The Cowboys have ranked the Green Bay Packers among their greatest rivals. Apparently, decades of playoff heartbreak finally got somebody’s attention in Texas.
GREEN BAY, BY WAY OF PARIS —
Well, well, well. Look who finally decided to acknowledge the relationship.
The Dallas Cowboys, America’s self-appointed favorite football franchise, have officially ranked the Green Bay Packers as their fifth-biggest rivalry of all time. Fifth. Not first. Not second. Fifth. That’s adorable.
You know what? We’ll take it. Because when you’ve spent the better part of a decade trying to figure out how to beat somebody, eventually you’ve got to put a label on the relationship. And Dallas? We’ve got history.
The Ice Bowl. The 1990s. The Therapy Bills.
Let’s rewind. December 31, 1967. Lambeau Field. Temperatures so cold the football probably needed its own health insurance. Bart Starr sneaks into the end zone. Green Bay wins the Ice Bowl. Dallas goes home. Legendary.
Then came the 1990s. Troy Aikman. Emmitt Smith. Michael Irvin. Jimmy Johnson’s hair. Dallas owned those playoff meetings. Three consecutive postseason eliminations of Green Bay from 1993 through 1995. We’ll give them that. Championship football. Brutal memories. Respect.
But here’s the thing about rivalries. They don’t stop when the other team stops winning.
The Tables Turned. And Then Some.
Fast-forward to January 2015. Dez Bryant. Fourth down. A catch that wasn’t a catch according to the rules at the time. Dallas still talks about it.
Then came Aaron Rodgers and that ridiculous sideline throw to Jared Cook in the January 2017 playoffs. Mason Crosby handled the rest.
And January 2024? Oh, that was special. Jordan Love walked into AT&T Stadium, looked around at all those Cowboys fans, and proceeded to turn their home playoff game into a Packers highlight reel.
Green Bay 48. Dallas 32. At one point, the Packers led 48–16. Forty-eight to sixteen! That’s not a road playoff game. That’s a hostile takeover. No board meeting. No shareholder vote. Just touchdowns.
America’s Team? Funny. Ours Is Actually Owned by America.
Here’s something we’ve never quite understood. Dallas calls itself America’s Team. Cute nickname. Great marketing. Jerry Jones certainly knows how to sell a brand.
But Green Bay? We’re owned by the people. More than half a million shareholders. No billionaire owner. No private empire. Just generations of fans who literally have a stake in the franchise. The only publicly owned, nonprofit team in the NFL. If that doesn’t sound like America’s Team, somebody might want to check the definition.
And here’s the beautiful part. The Cowboys’ own website admits Green Bay has never lost at AT&T Stadium. Never. Even Super Bowl XLV, played in that very building, ended with the Packers lifting the Lombardi Trophy.
Dallas built a football palace. Green Bay keeps making memories in it. Magnificent architecture. Very accommodating hosts.
So let’s get this straight. Dallas has the nickname, the billionaire owner and the giant television screen. Green Bay has the shareholders, the championships and a community that actually owns its team.
America’s Team? We’ll let the people decide. After all, they’re our owners.
And now, according to Dallas’s own ranking, we’re officially one of their five biggest rivals. Thank you for the recognition. We’ll try not to let it go to our heads.
Sunday Night. Lambeau Field. Here We Go Again.
This Sunday, October 18, the Cowboys return to Green Bay. The Packers are coming off a 31–7 demolition of the Chicago Bears. The Cowboys are coming to town looking for answers.
And maybe that’s what makes this rivalry so good. Different cities. Different identities. Different football cultures. Dallas has the spectacle. Green Bay has the tradition. Dallas has the giant television screen. Green Bay has the frozen tundra.
And somewhere in Paris, a group of Packers fans will be staying up until an unreasonable hour to watch the next chapter. Because that’s what we do.
So, Dallas, thanks for the ranking. Fifth place. Very generous. But just remember one thing:
You can rank us No. 5 on your rivalry list. We’d rather be No. 1 on the scoreboard.
GO PACK GO.
Titletown Europe — Green Bay, by way of Paris.
