Brooks, who took part in his first practice with his new team Monday, is part of a last-minute renovation for the Packers at outside linebacker ahead of the regular-season opener Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks.

The team traded Jayrone Elliott, who was expected to play heavy snaps behind Matthews and Perry, to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday and claimed Chris Odom, who was waived by Atlanta but had intrigued the Packers before the NFL draft.

Now, with Matthews (groin) and Perry (ankle) returning to practice and ready to start against the Seahawks, the Packers are counting on the edge-rushing group to get after Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson.

”Just full-time preparation. That’s pretty much what’s gone on since both guys have arrived,” Packers coach Mike McCarthy replied when asked about the approach he is taking with his two new pass-rushers. ”We’ve got work to do.”

The 6-foot-3, 259-pound Brooks, who turned 33 in March, was a two-time All-Pro with the San Francisco 49ers before he was cut Aug. 25. He had at least six sacks in each of the past six seasons.

”It’s a good fit for me,” Brooks said Monday. ”I’m comfortable playing in a 3-4 scheme. I played it all throughout college, I played it all throughout my years in San Francisco. They do things a little bit different here. The terminology is different, of course, so it’s going to take me a while to pick it up. But I think I’ll do good.”

Brooks is the latest free-agent addition for the traditionally draft-and-develop Packers. They also added tight ends Martellus Bennett and Lance Kendricks, veteran guard Jahri Evans and defensive tackle Ricky Jean Francois, who played with Brooks in San Francisco.

”He’s an athletic linebacker, a guy who can run – a violent rusher. If his speed is still up to par to what I saw when I was there, he’ll give a lot of skill positions a run for their money,” Francois said.

Odom, an undrafted free agent from Arkansas State who had a strong preseason with the Falcons, could play Sunday despite his limited time with the defensive playbook. The only other outside linebacker on the roster is second-year man Kyler Fackrell, who had a quiet camp.

TAYLOR’S NEW DEAL: Veteran guard Lane Taylor signed a three-year extension on Monday, a year after moving into the starting lineup when Pro Bowler Josh Sitton was unexpectedly cut at the end of training camp in 2016. Taylor entered the league as an undrafted free agent from Oklahoma State in 2013 and was a backup his first three seasons, starting only two games.

”He’s done all the right things, he’s earned it the hard way,” McCarthy said. ”I don’t think there was a day that I was here at work that he wasn’t here. He’s earned it. He’s put a lot into this, and I’m very happy for him and his family.”

Asked if moving into the starting lineup and handling the pressure of replacing Sitton was as easy as he made it look, Taylor replied: ”I was confident in myself and had a lot to prove – still have a lot to prove. That’s what really drove me to play well.”

—

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Green Bay Packers vs Dallas Cowboys
When: 4:40 PM ET, Sunday, January 15, 2017
Where: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texa

TV: 4:40 p.m. ET, FOX.
LINE: Cowboys -4.5
O/U: 52.5
PREDICTION: Cowboys 28, Packers 24

Oddsmakers currently have the DALLAS listed as -4.5 point favorites versus the GREEN BAY, while the game’s total is sitting at 52.

Aaron Rodgers is the lava-hot quarterback who throws Hail Mary touchdown passes as easily as slant patterns and already owns a Super Bowl ring.

Dak Prescott is the ultra-cool customer, who seemingly isn’t bothered by any of the pressure that comes with being a NFL quarterback.

Prescott looks to guide Dallas to its first Super Bowl appearance in 21 years and that task begins Sunday when the Cowboys host Rodgers’ Green Bay Packers in an NFC divisional-round contest (4:40 p.m. ET, FOX).

Prescott was the steal of the NFL draft as a fourth-round selection and he quickly turned then-injured Tony Romo into an afterthought. Dallas went 13-3 and earned the NFC’s No. 1 seed behind Prescott and fellow rookie Ezekiel Elliott, who led the NFL with 1,631 rushing yards during the regular season.

“To me, it’s all about being prepared,” Prescott said. “In a way, you get nerves; nerves hit you. You’re not human if they don’t hit you. But there’s a difference between being nervous and having good nerves to go out there and play. But it’s been a while since I’ve truly been just nervous.”

The fourth-seeded Packers counter with Rodgers, the more-experienced gunslinger who carried Green Bay into the postseason after a sluggish 4-6 start. Rogers guided the Packers to six straight wins to conclude the regular season and then helped fuel last Sunday’s 38-13 thrashing of the New York Giants in the wild-card round.

