2014 NFC Championship Game

The Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks developed a rivalry after a number of notable games, including the infamous Fail Mary game in 2012.^[1][2][3] The Packers and Seahawks were scheduled to open the 2014 season against each other at CenturyLink Field in Seattle, Washington (which would be their first match-up since the Fail Mary game).^[4] Both teams made the playoffs the prior season, with the Seahawks winning Super Bowl XLVIII.^[5] The Week 1 game ended up being a 36–16 blow-out by the Seahawks, with Marshawn Lynch rushing for over 100 yards and 2 touchdowns, while Russell Wilson threw 2 more touchdowns. The Seahawks defense held the Packers to just 255 total yards and only 6 points in the second half.^[6] After the Week 1 match-up, the Packers won 12 of the remaining 15 games, including going on a 4-game and 5-game win streak.^[4] The Packers secured the NFC North division title and a first-round bye in a Week 17 match-up against the Detroit Lions, who would have won the division had they come on top. During the Week 17 game against the Lions, Aaron Rodgers reinjured his calf while throwing a touchdown pass to Randall Cobb. After being helped off the field and missing the rest of the half, Rodgers returned in the third quarter to lead the Packers to victory.^[7] The Seahawks finished the season winning 11 of the remaining 15 games, including ending the year on a six-game win streak.^[8] The streak included two wins against the Arizona Cardinals, allowing the Seahawks to overcome a 3-game deficit against them, win the NFC West and secure the first seed in the playoffs.^[9][10]

The Seahawks won the first seed due to a tie breaker, as they finished with the same 12–4 record as the Packers and Cowboys. The tie breaker ended up being their record against conference opponents. The Seahawks were awarded the first seed, the Packers the second and the Cowboys the third. At the time, the first and second seeds were awarded a bye week during the first week of the playoffs.^[11] During the Divisional Round of the playoffs, the Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys and the Seahawks hosted the Carolina Panthers. The Packers defeated the Cowboys 26–21 to advance to the NFC Championship Game, but not without controversy. In the fourth quarter, Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant appeared to catch a deep pass and dive for the end zone on what would have given the Cowboys a late lead or a first down near the goal line with the chance to take the lead. After review of the play though, Bryant was deemed to not complete the process of the catch, as the ball became dislodged as he dove and extended for the goal line. The resulting controversy resulted in the match-up being known as the Dez Caught It game.^[12] The Seahawks beat the Panthers 31–17 in their playoff game.^[13] The Seahawks higher seeding gave them home field advantage, thus the NFC Championship Game would be hosted at CenturyLink Field.^[10][14]

The game began with back-to-back drives ending in an interception, first by the Seahawks and then by the Packers. After the Packers intercepted Russell Wilson, they drove to the one-yard line but were stopped on consecutive plays and settled for a field goal. John Kuhn was originally awarded a touchdown on second down, but the result was overturned after replay review and Eddie Lacy was stopped short on third down. The field goal attempt by Mason Crosby was successful and put the Packers up 3–0. On the ensuing kick off, the Seahawks' returner, wide receiver Doug Baldwin, fumbled and the Packers recovered. The Packers drove to the one-yard line and again settled for a short field goal attempt, with Crosby converting to put the Packers up 6–0. The Seahawks went three-and-out on the next drive, punting the ball back to the Packers who started their drive at mid-field. Rodgers led the team on a 7-play, 56-yard drive that culminated in a 13-yard touchdown pass to Randall Cobb to put the Packers up 13–0. The Seahawks again went three-and-out, with their punt being returned by Micah Hyde for 29 yards. The Packers put together a short drive and settled for a field goal on fourth down and one, with Crosby converting for a 16–0 lead. The next three drives ended in interceptions: two by Wilson and one by Rodgers. The Packers punted on their next drive and the Seahawks ran two plays for a loss of eight yards before halftime.^[15]

