Dope Sheet: Packers face Cowboys in Dallas

The Green Bay Packers will take on the Dallas Cowboys in the Wild Card Playoffs.

• The Packers and Cowboys are tied for the most all-time postseason appearances with 36 each.
• Green Bay is 21-17 against the Cowboys (including postseason) and has won four in a row and nine of the last 10.
• This will be the ninth postseason meeting between the Packers and Cowboys with the series tied at 4-4. It is tied for the most postseason meetings in NFL history (Cowboys-49ers, Rams-Cowboys, Packers-49ers).
• Green Bay's four postseason wins over Dallas are tied for the second most (San Francisco 49ers) in the NFL behind the Los Angeles Rams (5-4).
• Green Bay has won the past two playoff matchups with the Cowboys, a 26-21 win at home in the Divisional Playoff in the 2014 postseason and a 34-31 victory at Dallas in the Divisional Playoff in the 2016 postseason.
• Sunday will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams in the Wild Card Playoff.
• It will be the seventh time Green Bay has played at Dallas in the postseason.
• The Cowboys have played the most playoff games in NFL history (66), Pittsburgh is No. 2 (63) and the Packers rank No. 3 (61).
• Including playoffs, the Packers have scored 34-plus points against Dallas in all four of their games at AT&T Stadium. That is the longest streak by any NFL team vs. Dallas at AT&T, with no team doing it in more than two consecutive games (Atlanta and the N.Y. Giants have had two-game streaks).
• The Packers are the only NFL team with four-plus wins and no losses against Dallas at AT&T Stadium (including playoffs).
• The last two postseason games between the two teams were decided by three and five points.
• Per the Elias Sports Bureau, Sunday's game will be the first time in NFL history that the outright top-two touchdown passing leaders will face off in their teams' playoff opener (Jordan Love, 32 / Dak Prescott, 36).
• Green Bay enters the postseason with a combined 74 games of playoff experience, it is the fewest for the Packers since the 1993 team that had 67 games of postseason experience entering the playoffs (Elias).
• Dating back to the 2014 season, the Packers have faced three teams twice in the playoffs, the Cowboys (2015, 2017), San Francisco 49ers (2020, 2022) and the Seattle Seahawks (2015, 2020).
• This is the first road playoff game for Green Bay since taking on San Francisco in the NFC Championship on Jan. 22, 2020.
• RB Aaron Jones has played against the Cowboys three times, totaling 370 rushing yards on 62 attempts (6.0 avg.) with six TDs while also hauling in 10 receptions for 102 yards (10.2 avg.). Jones has rushed for 100-plus yards and averaged over 5.5 yards per carry in all three games. Jones is the only player in the NFL with three 100-yard rushing games against Dallas since 2017.
• Jones' 370 rushing yards in three career games against Dallas are the second most by an NFL player over a three-game span vs. the Cowboys since 2000 behind only RB Alfred Morris (394 yards in 2012-13).
• Jones' six rushing TDs are the most in the NFL against Dallas since 2017 and his 370 rushing yards are tied for No. 3 against the Cowboys over that span.

WITH THE CALL

FOX Sports, now in its 30th season as an NFL network television partner, will broadcast the game.

• Play-by-play man Kevin Burkhardt joins analyst Greg Olsen with Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi reporting from the sidelines.
• All Packers games can be heard on the Packers Radio Network, which is made up of 51 stations in Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois and North and South Dakota. 97.3 The Game – WRNW-Milwaukee begins its second season as the flagship station of the Packers Radio Network. For a map and full listing of radio affiliates, go to packers.com/video/radio-network.Wayne Larrivee (play-by-play) and two-time Packers Pro Bowler Larry McCarren (analyst) call the action. McCarren first joined the team's broadcasts in 1995 and enters his 29th season calling Packers games. After originally being paired together in 1999, McCarren and Larrivee enter their 25th season of broadcasts together. They surpassed Jim Irwin and Max McGee for the most regular-season and postseason games broadcast for the Packers with 313 at the 2018 season opener against Chicago.
• The broadcast is also available on Sirius Satellite Radio on channels 82 or 225 or through the app (Packers Radio Network feed).
• Westwood One Sports will be broadcasting on radio to a national audience with Ryan Radtke (play-by-play) and Mike Golic (analyst) on the call and Scott Graham hosting pregame and halftime shows.