Rodgers has been superb by firing 18 touchdowns passes without a single interception over the last seven contests. One of his four touchdown passes against the Giants was his third Hail Mary toss in a 13-month span.

“He’s been hot for about nine years,” Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said. “He’s a great football player, always has been and he just plays the game at a really, really high level and we have a really, really healthy respect for him and what he does and how he makes everyone around him better.”

Oh yeah, that Super Bowl ring Rodgers owns? He won it in Dallas when the Packers knocked off the Pittsburgh Steelers at AT&T Stadium in Super Bowl XLV following the 2010 season.

“It’ll be my first game actually playing there since the Super Bowl,” Rodgers said. “It’ll be fun to get out there. It’s a beautiful stadium and I have a lot of really, really good memories from the field.”

Rodgers could be without his top target in Jordy Nelson, who is in jeopardy of missing the contest after suffering a rib injury in the game against the Giants. Nelson was the recipient of a helmet hit from New York safety Leon Hall that prompted an overnight stay in a Green Bay hospital.

Nelson won’t practice until Saturday at the earliest and head coach Mike McCarthy didn’t want to speculate on whether he could play against the Cowboys.

Nelson caught 97 passes for 1,257 yards and 14 touchdowns in the regular season) and his absence would elevate now-healthy Randall Cobb (60 catches for 610 yards and four scores) into the role of lead receiver. Cobb caught three touchdown passes against the Giants while accumulating five receptions for 116 yards.

“I don’t know if there’s a position Randall hasn’t played for us,” McCarthy said. “At the end of the day, it’s about getting Randall the football because good things happen when you get him the football.”

Green Bay has scored 30 or more points in each of the past five games and the Cowboys certainly have the firepower to match that production.

Dallas moves the ball well on the ground with Elliott and through the air with Prescott, who passed for 3,667 yards and 23 touchdowns against four interceptions. The Cowboys had three players with 50 or more receptions — Cole Beasley (75 for 833), tight end Jason Witten (69 for 673) and wideout Dez Bryant (50 for 796).

Meanwhile, it has been the ability of Prescott to handle everything thrown at him that has stood out most.

“I think it’s probably part of his DNA,” Garrett said. “He’s a really poised, composed person, got a great perspective on life, great perspective on football. Focuses on what he needs to do to be his best. At every turn, that’s how he’s handled himself.”

Prescott guided Dallas to a 30-16 victory over the Packers on Oct. 16. He completed 18 of 27 passes for 247 yards and three touchdowns. Elliott racked up 157 yards on 28 rushes.

“We just won the line of scrimmage,” Elliott said while reflecting on that game. “That’s what it came down to. We wore them down early in the game, and in the second half we started to see runs break open.”

The Green Bay defense could have cornerback Quinten Rollins (concussion) back on the field after he missed the wild-card contest. He was limited in practice Wednesday.

Dallas expects to have cornerback Morris Claiborne (groin) in the mix after he missed the past nine games. Defensive ends DeMarcus Lawrence (back) and Tyrone Crawford (shoulder) and linebacker Justin Durant (elbow) are all expected to play.

Sunday’s contest marks the eighth time the Cowboys and Packers have met in the postseason. Dallas holds a 4-3 edge.

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The Packers were considered a likely Super Bowl contender in the preseason. They look like a Super Bowl contender now going into the divisional round game on Sunday against Dallas.

In between, the middle of the season resembled a roller-coaster ride. But the Packers are peaking at the right time.

They haven’t lost since falling to 4-6 following a 42-24 defeat to Washington in Week 11. Just like other teams, Green Bay had to make adjustments after losing key players.

They got healthier on defense. They have quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who is playing perhaps the best football of his career .

Through the ups and downs, McCarthy’s confidence didn’t waver, even as some fans took to social media to question his job security following a four-game skid. There were no apparent outbursts in the locker room, no rash decisions.

”I’m not into shock and awe, or a torch-the-landscape-type person. I’m a builder, I’m a developer. I’ve said that since the first day I arrived here,” McCarthy said on Nov. 14 , the day after a 47-25 loss at Tennessee. ”You build a program, culture is what makes it go, you have to invest in that culture every single day, and that’s my big-picture focus.”

The steady leadership made an impact, left tackle David Bakhtiari said.

”I think he stayed true to who he was, and we stayed true to who we are,” Bakhtiari said on Monday when asked about how the culture developed by McCarthy aided the team’s rebound.