With the Seahawks starting the second half with possession, each team went three-and-out and punted the ball. The Seahawks then finally put together a scoring drive, going 78 yards in 11 plays.^[15] On fourth down and ten yards to go, the Seahawks lined up for a field goal attempt but ran a fake, with holder Jon Ryan throwing a touchdown pass to Garry Gilliam to bring the score to 16–7.^[16] The teams again exchanged punts on short drives before the Packers drove 57 yards for a 48-yard field goal by Crosby. The drive, which spanned the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth, was sparked by a 32-yard rush by James Starks on the first play. For the third time in the game, the teams exchanged punts. On the ensuing Seahawks drive, Morgan Burnett intercepted Wilson on his first pass with about five minutes left in the game. The Packers rushed the ball three straight times, losing 4 yard cumulatively and punted the ball back to the Seahawks. Wilson led the Seahawks on a quick 7-play, 69-yard drive that ended with him rushing for a one-yard touchdown.^[15] Down 19–14 with just over two minutes left in the game, the Seahawks decided to attempt an onside kick, which they successfully recovered to retain possession.^[16] Again, Wilson led the Seahawks in a quick 4-play, 50-yard drive that put them in the lead for the first time.^[15] Wanting to increase their lead to three points to prevent a possible game-winning field goal by the Packers on the next drive, the Seahawks attempted a two-point conversion. After getting pressured out of the pocket, Wilson threw a high-arcing pass to Luke Willson for a successful conversion, increasing the Seahawks lead to 22–19.^[16] Rodgers led the Packers on a 48-yard drive to get into field goal range, with Crosby hitting a 48-yard field goal to tie the game with just a few seconds left on the clock. The Seahawks knelt the ball on their next drive to run out the clock and force overtime.^[15]

The Seahawks won the overtime coin toss and chose to receive the ball. Starting at the 13-yard line, the Seahawks got a first down on a short rush and then a 10-yard pass completion. After another short rush by Lynch, Wilson was sacked for a short loss bringing up a third down and six yards to go. On third down, Wilson completed a 35-yard pass to Baldwin for the first down. On the next play, Wilson threw deep to Jermaine Kearse for another 35-yard completion for a walk-off touchdown.^[15]

Much of the post-game analysis centered on the improbability of the Seahawks comeback.^[18] Other analysis centered on key decisions by Packers' players and coaches that contributed to the unlikely comeback, missed opportunities by the Packers, the boldness of certain play calls by the Seahawks and the impacts that injuries had on the game.^[16] Statistically, the Seahawks achieved the victory after almost certain defeat, with one source noting over a 99.9% chance of a Packers' victory in the fourth quarter.^[18] The Packers' defense up to that point had stymied the Seahawks, with the only score allowed on a touchdown pass during a fake field goal attempt. Starting at just under four minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Seahawks next three drives, all ending in touchdowns, gained over half of their total yards for the whole game.^{[19] [20]}

McCarthy was questioned for conservative play calls throughout the game. Twice he settled for a field goal on fourth down on the one-yard line, and overall the Packers converted five field goals in the game. Touchdowns on either of the fourth down calls likely would have changed the dynamic of the game, increasing the Packers' lead and limiting the possibility of a comeback.^[19][20] McCarthy also was criticized for calling three straight running plays in the fourth quarter after Burnett's interception.^[21] The rushes accumulated negative four yards and with the Seahawks calling two timeouts, the series only took about a minute off the clock.^[19][20][14] The criticism centered on McCarthy not putting the ball in the hands of Rodgers, his star player, to try to win the game.^[21]

Rodgers had injured his calf twice at the end of the 2014 season, which limited his mobility throughout the playoffs. Packers linebacker Clay Matthews III also sustained an injury during the NFC Championship Game that prevented him from staying on the field consistently during the Seahawks surge in the fourth quarter and overtime.^[16] Specific Packers' players were criticized for their decisions during the game. Ha Ha Clinton-Dix dropped an easy interception that may have been returned for a touchdown and he took heat on the two-point conversion for not being more aggressive and making a play on the ball.^[16] During Burnett's interception in the fourth quarter, there appeared to be significant space for a long return that could have ended in a return for a touchdown or putting the Packers in field goal range.^[18] Instead, Burnett slid to end the play, believing the game was virtually over. Both Burnett and Julius Peppers, who appeared to indicate to Burnett to slide to end the play, were maligned for not being more aggressive and their mistaken belief the game was over.^[16]

