“This is interesting – just so you know, this is interesting,” said Rivera, avoiding the results of the preseason games. “It’s all about how they play.”
Reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year Chase Young heard about Baltimore’s preseason run just this week and said, “All I know is we’ll take the opportunity we get and we’ll see what happens.”
But Washington is not chasing Lombardi.
The legendary coach’s packers began their streak by beating Washington 20:13 on September 12, 1959 in front of 15,000 fans in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It technically ended up losing to a team of college all-stars in 1963 – but their next show loss to an NFL rival didn’t come until 1964.
“Lombardi was a guy who turned around when he got there. I don’t want to call them an unhappy team, but they had problems,” said NFL historian and writer Joe Horrigan. “I think he sensed that there was no winning attitude and that became the preseason for him with the Packers and Packers players – it was a winning tradition and feeling.”
Harbaugh said Lombardi’s Packers, who hold the current brand, made it more notable. If two meetings with the college allstars were canceled – a win and a loss – Green Bay’s streak actually lasted 23 preseason games against NFL opponents and would mean Baltimore would have to remain undefeated until 2022 just to tie it down.