”It got rough, you know? With everyone outside, all the outside noise. We just understood that it’s about us. It’s about everyone in here. We know what we’re capable of,” Bakhtiari added. ”Let’s go do what we do, don’t worry about them.”

Bakhtiari has been to the playoffs in each of his four seasons in Green Bay. The Packers have been to the postseason eight straight years – the Patriots are the only other team to do so – and in nine of McCarthy’s 11 years overall in Titletown.

Green Bay won the Super Bowl in the 2010 season. The team hasn’t had a losing record since going 6-10 in 2008, Rodgers’ first year as starting quarterback.

Rodgers has called criticism of McCarthy ”ridiculous,” citing the high standards that the Packers have set for themselves through the annual success.

”I think if anything after the Washington game, he became even more of a players’ coach. He was even more positive and listened even more, and just kept encouraging us that we were close to kind of getting over the hump and starting to win games,” Rodgers said last week.

”So he took some crap from everybody, but he stayed the course for us in the meeting room and the locker room.”

On the field, McCarthy turned to former receiver Ty Montgomery to help fill the void in the backfield left by Eddie Lacy’s season-ending ankle injury in October. The return of tight end Jared Cook from injury gave Rodgers another option in the passing game in the second half of the season.

”We had to fine-tune our game plan, had to find our rhythm with the people that we had, with the guys that were stepping up,” center Corey Linsley said. ”We found our rhythm, we found what works.”

Now the Packers might have to make a major adjustment again if top receiver Jordy Nelson can’t return against Dallas from a rib injury.

But they also rallied without him to defeat the New York Giants in an NFC wild-card game on Sunday, the Packers’ seventh straight win going back to the regular season.

”I think it’s what makes it so good,” Bakhtiari said about the team’s run. ”We know what adversity is.”

—

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But coach Mike McCarthy says Nelson could play in the Packers’ divisional-round playoff game this weekend in Dallas if he can practice Saturday.

Nelson left in the second quarter of the 31-13 win over the New York Giants in a wild-card game Sunday. He took a shot to the left side of his body from safety Leon Hall’s helmet while jumping for a pass that went incomplete.

McCarthy says Nelson spent Sunday night in the hospital. Nelson was back at Lambeau Field on Monday.

The Packers practice on Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday for games on Sunday.

—

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Aaron Rodgers has probably been the NFL’s top quarterback since Thanksgiving in late November.

He’s re-established that dynamic connection with receiver Jordy Nelson for the Green Bay Packers, and Ty Montgomery’s emergence as a receiver-turned-running back has been a revelation.

Rodgers is on a roll, and when he gets going, the Packers look unstoppable, capable of building big leads and coming back from any deficit. After a 1-2 start in 2014, Rodgers famously admonished fans to R-E-L-A-X. This season, after a 4-6 start, he promised to ”run the table” and led them to another NFC North division title.

They feature in the showcase of wild-card playoffs weekend, when they host Eli Manning and the New York Giants on Sunday.

The playoff history between the Packers and Giants is rich. For the record, the Packers have a 4-3 edge.

The Giants won the first matchup and the NFL title in 1938, beating the Packers 23-17. The Packers won the next four games and NFL championships in 1939, `44, 61 and `62. The Giants won the last two playoff games in 2008 and 2012, both at Lambeau Field, and went on to win the Super Bowls.

The Packers’ weakness is in defense, where the secondary is depleted. The offense has been on a remarkable run of mistake-free football during their six-match winning streak, but they could be hard-pressed to keep up in high-scoring games like they were during a midseason four-game slump.

The Giants are showing elements of the frenzied pass rush and opportunistic defense that won them their last two NFL crowns. Over the last 11 games, opponents have averaged just 16 points against the Giants.

They need that stingy defense because of their ineffective offense. The Giants didn’t score 30 points in any game, and haven’t even reached 20 points since Nov. 27 against the hapless Cleveland Browns. The running game is so-so, and Manning seems comfortable throwing only to Odell Beckham Jr. Not that it’s a bad idea.

In the other game on Sunday, Pittsburgh hosts the Miami Dolphins, who turned around their season with an Oct. 16 victory over the Steelers.

But Miami is yet another team using a backup quarterback, Matt Moore, after starter Ryan Tannehill was ruled out on Thursday because he wasn’t ready to practice on a sprained left knee. If Jay Ajayi can run wild again, Miami has a solid chance.

