 14 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 31 |
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Date: September 14
- Game time: 12:00pm local
- Game weather: clear, 63 °F (17 °C), 93% humidity, wind 12 miles per hour (19 km/h)
- Game attendance: 70,244
- Referee: Bernie Kukar
- TV announcers (Fox): Sam Rosen, Bill Maas & Chris Myers
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 3: at Arizona Cardinals
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 0 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
| Cardinals | 7 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 20 |
at Sun Devil Stadium, Phoenix, Arizona
- Date: September 21
- Game time: 3:05pm local
- Game weather: clear, 102 °F (39 °C), 7% humidity, wind 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h)
- Game attendance: 58,784
- Referee: Mike Carey
- TV announcers (Fox): Kenny Albert, Brian Baldinger & Kevin McCabe
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 4: at Chicago Bears
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 17 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 38 |
| Bears | 0 | 6 | 3 | 14 | 23 |
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
- Date: September 29
- Game time: 8:00pm local
- Game weather: clear, 58 °F (14 °C), 46% humidity, wind 3 miles per hour (4.8 km/h)
- Game attendance: 60,257
- Referee: Jeff Triplette
- TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels, John Madden & Lisa Guerrero
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 5: vs Seattle Seahawks
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| Packers | 7 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 35 |
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Date: October 5
- Game time: 12:00pm local
- Game weather: clear, 48 °F (9 °C), 49% humidity, wind 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h)
- Game attendance: 70,365
- Referee: Larry Nemmers
- TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton, Daryl Johnston & Chris Myers
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 6: vs Kansas City Chiefs
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | 7 | 7 | 0 | 20 | 6 | 40 |
| Packers | 14 | 7 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 34 |
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Date: October 12
- Game time: 12:00pm local
- Game weather: clear, 60 °F (16 °C), 57% humidity, wind 17 miles per hour (27 km/h)
- Game attendance: 70,407
- Referee: Ron Winter
- TV announcers (CBS): Dick Enberg, Dan Dierdorf & Bonnie Bernstein
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 7: at St. Louis Rams
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
| Rams | 14 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 34 |
at Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri
- Date: October 19
- Game time: 12:00pm local
- Game weather: none, (Dome)
- Game attendance: 66,201
- Referee: Pete Morelli
- TV announcers (Fox): Dan Miller & Brian Baldinger
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 9: at Minnesota Vikings
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 6 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 30 |
| Vikings | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 27 |
at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Date: November 2
- Game time: 7:30pm local
- Game weather: none, (Dome)
- Game attendance: 64,482
- Referee: Bernie Kukar
- TV announcers (ESPN): Mike Patrick, Joe Theismann & Suzy Kolber
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 10: vs Philadelphia Eagles
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eagles | 0 | 0 | 3 | 14 | 17 |
| Packers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Date: November 10
- Game time: 8:00pm local
- Game weather: clear, 39 °F (4 °C), 96% humidity, wind 8 miles per hour (13 km/h)
- Game attendance: 70,291
- Referee: Bill Carollo
- TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels, John Madden & Lisa Guerrero
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
On November 5, 2003, the Packers claimed defensive tackle Grady Jackson off waivers from the New Orleans Saints.[2] Jackson helped the Packers allow only 95.38 rushing yards per game over the final 8 games,[3] after allowing over 117 yards per game in the first 8 games.[3] Jackson signed a two-year contract extension on December 29, 2003.[2]
Week 11: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 7 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 13 |
at Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida
- Date: November 16
- Game time: 3:15pm local
- Game weather: clear, 80 °F (27 °C), 47% humidity, wind 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h)
- Game attendance: 65,614
- Referee: Walt Coleman
- TV announcers (Fox): Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Cris Collinsworth & Pam Oliver
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 12: vs San Francisco 49ers
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 49ers | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| Packers | 7 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 20 |
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Date: November 23
- Game time: 12:00pm local
- Game weather: clear, 38 °F (3 °C), 100% humidity, wind 10 miles per hour (16 km/h)
- Game attendance: 70,250
- Referee: Jeff Triplette
- TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton, Daryl Johnston & Tony Siragusa
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 13: at Detroit Lions
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Lions | 10 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 22 |
at Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan
- Date: November 27
- Game time: 11:30am local
- Game weather: none, (Dome)
- Game attendance: 62,123
- Referee: Ron Winter
- TV announcers (Fox): Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Cris Collinsworth & Pam Oliver
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 14: vs Chicago Bears