A number of key plays occurred that changed the trajectory of the game. In the first quarter, Rodgers thought that the defense had jumped offside, in essence giving him a free opportunity to take a shot to the end zone (since a penalty would negate any unsuccessful pass). A flag was not thrown though and the pass was intercepted in the end zone. Also in the first quarter, Mike Daniels was flagged 15 yards for taunting after Clinton-Dix intercepted a pass and returned it to the four-yard line. Instead of starting the drive there, the Packers started on the 19-yard line and ended up resorting to a field goal.^[16] In the third quarter, the Seahawks ran a fake field goal that resulted in a touchdown pass by their punter. After the game, it was revealed that the Seahawks were only going to run the play if Brad Jones was on the field because they noticed his aggressiveness during field goals.^[16] During the play, A. J. Hawk also chose to rush the Seahawks' punter instead of covering the eventual received, Garry Gilliam.^[22] In the fourth quarter, James Starks dropped what would have likely been a touchdown pass and Eddie Lacy did not see a screen pass thrown to him that would have kept the Packers moving on their drive.^[16] The penultimate key play though was the onside kick by the Seahawks late in the fourth quarter. A Packers' recovery and the game would have essentially been over. Brandon Bostick, the Packers back-up tight end, attempted to field a high bouncing onside kick that ended up ricocheting off his helmet and being recovered by the Seahawks.^[22] Bostick was supposed to block on the play, to allow Jordy Nelson, who was in a good position, to recover the quick.^[16] The Seahawks scored shortly thereafter and then attempted a two-point conversion to try to increase their lead to three points. Wilson was flushed from the pocket on the play and threw a desperation pass to the end zone. Clinton-Dix had good position but for unknown reasons he did not converge on the football, allowing Willson to catch the pass.^[16] This play ended up being important because the Packers would tie the game shortly thereafter with a field goal that would have won the game if the two-point conversion was unsuccessful.^[19][20]

The Seahawks advanced to Super Bowl XLIX against the New England Patriots to be played at University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona. The Seahawks were on the other side of a come-from-behind victory, with the Patriots scoring two fourth quarter touchdowns to overcome a 10-point deficit and a take a 28–24 lead. The Seahawks had a chance to win the game, driving down to the one-yard line with 26 seconds left in the game, however a Wilson pass was intercepted at the goal line by Malcolm Butler to secure the Patriots' victory.^[23]

After being heavily criticized by the national media for his offensive play-calling during the game, McCarthy gave-up these duties to Tom Clements for the upcoming 2015 NFL season.^[24] McCarthy continued as the Packers' head coach for another three seasons, before being fired near the end of the 2018 NFL season.^[25]

In 2019, the NFL identified the game as the 44th greatest in NFL history up to that point.^[26] The game became an important part of the Packers–Seahawks rivalry and is identified as one of the most notable games between the two teams.^[1][2][3] The game gained notoriety by Packers' fans for the team's monumental collapse, with one source calculating the team's chances of winning the game peaking at 99.9% late in the fourth quarter.^[18] From the Seahawks' perspective, the game has been identified as a defining moment and one of the greatest in the team's history.^[27][28] The unlikely comeback led to the team's second consecutive Super Bowl appearance and some discussions of a possible sports dynasty.^[29] The thrill of the victory was dampened though by the dramatic loss by the Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX at the hands of the Patriots.^[23] Instead of a dynasty, the loss in the Super Bowl marked the last appearance for the Seahawks in either the NFC Championship Game or a Super Bowl under Carroll and Wilson.^[29] McCarthy and Rodgers would return to the NFC Championship in 2016, losing to the Atlanta Falcons 44–21, before McCarthy was fired two seasons later.^[30] Rodgers returned the Packers to the NFC Championship two more times before he was traded to the New York Jets in 2022.^[31] The Packers lost both games, a 37–20 loss in 2019 to the San Francisco 49ers and a 31–26 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020.^[30] The loss to the Seahawks began a four-game losing streak for Rodgers in NFC Championship Games which made him the first quarterback to lose that many consecutive conference championship games.^[32]

• Packers–Seahawks rivalry
• NFL's Greatest Games

• An Unforgettable Comeback! (Packers vs. Seahawks 2014 NFC Championship) on YouTube