However, the Steelers are a tested bunch and got to rest several key players in the regular season finale, including Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell.

Wild-card weekend begins with the Oakland Raiders, one of the AFC’s powers until the past three weeks, traveling to the Houston Texans on Saturday, followed by the Detroit Lions at the Seattle Seahawks.

Raiders rookie Connor Cook will become the first quarterback in NFL history to make his first start in a playoff game. Derek Carr and Matt McGloin remain injured. Cook had 150 yards passing and a touchdown in his NFL debut last week.

Meanwhile, the Texans are going back to the so-far-underwhelming Brock Osweiler after Tom Savage was concussed last week.

Neither the Seahawks nor the Lions have been inspiring in the past month, with Detroit throwing away the NFC North crown with three straight closing defeats, and Seattle kicking away a bye by splitting its final six games.

These are two of the worst running teams in American football, but Seattle has gotten back Thomas Rawls, which could make for a distinct edge.

The Seahawks also have the better defense, though its been vulnerable against the pass since star safety Earl Thomas broke his left leg a month ago.

Detroit’s Matthew Stafford is the first quarterback to lead eight game-winning drives in the fourth quarter or overtime since the 1970 merger, but he’s been sacked an NFL-most 37 times. The Lions are also down to their third running back.

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It’s not just Jordy Nelson making the big plays as the Packers roll into an NFC playoff game on Sunday against the New York Giants with a six-game winning streak.

Davante Adams capped his breakout regular season with three touchdown catches over the last two games, giving him 12 for the season.

Athletic 6-foot-4 tight end Jared Cook is a matchup problem in coverage. Undrafted rookie Geronimo Allison has turned into a late-season find with eight catches for 157 yards and a score over his last two games.

Receiver-turned-running back Ty Montgomery remains a threat to catch passes out of the backfield. Fullback Aaron Ripkowski made his first career touchdown catch last week against Detroit .

”I like to think that’s the way we’ve always played,” coach Mike McCarthy said Thursday about the diversity in the passing game. ”To lock (Rodgers) into a receiver or one or two or three players all the time is not really utilizing all your resources.”

And the Packers (10-6) have played the last two weeks without Randall Cobb, whose quickness gives defenses problems over the middle. Cobb, who has an ankle injury, has been limited in practice this week, though that’s a positive step after he missed practice last week.

A full complement of receivers might be needed against a Giants defense that is the stingiest in the league in the red zone (39.5 percent), an area where Cobb and Nelson usually get a lot of attention.

”Another guy that gets a tremendous amount of respect from defenses,” Adams said about the possible return of Cobb. ”Having him out there will take a lot of off our run game, myself and Jordy. It frees up other guys because they’ve got to account for him.”

Though Cobb has been hurt of late, the Packers’ injury situation has stabilized on offense. The injuries in October to running back Eddie Lacy (ankle) and James Starks (knee) forced the Packers to adjust in the backfield; Cook missed time earlier in the year with an ankle injury.

At one point, McCarthy said he had to put together a midweek game plan involving 21 personnel groups, an abnormally high number. The groupings would be whittled down as the week wore on and players’ availabilities become clearer.

”It’s something you spend the whole offseason putting together and then you’ve got to make sure you’ve got everything in there to get you through the season. You have to add some wrinkles here and there as the season goes on,” McCarthy said.

No need for so many personnel groupings this week, according to McCarthy. It also helps to a quarterback like Rodgers, who can extend plays and find open guys.

”It starts with Aaron, and he does an outstanding job as far as taking what the defense gives him,” offensive coordinator Edgar Bennett said. ”Spreading it around and getting more people involved, and those players making the most of those opportunities certainly helps.”

—

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The win in temperatures that felt like minus-23 with the wind-chill factor catapulted the Giants to their third Super Bowl title two weeks later. A fourth would follow after the 2011 season, with New York again stunning the Lambeau Field faithful with a 37-20 win in a second-round playoff game over a Packers team that went 15-1 in the regular season.

That’s recent history. The postseason story between two of the NFL’s oldest franchises dates to 1938, and the annals of the seven playoff games between them is rich.

The playoff rivalry will resume Sunday when the Giants (11-5) and the NFC North champion Packers (10-6) will meet in a wild-card game at Lambeau Field.

For the record, the Packers have a 4-3 edge in playoff games.

The Giants won the first one and the NFL title in 1938, beating the Packers 23-17. The Packers would win the next four games and NFL championships in 1939, ’44, 61 and ’62.

