Mark Murphy’s time as Green Bay Packers president has been a case study in how to run a successful NFL franchise — with the notable exception of one lingering disappointment that he’s now admitting on the way out the door.
After 17 seasons at the top of Green Bay’s front office, Murphy is preparing to retire this summer — Packers' bylaws require mandatory retirement at 70 — but not without acknowledging the one thing he couldn’t check off the list.
“While we enjoyed consistent success on the field during my tenure,” Murphy wrote in his monthly Q&A on Packers.com, “I regret that we only made one Super Bowl appearance. I would have loved to win a Super Bowl with Brian Gutekunst and Matt LaFleur. We were close many times, and I am confident that they will break through and win a Super Bowl in the not-too-distant future.”
It’s a candid and probably overdue reflection for a team that, under Murphy, remained a perennial contender, but also came up short in far too many of the moments that mattered most. It's really disappointing that one or two of the past teams couldn't have figured it out.
Packers' Super Bowl success never matched regular-season dominance
Between 2008 and 2024, only two NFL teams — the New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs — won more total games than the Packers. Green Bay racked up 185 regular-season and postseason wins combined during Murphy’s tenure, good for third-most in the league. But while New England and Kansas City parlayed their runs into five Super Bowl appearances and three wins each, the Packers never got back after hoisting the Lombardi in 2010.
It's not like they didn't have the opportunity to match. Green Bay won the NFC North eight times and made the playoffs in 13 of Murphy’s 17 seasons. And yet, the franchise went 0-for-4 in NFC Championship appearances after its Super Bowl XLV triumph — the 2014 meltdown in Seattle and the 2020 home loss to Tom Brady’s Bucs still sting.
Murphy helped the Packers navigate franchise-defining quarterback transitions, elevated a new head coach and general manager, oversaw massive renovations to Lambeau Field, and even brought the NFL Draft to Green Bay. But the postseason pain, especially with a Hall of Fame quarterback under center for nearly all of his presidency, will always complicate how fans view that success.
As Ed Policy takes the reins later this summer, the legacy Murphy leaves behind is one of stability, competitiveness, and vision — but also of near-misses and what-ifs. The foundation is still strong. The window is wide open with Jordan Love at the helm. But this next era has its work cut out if it wants to bring Green Bay back to the summit Murphy hoped reluctantly never reached again.
You can’t win them all, but Murphy’s retirement is a reminder that one Super Bowl in 17 seasons — no matter how hard it is to get there — still feels like a missed opportunity.