RAMS 41, PACKERS 38 : Packers Again Pair Second-Half Magic With First-Half Mess

The Green Bay Packers have a quarterback they call “Magic,” not because of any particular athletic derring-do, but because it’s easier to pronounce than Majkowski.

Wondrous things stopped happening to the Packers about the time Jerry Kramer carried Vince Lombardi off into his last Super Bowl sunset more than 20 seasons ago. Expect a miracle? You’ve got the wrong Midwestern town. With the Packers, pragmatists through losing, all you can expect on most Sundays is the point spread covered and the calendar a little closer to that traditional, high draft choice.

This is why recent Packer developments against the New Orleans Saints and the Rams have seemed so startling.

Down, 24-7, to the Saints, the Packers rallied to win, 35-34, last week.

Down, 38-7, to the Rams, the Packers rallied and came within a goal-line fumble of another upset before losing, 41-38, Sunday afternoon at Anaheim Stadium.

If the Pack isn’t exactly back, at least it’s coming back. In the second halves of its last two games, Green Bay has outscored its opponents by a cumulative margin of 59-13.

Yet, does this excite the Packers?

As Tony Mandarich kept telling the Green Bay front office all summer, look at the bottom line.

In their last two games, the Packers are 1-1. Overall in 1989, they are 1-2.

“One of these days,” Coach Lindy Infante grumbled, “we’re hopefully going to play four straight good quarters. Maybe then we’ll find out how good we can be.”

Sunday’s first half clarified just how bad Green Bay can be. A 31-point halftime deficit. Three interceptions and a fumble to stop four of the Packers’ first seven possessions. A defense that allowed Ram running back Greg Bell to net 117 yards and Ram quarterback Jim Everett to pass for 175 yards in 30 minutes of playing time.

So the Packers outscored the Rams, 31-3, in the third and fourth quarters.

So what?

“We like to consider ourselves a second-half team, but we’d be a better team if we didn’t have to play so hard in the second half,” said wide receiver Sterling Sharpe, who caught eight passes for 164 yards.

“It’s very tough on us. We fell behind against Tampa Bay (in a 23-21 loss). The same thing happened against New Orleans. We’ve just got to learn how to play 60 minutes’ worth of football.”

Despite their half-hearted effort, the Packers were in position to tie with 11 minutes to play when fullback Brent Fullwood, on first-and-goal from the one, was slammed so hard by Rams Frank Stams and Shawn Miller that the ball crossed the goal line without Fullwood.

Doug Reed fell on the loose ball in the end zone, giving the Rams possession at their 20-yard line, still in possession of a 38-31 lead.

Although Green Bay would recover to score another touchdown--this one a successful one-yard run by Fullwood--the fourth-quarter fumble was an emotional crusher.

“We always try not to blame the outcome of any game on one player,” said quarterback Don Majkowski with a tad more caution than on the three interceptions he cast in the first half. “It was an unfortunate situation. I know Brent feels bad about it.”

And Brent didn’t feel much like talking about it.

“I have no comment about the fumble until I see the film,” Fullwood said. “I (still) thought we could win the ballgame because the game is like my motto, ‘It ain’t over until the fat lady sings.’ ”

Original thought was hardly running rampant through the Green Bay dressing room.

Someone asked Sharpe about the penchant the Packers have developed for wake-me-after-the-tuba-section-plays football.

“I don’t know,” he said with disgust in his voice. “We had the same pass plays, the same offense, the same quarterback throwing to the same guys . . .”

Maybe it was Infante’s rousing, inspirational halftime pep talk?

Sharpe shook his head.

“I don’t think Lindy gave a great speech,” he said. “We just had to get over the shock of the first half.”

In the second half, Majkowski not only began throwing passes to players in yellow helmets, but almost always for huge gains. He hit Sharpe for an 18-yard touchdown, set up another score with a 57-yard completion to Sharpe and led Green Bay to 24 unanswered points.

Then in the fourth quarter, Majkowski lofted another long pass for Sharpe, who had beaten Ram cornerback Clifford Hicks to the end zone. Hicks’ last line of defense was a desperation shove, resulting in a 40-yard pass interference penalty and Packer ball on the Ram one with 11:31 left.

Then came the fateful handoff to Fullwood and there went the football into Ram hands.

“I thought we were going to win this one,” said linebacker Brian Noble, an Anaheim High product. “I thought we had the ball rolling.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t roll it far enough.”

So it goes for the luckless Lindy Packers. Bart Starr never fumbled the ball against Dallas on that frozen quarterback sneak in 1967. Max McGee never dropped the ball in the end zone against Kansas City.

But the magic in Green Bay is gone, long gone.

All that’s left is Majkowski.