You know about the last two. The first five were interesting, too. Even some of the sites were not what you would expect with games at the Polo Grounds (’38 and ’44) and Yankee Stadium (’62) in New York, State Fair Park in Milwaukee in 1938, City Stadium in 1961, which was renamed Lambeau Field in 1965.

The players and coaches who competed in those games are a Who’s Who? of some of the greatest names in football.

Start with the Packers coaches: Earl ”Curly” Lambeau – you know, Lambeau Field – and Vince Lombardi, the guy who the Super Bowl Trophy is named after. The players included more than a dozen Hall of Famers led by Don Hutson, Bart Starr, Ray Nitschke, Paul Hornung, Herb Adderley and Willie Davis.

Hall of Fame coach Steve Owen guided the Giants in those early playoff games for the Mara family, while the players included Hall of Famers Mel Hein and Tuffy Leemans in the 30s and 40s and Frank Gifford, Andy Robustelli, Sam Huff and Y.A. Tittle in the early 60s.

Quarterback Arnie Herber actually played for both teams. He was with the Packers in the `30s and came out of retirement in 1944 to lead the Giants to a title game against his old team. Green Bay won 14-7 with the Pack intercepting a pass by Herber at their 20 in the closing minutes.

The Packers started their glory era in the 1960s beating the Giants twice. New York had contributed to the run, allowing Green Bay to sign Lombardi, who had been an offensive assistant for New York from 1954-58 and former classmate of Giants owner Wellington Mara at Fordham.

In Lombardi’s nine seasons in Green Bay, the Packers won five NFL titles, including the first two Super Bowls, and posted an 89-29-4 mark.

The Giants didn’t end the playoff skid against the Packers until they hired Coughlin in 2004. Ironically, he had Packers roots, serving as a receiver coach in 1986-87. He got New York back to the playoffs in 2005 and ’06 and won a championship in ’07, winning the conference title in what was the coldest game in Giants’ history.

Center Shaun O’Hara said it was so cold that it felt like he had broken every one of his fingers and he going to lose a couple of them.

”I had never in a football game before ever questioned would we survive?” O’Hara said. ”The survival aspect definitely became a part of it. There are games where you are tired and games where you are sore and you wonder, `Am I going to cramp up?’ Never before had I felt I would be OK if they called the game off, this is so unbearable.”

Giants guard Chris Snee recalled the linemen wanted to show how their toughness by going shirtless.

”Once the game started, I wasn’t cold,” Snee recalled. ”Prior to the game, going to warmup, absolutely, and I was in a race to get to the locker room at halftime and get some warm chicken broth.”

The game was decided on a 47-yard field goal by Lawrence Tynes, a kick set by Corey Webster’s interception of Brett Favre’s pass on the second play of overtime.

Tynes had missed his last two field goal attempts and he seemingly made the decision of whether to attempt the long kick by running out on the field before Coughlin told him to go.

The story of Coughlin’s red face is interesting: O’Hara said that the Giants’ medical staff saw how red the coach’s face was at halftime and put either a cream or Vaseline on his face to protect him.

It might have, but it also made his face looked redder, O’Hara said.

”When we went back out, it made it look like his face was melting,” O’Hara said. ”That’s an iconic moment from that game.”

Four years later, the temperature was warmer and so were the Giants in posting a 37-20 win that included a Hail Mary from Eli Manning to Hakeem Nicks just before halftime.

”I think it was a fluke. To me, it was my self-inflicted wounds,” Packers receiver Jordy Nelson said. ”Dropped too many balls. It was one of those bad days that you have every once in a while. I’ve had them in the past. I don’t see it having any effect on this game.”

Ironically, there is another Giants-Packers link: Rookie New York coach Ben McAdoo spent eight seasons with the Packers before being hired by New York.

—

AP Sports Writer Genaro Armas in Green Bay contributed to this report.

—

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The win in temperatures that felt like minus-23 with the wind-chill factor catapulted the Giants to their third Super Bowl title two weeks later. A fourth would follow after the 2011 season, with New York again stunning the Lambeau Field faithful with a 37-20 win in a second-round playoff game over a Packers team that went 15-1 in the regular season.

That’s recent history. The postseason story between two of the NFL’s oldest franchises dates to 1938, and the annals of the seven playoff games between them is rich.

