MILWAUKEE BREWERS

A recent history of moments when the Packers and Brewers played on the same day

JR Radcliffe

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Fans hold signs high cheering the Brewers on at Miller Park where the Brewers played the Tigers looking for a regular playoff berth.

Monday night viewing habits across Wisconsin will be interesting, with the Packers playing on Monday Night Football against the San Francisco 49ers and the Brewers facing off with the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series.

It's not the first time the two have played on the same day, of course, though seldom have the Brewers been this well positioned to steal eyeballs away from the NFL franchise that has typically run this state. With a 2-2-1 start, the Packers haven't quite been as buzz-worthy a story as the Brewers, looking for their first World Series appearance since 1982.

Even if the Packers had been at their current championship level, fans in 1982 didn't have to choose. The NFL was on strike for more than 50 days in the middle of the season and played a 9-game schedule; none of those contests were played in October.

One year earlier, it was the MLB players who had gone on strike, setting up an unusual divisional-series playoff format pitting the "first half" and "second half" winners against each other. The Brewers fell in a best-of-5 battle with the New York Yankees for the right to go to the ALCS. The decisive Game 5, a 7-3 loss at Yankee Stadium, took place hours after Green Bay's 21-10 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Here are the more recent occasions when the two have conflicted, frequently forcing local sports fans to choose.

September 28, 2008. The Brewers famously won a 3-1 battle over the Cubs to clinch their first playoff berth in 26 years. The Packers did not fare as well, falling 30-21 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a game taking place simultaneously. That wasn't a good year for the Packers, a 6-10 showing on the heels of Brett Favre's departure from the organization.

October 5, 2008. Playing in the fourth game of the National League Division Series, the Brewers were eliminated by the Phillies, 6-2. It was a game memorable for a leadoff home run by Jimmy Rollins and a rough start by Jeff Suppan. At the same time, the Packers were losing to the Atlanta Falcons, 27-24. Aaron Rodgers threw a touchdown pass to Donald Lee with 2 minutes left, but the Packers didn't recover the onside kick. It was not a good day, people.

September 8, 2011. The Packers kicked off the 2011 season -- a follow-up to their Super Bowl triumph -- with a Thursday Night Football battle against the Saints. They won, 42-34, while the Brewers hosted Philadelphia on the same night in a 7-2 loss. It was the third of five straight losses for the Brewers, who were nonetheless en route to a franchise-record 96-66 record.

Ryan Braun leads off the sixth inning with a double and would later score the go ahead run. The Milwaukee Brewers and the Arizona Diamondbacks play game 5 of the NLDS at Miller Park Friday October 7, 2011.

October 2, 2011. Almost three years after that downer in 2008, this turned out to be a very good day. The Packers faced the Broncos at the same time as the Brewers battled the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 2 of the NLDS, and both local teams poured it on. The Brewers scored five runs in the sixth, and Ryan Braun hit an early, galvanizing home run that helped Milwaukee take a 9-4 win to move ahead in the series, 2-0. At Lambeau Field, Aaron Rodgers threw for four touchdowns and ran for two more as the Packers moved to 4-0 with a 49-23 victory over the Broncos.

October 9, 2011. The Packers and Brewers were both victorious one week later, and both on home soil. Starting in the afternoon, the Brewers staged a six-run fifth and took down the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 1 of the NLCS, 9-6. The party continued into the night, where a touchdown to Greg Jennings on the first play of the fourth quarter helped the Packers to a 25-14 win over host Atlanta.

October 16, 2011. This time, it was a St. Louis special, but the results weren't all favorable. The Packers started the day with a 24-3 win over the visiting St. Louis Rams in a noon kickoff, but the St. Louis baseball team got the best of Wisconsin's in Game 6 of the NLCS. Shaun Marcum famously struggled, and the Brewers stumbled to the Cardinals, 12-6, to finish the season with a 4-2 loss in the series.

Packers receiver Geronimo Allison had a big game earlier this season vs. the Bengals.

September 24, 2017. A nail-biting finish to last season featured a huge game at Miller Park against the Cubs, the fourth game in an exhausting series that had included a walk-off home run by Travis Shaw the day before. But the Cubs took the early afternoon battle, 5-0, and the Brewers' playoff chances took a serious hit. Good thing Aaron Rodgers saved the day in the late afternoon, leading the Packers to a 27-24 win in overtime against visiting Cincinnati. Jordy Nelson caught a game-tying touchdown with 21 seconds left after a 72-yard pass to Geronimo Allison set it up, and Mason Crosby's OT kick from 27 yards away sealed the win.

September 30, 2018. How about a doubleheader of shutouts? Starting an hour apart, the Brewers handled the Detroit Tigers, 11-0, to guarantee a one-game tiebreaker for the National League Central at Wrigley Field (a game they won, of course). The Packers took care of Buffalo, 22-0, at Lambeau Field. Following this blueprint Monday night would be sweet for Wisconsin sports fans.