Next season will mark the 10-year anniversary of the 2007 Green Bay Packers, a team that caught lightning in a bottle during an equally magical and heartbreaking season.

Led by young coach Mike McCarthy and veteran quarterback Brett Favre, the Packers rattled off 10 wins during the first 11 games, eventually finishing with a 13-3 record and securing the No. 2 seed in the NFC. Yet after all the improbable and memorable wins, a trip to the Super Bowl was still stolen away in the bitter cold of a January night at Lambeau Field by New York Giants cornerback Corey Webster.

The story of the 2007 Packers has to trace back to December of 2006. Saddled with a 4-8 record during McCarthy’s first season, the Packers looked like a franchise lacking a clear future. Four wins to end the campaign changed everything. The win streak revitalized the entire organization and re-energized Favre, who – despite a teary-eyed post-game interview on New Year’s Eve after a Week 17 win over the Chicago Bears – returned for another season.

The Packers carried over the momentum to start 2007.

Big plays and unbelievable wins were bountiful.

A drab Week 1 affair against the Philadelphia Eagles ended in a win when Mason Crosby – then an untested rookie – nailed a 42-yard kick with two seconds left to give the Packers a 16-13 win.

A week later, the Packers showed the NFL they weren’t a passing fad by drilling the Giants in New York, scoring 21 points in the fourth quarter to leave the old Giants Stadium with a convincing 35-13 victory.

Favre delivered one of his most iconic late-career games in Week 3, throwing for 369 yards and three touchdowns – including the go-ahead, 57-yard score to Greg Jennings with 2:03 left – as the Packers knocked off the San Diego Chargers at Lambeau Field. The late score tied Favre with Dan Marino atop the NFL’s all-time touchdown passes list at 420.

Seven days later, Favre broke the record in Minnesota on a 16-yard strike to Jennings in the first quarter. The Packers left the Metrodome with a comfortable win over the Vikings and a perfect 4-0 record.

A primetime loss to the Bears at Lambeau in Week 5 was nothing more than a minor speed bump. The Packers wouldn’t lose again until late November.

The magic was building.

In Week 6, Charles Woodson returned a fumble 57 yards for the go-ahead score in a 17-14 win over the Washington Redskins.

In Denver for another primetime game a week later, Favre launched a pair of unbelievable touchdowns. On the first, rookie James Jones beat All-Pro cornerback Champ Bailey deep and Favre delivered the perfect throw on a 79-yard touchdown in the first quarter. Favre then used the first play of overtime to stage one of his most memorable throws, a beautiful, indefensible deep ball to Jennings that ended in an 82-yard score and a walk-off win that improved the Packers to 6-1.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZynxowoYrs4

Favre wasn’t done.

Down late in Kansas City a week later, Favre found Jennings under heavy pressure for a 60-yard touchdown pass that gave the Packers the lead with 3:05 left. Woodson sealed the win with a 46-yard interception return for a touchdown with less than a minute left.

The Packers won the next three games by a 102-43 margin, setting up a showdown in Dallas in late November,

The Thursday night game against the Cowboys – a battle between two 10-1 teams – went poorly for the Packers. But there was a bright spot to that otherwise ugly night at Texas Stadium: Young quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who filled in for an injured Favre, threw for 215 yards and a touchdown and nearly led the Packers back from a 17-point deficit. The performance from Rodgers would reverberate within the organization, and it helped set up a chaotic summer in 2008.

The Packers finished 3-1 over the final four games, with one defeat during a cold, windy day in Chicago sandwiched between comfortable victories over the Oakland Raiders, St. Louis Rams and Detroit Lions.

The two playoff games at Lambeau Field had polar opposite finishes.

In the divisional round, the Packers overcame a 14-point deficit to blow out the Seattle Seahawks – using three Favre touchdown passes and three Ryan Grant rushing touchdowns to go on a 42-6 run and beat Seattle by a 42-20 final. Snow fell throughout the game, creating a snowglobe effect and setting the stage for Favre’s memorable tumble and toss to Donald Lee in the second half.

The Cinderella season froze over a week later.

The Giants upset win over the Cowboys allowed the Packers to host the NFC title game. Conditions in Green Bay on Jan. 20, 2008 were brutal, with temps below zero and wind chills hovering around -20.

The Packers and Giants traded punches, with two early New York field goals canceled out by Favre’s 90-yard touchdown pass to Donald Driver. Later, Crosby’s 37-yard field goal tied the game at 20 with just under 12 minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Many forget: The Giants had a chance to win the game in regulation, but Lawrence Tynes missed a 36-yard field goal with no time left – sending the game into overtime.

And setting up heartbreak.

On the second play of overtime, Favre threw right looking for Driver, but the throw lacked velocity and drifted inside – allowing Webster to step in front of Driver and make the interception. After three quick plays, Tynes came on and drilled a 47-yard field goal to send the Giants to the Super Bowl.

Favre’s throw set off a domino effect within the NFL and in Green Bay.

The Giants went on to the Super Bowl and knocked off the previously undefeated New England Patriots. The Packers drifted away into another offseason waiting on Favre, who retired in early April. He eventually changed his mind, setting in motion one of the most damaging summers in the franchise’s history.

All that said, the 2007 season shouldn’t be remembered for missed opportunities or the ripple effects of mistakes.

The 2007 Packers came out of nowhere, thanks to a revitalized Favre – who delivered magic moment after magic moment – and an increasingly more confident young coach and roster. The Packers won a division title in early December, hosted two playoff games in January and took the eventual Super Bowl champions to overtime in one of the coldest games in NFL postseason history.

The 2007 Packers came up short. But they fully delivered one of the most entertaining seasons in recent franchise history.