The playoff rivalry will resume Sunday when the Giants (11-5) and the NFC North champion Packers (10-6) will meet in a wild-card game at Lambeau Field.

For the record, the Packers have a 4-3 edge in playoff games.

The Giants won the first one and the NFL title in 1938, beating the Packers 23-17. The Packers would win the next four games and NFL championships in 1939, ’44, 61 and ’62.

You know about the last two. The first five were interesting, too. Even some of the sites were not what you would expect with games at the Polo Grounds (’38 and ’44) and Yankee Stadium (’62) in New York, State Fair Park in Milwaukee in 1939, City Stadium in 1961, which was renamed Lambeau Field in 1965.

The players and coaches who competed in those games are a Who’s Who? of some of the greatest names in football.

Start with the Packers coaches: Earl ”Curly” Lambeau – you know, Lambeau Field – and Vince Lombardi, the guy who the Super Bowl Trophy is named after. The players included more than a dozen Hall of Famers led by Don Hutson, Bart Starr, Ray Nitschke, Paul Hornung, Herb Adderley and Willie Davis.

Hall of Fame coach Steve Owen guided the Giants in those early playoff games for the Mara family, while the players included Hall of Famers Mel Hein and Tuffy Leemans in the 30s and 40s and Frank Gifford, Andy Robustelli, Sam Huff and Y.A. Tittle in the early 60s.

Quarterback Arnie Herber actually played for both teams. He was with the Packers in the `30s and came out of retirement in 1944 to lead the Giants to a title game against his old team. Green Bay won 14-7 with the Pack intercepting a pass by Herber at their 20 in the closing minutes.

The Packers started their glory era in the 1960s beating the Giants twice. New York had contributed to the run, allowing Green Bay to sign Lombardi, who had been an offensive assistant for New York from 1954-58 and former classmate of Giants owner Wellington Mara at Fordham.

In Lombardi’s nine seasons in Green Bay, the Packers won five NFL titles, including the first two Super Bowls, and posted an 89-29-4 mark.

The Giants didn’t end the playoff skid against the Packers until they hired Coughlin in 2004. Ironically, he had Packers roots, serving as a receiver coach in 1986-87. He got New York back to the playoffs in 2005 and ’06 and won a championship in ’07, winning the conference title in what was the coldest game in Giants’ history.

Center Shaun O’Hara said it was so cold that it felt like he had broken every one of his fingers and he going to lose a couple of them.

”I had never in a football game before ever questioned would we survive?” O’Hara said. ”The survival aspect definitely became a part of it. There are games where you are tired and games where you are sore and you wonder, `Am I going to cramp up?’ Never before had I felt I would be OK if they called the game off, this is so unbearable.”

Giants guard Chris Snee recalled the linemen wanted to show how their toughness by going shirtless.

”Once the game started, I wasn’t cold,” Snee recalled. ”Prior to the game, going to warmup, absolutely, and I was in a race to get to the locker room at halftime and get some warm chicken broth.”

The game was decided on a 47-yard field goal by Lawrence Tynes, a kick set by Corey Webster’s interception of Brett Favre’s pass on the second play of overtime.

Tynes had missed his last two field goal attempts and he seemingly made the decision of whether to attempt the long kick by running out on the field before Coughlin told him to go.

The story of Coughlin’s red face is interesting: O’Hara said that the Giants’ medical staff saw how red the coach’s face was at halftime and put either a cream or Vaseline on his face to protect him.

It might have, but it also made his face looked redder, O’Hara said.

”When we went back out, it made it look like his face was melting,” O’Hara said. ”That’s an iconic moment from that game.”

Four years later, the temperature was warmer and so were the Giants in posting a 37-20 win that included a Hail Mary from Eli Manning to Hakeem Nicks just before halftime.

”I think it was a fluke. To me, it was my self-inflicted wounds,” Packers receiver Jordy Nelson said. ”Dropped too many balls. It was one of those bad days that you have every once in a while. I’ve had them in the past. I don’t see it having any effect on this game.”

Ironically, there is another Giants-Packers link: Rookie New York coach Ben McAdoo spent eight seasons with the Packers before being hired by New York.

—

AP Sports Writer Genaro Armas in Green Bay contributed to this report.

—

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Minnesota Vikings vs Green Bay Packers
When: 1:00 PM ET, Saturday, December 24, 2016
Where: Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin

TV: 1:00 PM
LINE: -7
PREDICTION: GREEN BAY , MINNESOTA

Oddsmakers currently have the GREEN BAY listed as -7 point favorites versus the MINNESOTA, while the game’s total is sitting at 43.