This is an abbreviated version of the Dope Sheet. Read the full version here (PDF).

THE DOPE ON THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT:

Packers at Dallas:

• All-time, regular season: 17-13
• All-time, postseason: 4-4 (2-4 at Dallas)
• All-time, at Dallas (regular season): 9-12
• Streaks: Green Bay has won nine of the last 10 games played, including two NFC Divisional Playoff contests (2014, 2016).
• Last meeting, regular season: Nov. 13, 2022, Lambeau Field, Packers won, 31-28 (OT)

COACHES CAPSULES

• Matt LaFleur: 56-27-0, .675; (2-3 postseason); 5th NFL season
• Mike McCarthy: 167-102-2, .620; (11-10 postseason); 17th NFL season
• Head to Head: LaFleur 1-0 vs. McCarthy
• vs. Opponent: LaFleur 2-0 vs. Cowboys; McCarthy 0-1 vs. Packers

MATT LaFLEUR…In his fifth season as the Packers' 15th head coach.

• Is in his 15th season in the NFL, having previously served as an offensive coordinator for two seasons (Los Angeles Rams, 2017; Tennessee Titans, 2018), a quarterbacks coach for six seasons (Washington Redskins, 2010-13; Atlanta Falcons, 2015-16), and an offensive assistant for two seasons (Houston Texans, 2008-09).
• In his first five seasons leading the Packers, has authored one of the greatest starts to a head-coaching career in NFL history. Per the Elias Sports Bureau, his 56 wins are tied for the second most in league history by a head coach in his first five seasons in the NFL, trailing only George Seifert (62 in 1989-93). Green Bay's 56-27 regular-season record since 2019 is tied for No. 3 in the NFL and ranks No. 1 in the NFC.
• Became the first coach in NFL history to post 13-plus wins in three straight seasons and his 39 wins from 2019-21 passed Seifert (38) for the most wins by an NFL head coach in his first three seasons in the league (Elias). His 39 wins are also tied for the second most by a coach over any three-season span in league history, trailing only Andy Reid's 40 wins with the Kansas City Chiefs from 2020-22 and Mike Ditka's 40 wins with the Chicago Bears from 1985-87 (Elias).
• Guided the Packers to a 32-9 record (.780) in the regular season from 2019-23 at Lambeau Field, the top home mark in the NFL since 2019. His .733 win percentage (22-8 record) against NFC North opponents in his first five seasons also ranks as the best in the history of the NFC North/Central (min. 10 games).
• In his first season leading the Packers in 2019, became the first coach in club history to lead the team to the playoffs in his debut season. Also led the largest one-year win improvement in team history (plus-seven wins).

MIKE McCARTHY…In his fourth season as the Cowboys' ninth head coach.

• Is in his 17th season as an NFL head coach, having previously served as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers for 13 seasons (2006-18).
• Owns the fifth-most wins among active NFL coaches and has led his teams to 10-plus regular-season wins 10 times in his career.
• Became the only head coach in Cowboys history with three straight seasons with 12-plus wins (2021-23).
• Under his tutelage, his teams have reached the playoffs 11 times, won eight division titles, made four NFC title game appearances and won Super Bowl XLV.
• Led the Packers to 10 playoff wins, the most by a head coach in team history, and a team-record four consecutive division titles (2011-14). Green Bay also finished in the top 10 in offense and scoring offense nine times and passing offense 10 times over his tenure.

This is an abbreviated version of the Dope Sheet. Read the full version here (PDF).

THE PACKERS-COWBOYS SERIES

• These two franchises faced each other in one of the most storied games in league history, the 1967 NFL Championship, known as the 'Ice Bowl.' The temperature at kickoff was minus 13 degress with a minus 46 wind chill, the coldest game in NFL history. Green Bay came out on top as Bart Starr scored the game-winning touchdown with 13 seconds left.
• The Packers and Cowboys have met eight times in the postseason, most recently in the NFC Divisional Playoff in 2016, with the Packers defeating the Cowboys, 34-31, in Dallas.
• Green Bay has won nine of the last 10 games played, including four consecutive contests. The Packers have also won the last four games played in Dallas.

