NEW ORLEANS -- The gates at the Superdome have yet to open but we're in place in the press box. I can provide the breaking news that the work crew just took the tarps off the NFC Championship logos located at the 25-yard lines and off the Saints logo at midfield.

Everyone expects this building to be electric this afternoon as more than 70,000 fans will be packed in here. The kickoff time is set for 5:40 p.m. so we should have the inactives at about 4:10 p.m. or so. I don't expect any huge surprises with the inactives but at this point nothing is too small when it comes to breaking down things.

In case you're wondering, this will be the ninth NFC Championship Game for the Vikings and third since 1998. The Vikings are 4-4 in title games. They won in 1969, 1973, 1974 and 1976. They lost in 1977, 1987, 1998 and 2000.

There is one normal routine taking place on the field right now as center John Sullivan and backup offensive lineman Jon Cooper play their regular game of catch.