GREEN BAY, Wisc. — Once upon a time, the Minnesota Vikings were 5-0 and the NFL’s last undefeated team.

Only a month ago, the Green Bay Packers were 4-6 and all but ruled out of the playoff picture.

Both teams flipped the script. When they play at Lambeau Field on Saturday, it’s the Packers (8-6) who have a chance to clinch a playoff berth, thanks to a four-game winning streak. The Vikings (7-7), on the other hand, are on the brink of elimination after losing seven of their nine games.

“Both teams have endured a lot of injuries,” Packers coach Mike McCarthy said.

Injuries defined the path to Week 16 and what amounts to a possible elimination game.

Running back Eddie Lacy’s season-ending ankle injury and a rash of injuries at cornerback, in particular, sent the Packers tumbling at midseason.

But with questions swirling about the futures of coach Mike McCarthy and general manager Ted Thompson and the play of two-time MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the Packers have regrouped. Since Rodgers proclaimed the Packers could “run the table” following a lopsided loss at Washington, they are 4-0. With some help, they could get in the playoffs this week; if they win this game and next week at Detroit, they’d win the NFC North.

“Not if you don’t finish it off,” Rodgers said when asked if there’s pride in battling back into the playoff picture. “Like I said after the game, you know what it feels like to be 4-6. That’s a tough situation to be in. It’s frustrating, it’s a struggle, it’s a grind. Luckily in those situations, we’ve stuck together, didn’t have any fracturing in the locker room. No finger-pointing, no unnamed sources coming out (and) taking shots at guys. We stuck together, and I think we all believed that sometimes in this business it just takes one to get going. We got that first one, then we came home and won a couple. We won a tough one on the road. Now we’ve got two left,. Win them both and we’re in and we’re division champs. That’s the goal at this point.”

The Packers have gotten somewhat healthier. Rodgers said his injured calf should be “closer to 100 percent” and cornerbacks Damarious Randall and Quinten Rollins have played the last four games together following groin injuries. They’ve played a role in Green Bay’s whopping 10 takeaways the past two weeks. The sore spot is at outside linebacker, where Clay Matthews has been ineffective the past three games with a shoulder injury and Nick Perry has missed the last two games with an injured hand.

Perhaps key for Green Bay’s playoff hopes is the emergence of Ty Montgomery at running back. The converted receiver rushed for 162 yards against Chicago on Sunday. Montgomery and waiver-wire pickup Christine Michael combined for 207 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries.

“Everybody wants to keep talking about Ty as a receiver, and that’s fine – I think he broke 12 tackles in the game in Chicago,” McCarthy said. “And Christine Michael’s just getting more and more comfortable with not only the scheme but the guys he’s playing with.”

Unlike the Packers, the Vikings have been unable to right the ship. While Sam Bradford has done well in place of Teddy Bridgewater at quarterback, there are three starting offensive tackles on injured reserve and running back Adrian Peterson returned last week following an 11-game absence.

Those injuries add up to these painful numbers: 25th in scoring (18.9 points per game), 31st in total offense (301.5 rushing yards per game), 32nd in rushing per game (70.6) and 31st in yards per completion (9.8).

“Obviously, we’ve battled some injuries, which has made it tough,” Bradford said. “There’s weeks that we’ve come out and we’ve played really well, and there’s other weeks where we haven’t. On offense, I think we’ve got to be a little bit more consistent because there have been times where we’ve done some really good things out there, and there’s other times where we kind of shoot ourselves in the foot and hold ourselves back.”

Rather than provide a spark, Peterson’s return resulted in the Vikings’ worst performance of the season, a 34-6 throttling at home by Indianapolis. By halftime, the Colts led 27-0 and had a 21-2 edge in first downs. Peterson carried six times for 22 yards and one fumble in 12 snaps.

“It sure wasn’t a very pretty performance that we had,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said. “We’re going to have to regroup and get back with it. There’s nothing we can do about anything that’s happened in the past. We’ve got to move forward.”

The Indy game notwithstanding, the Vikings’ defense was strong all season. It’s allowed 17 points or fewer in eight of 14 games and ranks among the NFL leaders in passing yards, passer rating and sacks. In their last two games against Green Bay, Minnesota has given up a total of 27 points.

