20 things to ponder about the Packers

THE EAGLES' last NFL championship (Dec. 26, 1960).

The unforgettable "fourth-and-26" play in the NFC divisional playoffs (Jan. 11, 2004).

Andy Reid.

The common thread? The Green Bay Packers.

As the Eagles prepare for another postseason showdown against the pride of Wisconsin, the Daily News provides 20 tidbits you should know about the guys wearing hunter green:

1. The Eagles have played the Packers a total of 40 times in all competitions dating to 1933. The Packers lead the series 25-15-0 all-time, outscoring the Birds, 805-664.

2. The Eagles are 2-0 against the Pack in the postseason, winning, 17-13, in the NFL title game and 20-17 in overtime (thanks, FredEx) in the NFC divisional playoff. Both were played in Philly.

3. It's said Eagles coach Andy Reid still proudly wears the Super Bowl ring he won in 1997 asassistant coach at Green Bay. Reid was a member of then-coach Mike Holmgren's staff (1992-98), as were four others who have held jobs with the Eagles: Jon Gruden and Marty Mornhinweg (offensive coordinators), Dick Jauron (defensive backs), and Ray Rhodes (head coach).

4. The Packers got their moniker after founder Curly Lambeau implored his boss at the Indian Packing Co. for funds to purchase uniforms for the upstart franchise in 1919. Lambeau's boss donated $500 and the team was named after its sponsor. "Green Bay Packers" is the oldest team name in the NFL.

5. Packers QB Aaron Rodgers will enter Lincoln Financial Field with a 101.2 passer rating on the season, making him the first quarterback in team history to have back-to-back 100 plus seasons (103.2 rating in 2009-10).

6. Brett Favre might have been the best Packers quarterback statistically during his 16 seasons in Green Bay (1992-2007), but Rodgers is taking a stab at surpassing his predecessor. With 12,394 yards since 2008, Rodgers ranks second in NFL history behind only Kurt Warner (12,612) for the most passing yards by a quarterback in his first three seasons as a starter.

7. One of the most melancholy sports days in the City of Brotherly Love came in 1993, when beloved defensive end Reggie White, a free agent, announced plans to take talents that make him the Eagles' all-time sack leader (124) to Green Bay. White, who died in 2004, racked up 68 1/2 more sacks for the Pack, where he led the defense to a pair of Super Bowls - winning Super Bowl XXXI on Jan. 26, 1997.

8. Packers tight end Andrew Quarless is a Penn State football legend. The first Penn State tight end ever drafted by the Packers, Quarless holds records at PSU for most receptions by a tight end in a career (87) and single season (41 in 2009). He ranks second in school history for receiving yards by a tight end with 1,146. He put the exclamation point on his college career with eight receptions in the 2010 Capital One Bowl against Louisiana State, setting a PSU bowl record.

9. Quite the unique business model: The Green Bay Packers are the only community-owned franchise in all American major sports leagues. As a nonprofit, more than two-thirds of a population of roughly 100,000 own stock and share all the rights and responsibilities of the franchise, which is governed by a seven-member board.

10, Philadelphians rock cheesesteak heads, but it was Green Bay fans who personified unique NFL fan headgear with the cheesehead. The yellow, triangular homage to fromage was created by Wisconsin native Ralph Bruno, who actually debuted it during a 1987 Brewers-White Sox game.

11. Bruno's reasoning for inventing the Cheesehead? "I was reupholstering my mother's couch when I got the idea," he told the Newark Star-Ledger in a 2008 interview. "People from Chicago would also call people from Wisconsin 'cheeseheads' in sort of a negative connotation. But I liked cheese and I figured what's the big deal? So I cut out a piece of the cushion of the couch, burnt some holes in it and painted it to look like a big slice of cheddar cheese."

12. Rodgers may be the catalyst of the Packers offense, but a healthy Clay Matthews and A.J. Hawk mean a terrorizing Green Bay defense. Both Matthews and Hawk (who sport 1980s heavy-metal hairstyles sans hairspray) accounted for 171 tackles and 14 sacks this season.

13. According to his bio on the Packers' website, Hawk's distinctive blond mane is a tribute to the late Pat Tillman, the former Arizona-linebacker-turned-Army Ranger who died in 2004 while serving in Afghanistan. Hawk is also married to the sister of Broncos QB Brady Quinn.

14. According to the Packers' blog, the 2010-11 season marks the first time in franchise history the Packers had three wide receivers - Greg Jennings (76), Donald Driver (51) James Jones (50) - with at least 50 catches in the same season. How's that for sticky fingers?

15. Freddie Mitchell, the Eagles receiver responsible for "fourth-and-26," was always good for a memorable quote. After making the catch that sent the Eagles to the NFC Championship Game, Mitchell told the press: "I tried to beat my man across from me and just go deep, and I went deep . . . Donovan [McNabb] read that and threw a back shoulder to me and I saw it in the air and I made a play.''

16. Mitchell's fourth-and-26 play led to David Akers' 37-yard overtime field goal. It marked the first playoff win for the Birds at Lincoln Financial Field. It's also the Eagles' only overtime game in postseason history.

17. Packers offensive quality control coach John Rushing was a graduate assistant coach for the secondary at Boise State for 2 years (1998-99). While there, he coached current Eagles safety Quintin Mikell.

18. The Packers' 10-3 win over the Bears Sunday at Lambeau Field marked the 26th time Green Bay has clinched a postseason appearance. It's Green Bay's 13th trip in the past 18 seasons and the third time the Pack has advanced to the playoffs in the past four seasons under head coach Mike McCarthy.

19. McCarthy didn't hold back in his postgame news conference on Sunday. His thoughts on the Eagles: "We're worried about Philadelphia. This and that, that's for you people to write. Philadelphia is a hard place to win. I'm sure our team looks a lot different than the first time we met to start the year. It's one [game] at a time."

20. However, McCarthy stirred the pot with this comment: "We feel very good about our chances. We'll play anybody, anytime, anywhere. That's been our motto and we're well-oiled. We've been challenged and we've learned from those challenges. Trust me; we'll be ready when we get to Philadelphia." *