7 p.m. Saturday
Lambeau Field
TV: Ch. 11
(100.3-FM, 1130-AM)
Line: Packers by 7 1/2
NFC NORTH CHAMPIONS (11-5)
The Packers lost their chance at a first-round playoff bye when they fell to the Vikings at the Metrodome 37-34 on Sunday.
This is the first time in the history of the rivalry that the teams have met each other when both have 10 or more victories.
This is only the second playoff game between the teams, the other was a 31-17 Vikings victory in Green Bay in a wild-card round game after the 2004 season.
This is the third time the Packers have faced the same team in the regular- season finale and the following week in the playoffs. But this is the first time they have been the host of that playoff game. Green Bay won at Detroit in 1993 and lost in Arizona at 2009.
PLAYER TALK quarterback aaron rodgers
Aaron Rodgers was the NFL's highest-rated passer (108.0) this season. In his six playoff starts, he is 4-2 with a Super Bowl title and a 105.5 rating.
On the importance of a fast start: "We have to start better. Bare minimum, give our defense some rest on the sidelines. Can't go three-and-out. We can't let them get some confidence."
On playing in the cold: "It takes some getting used to. We practice outside here a lot. I think it's important to handle the football outside."
On the advantage of playing at home: "We do a lot at the line of scrimmage. We do a lot with [audibles], also with signals and gestures. ... They can probably hear me better than at the Metrodome."
COACH SPEAK
mike mccarthy
On slowing Adrian Peterson: "You have to tackle him. ... I think we probably overplayed him too much [Sunday]. We should have stayed true to our technique."
On having injured DB Charles Woodson back: "He has played three and sometimes four positions. To have that flexibility, with the creativity of [D-coordinator] Dom Capers, it's something that gives us another weapon out there."
His view of the Vikings season: "This whole team kept getting better. ... They've done a good job of playing to their strengths. You have to give Leslie [Frazier] a lot of credit for the year they've had. They're playing their best football when it counts."
KENT YOUNGBLOOD
It’s too soon to tell how much the immigration crackdown is to blame.