The Vikings have three Pro Bowlers on that side of the ball with defensive end Everson Griffen, cornerback Xavier Rhodes and safety Harrison Smith. Smith has missed the last two games with an ankle injury.

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Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, December 18, 2016
Where: Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois

TV: 1 p.m. ET, FOX.
LINE: Packers -6.5.
O/U: 40.5
PREDICTION: Packers 23, Bears 16

Oddsmakers currently have the Packers listed as 6-point favorites versus the Bears, while the game’s total is sitting at 38½.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers offered a clear message to his coach as questions swirled about a calf injury that forced him to miss practice this week.

“Game-plan-wise, his comments were, ‘Don’t hold anything back,'” Packers coach Mike McCarthy said.

Not exactly what the Chicago Bears wanted to hear.

Rodgers and the Packers (7-6) will go for their fourth win in a row on Sunday afternoon when they visit the Chicago Bears (3-10) at Soldier Field. Frigid temperatures are forecast along Lake Michigan with highs expected to be at or near 0 degrees Fahrenheit at kickoff.

Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy had his team practice outside this week to brace for the deep freeze. McCarthy knows a setback could be devastating to his team’s playoff hopes as it aims to reach the postseason for the eighth consecutive year.

“We’re fortunate we can practice in (the cold),” said McCarthy, whose club trails Detroit by two games in the NFC North with three games to play. “The biggest thing is the football and the fundamentals.”

The same principles hold true for Chicago. The Bears already have secured their third straight season with double-digit losses, but they look forward to the chance to play spoiler against their rivals to the north.

Already, the Bears have knocked off division rivals Detroit and Minnesota at Soldier Field this season. Chicago is 3-3 overall on its home turf as it goes for a home sweep against the NFC North.

Green Bay is 2-4 on the road but has played much better on both sides of the ball in recent weeks. During their current three-game winning streak, the Packers have outscored opponents 86-36.

If Rodgers is limited in any way, the Bears could have a better chance. He exited last week’s blowout win against the Seattle Seahawks because of a calf injury. He also has dealt with a bad hamstring this season.

That said, Rodgers leads the NFL with 32 touchdown passes and has thrown for multiple touchdowns in eight consecutive games.

Rodgers torched the Bears for 39 completions (a franchise record), 326 passing yards and three touchdowns on Oct. 20 as the Packers cruised to a 26-10 win. Wide receiver Davante Adams hauled in 13 passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns as Rodgers’ preferred target.

To avoid a sequel, Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said his players would have to be ready.

“He’s a complete quarterback,” Fangio said. “He’s got a big arm. He’s very accurate. He anticipates things well. He’s got a quick release. And then, on top of all the passing talent he has, the scrambling and the improvising just makes it really a complete package.”

When the Bears have the ball, they will turn to inexperienced but improving signal-caller Matt Barkley. The former USC standout will make his fourth consecutive start in place of injured teammates Jay Cutler and Brian Hoyer. In his past three games, Barkley has passed for four touchdowns and two interceptions.

Barkley has been burned by dropped passes in recent weeks, but this time around he will have a Pro Bowl playmaker in his ranks. Wide receiver Alshon Jeffery is set to return after serving a four-game suspension for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing substances.

Jeffery has 40 catches for 630 yards and one touchdown in nine games this season.

“It was pretty tough watching, knowing that there was nothing you can do,” Jeffery told reporters this week when asked about his suspension. “I feel like if I was playing, some of those games, we would have had a different outcome. We probably would have won.”

Bears running back Jordan Howard needs 31 rushing yards to reach 1,000 as a rookie. Meanwhile, in the opposite huddle, Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson needs 87 yards through the air for his fourth career season with 1,000 receiving yards.

Historically, the teams have matched up about as evenly as possible. Chicago clings to a 94-93-6 series lead entering Sunday’s 194th meeting. Green Bay leads in points scored — barely — 3,305 to 3,304.

However, the series has been much more lopsided in recent years. Green Bay has won 13 of 16 meetings since 2009, including the NFC Championship Game during the 2010 season. The Packers have won six games in a row at Soldier Field and will try to make it seven this weekend.

McCarthy told his team to take nothing for granted.

“It’s the Packers and the Bears,” he said. “This is rivalry week. You make sure you educate your first-year players what they’re getting ready to walk into down there at Soldier Field.

“Expect the unexpected because of where they are in their season. Everybody understands what kind of game this is going to be. This is going to be a juggernaut. That’s the way we’ve always approached these division games, especially the Chicago Bears.”

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