NOTABLE CONNECTIONS

Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy was the head coach for Green Bay from 2006-18, posting 135 wins with the Packers (No. 2 in team history), and also served as the team's quarterbacks coach in 1999…Packers assistant head coach/special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia spent five seasons with Dallas, serving as the team's special teams coordinator (2013-14) and assistant head coach/special teams coordinator (2015-17)…Packers offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich spent time on the Cowboys' roster during training camp in 2008…Packers special teams quality control coach Kyle Wilber was drafted by the Cowboys in the fourth round (No. 113 overall) of the 2012 NFL Draft and played six seasons with the team (2012-17)…Packers director of organizational development and DEI Rob Davis was an assistant head coach with the Cowboys for three seasons (2020-22)…Packers director of player personnel John Wojciechowski served as the Northeast area scout for the Cowboys from 2003-11…Packers RB Aaron Jones is from El Paso, Texas, where he attended Burges High School and he continued his football career at the University of Texas-El Paso (2013-16)…Packers TE Ben Sims is from San Antonio, Texas, where he attended Clark High School and went on to play collegiate football at Baylor (2018-22)…Packers RB Patrick Taylor attended Atascocita High School in Humble, Texas…Packers defensive backs coach Ryan Downard was a graduate assistant at Texas Tech during the 2013 season…Packers coaching assistant Quinshon Odom was an offensive line graduate assistant at the University of Texas during the 2021 season…Packers defensive quality control coach Wendel Davis attended Sweeny (Texas) High School, and served on the coaching staffs at West Texas A&M (2010-12), Texas A&M - Commerce (2013-14), and Texas (2015)…Cowboys C Tyler Biadasz is from Amherst, Wis., and played collegiate football at the University of Wisconsin (2016-19)…Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson is from Madison, Wis., and played at Wisconsin (2017-21)…Cowboys RB Hunter Luepke is from Spencer, Wis. …Cowboys defensive backs coach Al Harris played cornerback for the Packers from 2003-09 and is a member of the Packers Hall of Fame…Cowboys quarterbacks coach Scott Tolzien played collegiately at Wisconsin and was with the Packers as a quarterback from 2013-16, appearing in six games with two starts…Cowboys secondary/pass game coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. spent 11 seasons with the Packers, serving as a defensive quality control coach (2008), secondary/cornerbacks coach (2009-17) and defensive pass game coordinator (2018)…Cowboys run game coordinator/running backs coach Jeff Blasko was with the Packers from 2016-18, serving as an assistant offensive line coach in 2017-18…Cowboys linebackers coach Scott McCurley spent 13 seasons in Green Bay (2006-18), serving as a coaching administrator (2006-08), defensive quality control coach (2009-13), assistant linebackers coach (2014-17) and defensive assistant (2018)…Cowboys offensive line coach Mike Solari was an assistant offensive line for the Packers during the 2015 season…Cowboys assistant special teams coach Rayna Stewart was a special teams quality control coach (2019-20) and assistant special teams coach (2021) for the Packers…Cowboys game management/offensive assistant Ryan Feder was a football technology analyst for the Packers from 2015-18…Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, defensive coordinator Joe Barry and running backs coach Ben Sirmans coached with Cowboys special teams coordinator John Fassel on the Rams' staff…Cowboys offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer and Sirmans both held their same positions with the Rams from 2012-14…LaFleur was the quarterbacks coach for Atlanta in 2015-16 when Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn was the Falcons' head coach…Cowboys LS Trent Sieg was with the Raiders while Bisaccia was in charge of the team's special teams unit…Packers S Jonathan Owens and Cowboys WR Brandin Cooks were teammates for the Texans (2020-22)…Former college teammates include: Packers LB Preston Smith, G Elgton Jenkins and Cowboys QB Dak Prescott (Mississippi State); Packers QB Sean Clifford, T Rasheed Walker and LB Micah Parsons (Penn State); Packers RB Patrick Taylor and Cowboys RB Tony Pollard (Memphis); Packers WR Christian Watson, Cowboys QB Trey Lance and RB Hunter Luepke (North Dakota State).