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bears | 14 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
| Packers | 0 | 13 | 6 | 15 | 34 |
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Date: December 7
- Game time: 12:00pm local
- Game weather: clear, 35 °F (2 °C), 78% humidity, wind 16 miles per hour (26 km/h)
- Game attendance: 70,458
- Referee: Ed Hochuli
- TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton, Daryl Johnston & Dan Jiggetts
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 15: at San Diego Chargers
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 7 | 10 | 0 | 21 | 38 |
| Chargers | 3 | 0 | 3 | 15 | 21 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Week 16: at Oakland Raiders
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 14 | 17 | 3 | 7 | 41 |
| Raiders | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Network Associates Coliseum, Oakland, California
- Date: December 22
- Game time: 8:00pm local
- Game weather: clear, 54 °F (12 °C), 83% humidity, wind 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h)
- Game attendance: 62,298
- Referee: Tony Corrente
- TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels, John Madden & Lisa Guerrero
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
The day before the Week 16 game, Irvin Favre, father of Brett Favre, died suddenly of a heart attack. Favre elected to play and passed for four touchdowns in the first half, and 399 yards in a 41–7 defeat of the Raiders. Afterwards, Favre said, "I knew that my dad would have wanted me to play. I love him so much and I love this game. It's meant a great deal to me, to my dad, to my family, and I didn't expect this kind of performance. But I know he was watching tonight."[4]
Week 17: vs Denver Broncos
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broncos | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Packers | 7 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 31 |
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Date: December 28
- Game time: 3:15pm local
- Game weather: clear, 45 °F (7 °C), 89% humidity, wind 15 miles per hour (24 km/h)
- Game attendance: 70,299
- Referee: Bill Carollo
- TV announcers (CBS): Greg Gumbel, Phil Simms & Armen Keteyian
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the blowout win, along with Arizona's comeback win over Minnesota, Green Bay successfully clinched the NFC North (#4 in the NFC) at 10-6. The Packers finished the regular season 6-2 at home and 3-1 against the AFC West.
Playoffs
vs. Seattle Seahawks
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | 3 | 3 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 27 |
| Packers | 0 | 13 | 0 | 14 | 6 | 33 |
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST/12:00 p.m. CST
- Game weather: 20 °F (−7 °C), cloudy
- Game attendance: 71,457
- Referee: Bernie Kukar
- TV announcers (Fox): Joe Buck (play-by-play), Troy Aikman, Cris Collinsworth (color commentators), and Chris Myers (sideline reporter)
Packers defensive back Al Harris returned an interception 52 yards for the game-winning touchdown 4:25 in overtime. The game was sent into overtime on Seahawk running back Shaun Alexander's third touchdown of the day. Ahman Green scored two touchdowns for Green Bay, and Bubba Franks caught a 23-yard touchdown in the second quarter. The game is memorable for Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck's ironic comment after winning the coin toss for the start of overtime, telling the referee "We want the ball and we're going to score!"[5] This game remains one of two times in NFL history that an NFL playoff game has ended with a defensive touchdown in OT (the other being the January 10, 2010 Wild Card game between the Arizona Cardinals and the Packers).[6]
Packers quarterback Brett Favre completed 26 of 38 passes for 319 yards and a touchdown.
This would be the last playoff win for the Packers without Aaron Rodgers until 2023 when Jordan Love led the 7th seeded Packers past the Dallas Cowboys 48-32. Despite the close final, the Packers led 27-0 late in the 2nd quarter. Brett Favre's last playoff win would come in 2007 when Green Bay beat Seattle in the Divisional Round 42-20 before falling to the New York Giants in the NFC Championship the following week.
vs. Philadelphia Eagles
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 14 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 17 |
| Eagles | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 20 |
at Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Game time: 4:30 p.m. EST
- Game weather: 25 °F (−4 °C), clear
- Game attendance: 67,707
- Referee: Ed Hochuli
- TV announcers (Fox): Joe Buck (play-by-play), Troy Aikman, Cris Collinsworth (color commentators), and Pam Oliver (sideline reporter)
Ahman Green's franchise postseason record 156 rushing yards was not enough to lift the Packers to victory. Facing fourth down and 26 yards to go, with 1:12 left in the fourth quarter and the Packers leading 17–14, Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb completed a 28-yard pass to Freddie Mitchell on a famous play now known as "4th and 26". The play set up David Akers' 37-yard field goal to send the game into overtime. In the overtime Favre's deep pass was intercepted, and Akers then kicked a 31-yard field goal, giving the Eagles the victory.
McNabb had a spectacular performance in the game, completing 21 of 39 passes for 248 yards and 2 touchdowns, while also rushing for 107 yards on 11 carries.
Standings
| NFC North | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| (4) Green Bay Packers | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 4–2 | 7–5 | 442 | 307 | W4 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 4–2 | 7–5 | 416 | 353 | L1 |
| Chicago Bears | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 2–4 | 4–8 | 283 | 346 | L1 |
| Detroit Lions | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 2–4 | 4–8 | 270 | 379 | W1 |
Awards and honors
- Brett Favre, NFC Leader, Completion Percentage (65.4)
- Brett Favre, NFC Leader, Touchdown Passes (32)