Packers-Vikings NFC Wild Card Dope Sheet

*Two years after he co-founded the Packers with Curly Lambeau, George Calhoun began writing a piece called The Dope Sheet, which served as the official press release and game program from 1921-24. *

*Honoring Calhoun, the first publicity director, the Packers are running this weekly feature as their release, which is being made available to fans exclusively on Packers.com. This is an abbreviated version of the Dope Sheet. To read the full version, download the PDF by **clicking here**. *

Here are some highlights from the Packers-Vikings NFC Wild Card Playoff Game Dope Sheet:

MINNESOTA (10-6) AT GREEN BAY (11-5)Saturday, Jan. 5 - Lambeau Field - 7 p.m. CST

PACKERS TO HOST VIKINGS IN NFC WILD CARD CONTEST

• The Packers will face the Vikings for the second straight week, this time in an NFC Wild Card contest at Lambeau Field, as the two clubs square off in the postseason for just the second time in the 52-year history of the series.
• The only other playoff meeting between the division rivals also came in a Wild Card contest at Lambeau Field when the Packers hosted the Vikings in the 2004 season (Jan. 9, 2005).
• This will be the first meeting in the history of the series (since 1961) where both teams entered the game with 10-plus victories.
• It will mark the sixth time that Green Bay has faced a divisional opponent in the postseason since the league went to a divisional format in 1967. The Packers have a 4-1 mark (.800) in those games, which is tied for the No. 2 winning percentage in the NFL among teams with three or more playoff games against divisional opponents behind only Pittsburgh (9-0).
• This will be the third time the Packers have faced the Vikings in the last six games. Green Bay played Minnesota at Lambeau Field in Week 13 and the teams met this past Sunday in the season finale at Minnesota.
• This Saturday's game will mark the third time in team history that the Packers have played an opponent in the season finale and then faced that same team in the playoffs the following week. Green Bay played at Detroit in both the season finale and in a Wild Card contest in 1993 and also played at Arizona both in the finale and in a Wild Card game in 2009.
• Through 104 meetings, which includes the one postseason game, the Packers hold a 54-49-1 advantage over the Vikings in the all-time series.
• Fans can bet on a back-and-forth contest when the teams meet. In fact, 16 of the last 21 regular-season meetings have been decided by seven points or less. The Packers have won five of the last six games between the clubs.
• Over the last 19 seasons (1994-2012), the Packers (nine) and the Vikings (five) have accounted for 14 NFC Central/North Championships.

 BACK IN THE POSTSEASON

• The Packers have won two straight NFC North titles for the first time since 2002-04, when the team captured three consecutive divisional crowns.
• This season's NFC North title marks the Packers' 20th division crown in franchise history.
• With the Week 15 win at Chicago, Green Bay clinched its 28th postseason berth in team history and its 15th appearance in the last 20 seasons.
• The Packers have made the playoffs in each of the last four seasons and five of the last six, the only NFC team to accomplish those feats.
• Green Bay currently ranks No. 3 in NFL history with its 28 playoff appearances, trailing only the N.Y. Giants (31) and Dallas Cowboys (30).
• The Packers' 15 postseason appearances in the free-agency era (since 1993) are the most of any team in the NFL.
• Since the NFL went to a 12-team playoff format in 1990, the Packers have been the No. 3 seed three other times (1995, 2002, 2004).

 WITH THE CALL

• NBC Sports will broadcast the game to a national audience. Play-by-play man Al Michaels joins color commentatorCris Collinsworth in the booth with Michele Tafoya reporting from the sidelines.
• Milwaukee's WTMJ (620 AM), airing Green Bay games since 1929, heads up the 53-station Packers Radio Network, with Wayne Larrivee(play-by-play) and two-time Packers Pro BowlerLarry McCarren (analyst) calling the action. The duo enters its 14th season of broadcasts together across the Packers Radio Network, which covers 44 markets in six states.
• Dial Global Sports radio will air the game across the country. Kevin Harlan (play-by-play) and Dan Fouts (analyst) will call the action with Mark Malonereporting from the sidelines.Scott Graham hosts pregame and halftime shows.
• Univision Radio will broadcast the game in Spanish to a national audience, with Rafael Hernandez Brito (play-by-play) and Raul Striker Jr.(color) calling the action.

 
THE DOPE ON THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT:

• Packers vs. Vikings:
• All-time regular season:54-48-1
• All-time, postseason:0-1
• All-time, in Green Bay:20-17-1
• Streaks:The Packers have won five of the last six meetings.
• Last meeting, at Green Bay, regular season:Dec. 2, 2012, at Lambeau Field; Packers won, 23-14

 
COACHES CAPSULES

• Mike McCarthy: 79-41-0, .658, (incl. 5-3 postseason); 7th NFL season
• Leslie Frazier:16-22-0, .421; 3rd NFL season (interim coach in 2010)
• Head to Head:McCarthy 3-1
• vs. Opponent:McCarthy 10-4 vs. Vikings; Frazier 1-3 vs. Packers

MIKE McCARTHY…Is in seventh year as the Packers' 14th head coach.

• Joined Vince Lombardi and Mike Holmgren as the only coaches to guide the Packers to a Super Bowl title with a win over Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XLV.
• Has led the Packers to playoff appearances in four of his six seasons as the helm, and the team's four postseason berths over the past five seasons are the most by an NFC team.
• His .664 winning percentage (including playoffs) ranks No. 3 among active NFL coaches (min. 50 games).
• One of only two coaches, along with New Orleans' Sean Payton, to have his offense ranked in the top 10 in total yardage each season from 2006-11.
• Was named Packers head coach on Jan. 12, 2006, his first head-coaching job after 13 years as an NFL assistant.
• Became the first Packers coach since Lombardi to lead the team to a championship game in his second season (2007).

 LESLIE FRAZIER…Is in third year as the Vikings' eighth head coach (served as the interim coach for the final six games in 2010).

• Served as Minnesota's defensive coordinator for four seasons (2007-10) and led the Vikings to top-10 finishes in total defense each season from 2008-10.
• Coached with the Philadelphia Eagles (1999-2002), Cincinnati Bengals (2003-04) and Indianapolis Colts (2005-06) before coming to Minnesota. In 12 seasons as NFL coach, has suffered a losing season only twice.
• Has coached on seven playoff teams and been a part of six division championships in his first 13 seasons as an NFL coach.
• Played defensive back for the Chicago Bears (1981-86) and was a member of Chicago's Super Bowl XX team.

 THE PACKERS-VIKINGS SERIES

• This marks the 105th overall meeting between the border rivals.
• The Packers own a slight advantage over the Vikings (54-49-1, including playoffs) in the all-time series. 
• Green Bay's five-game winning streak that was snapped on Sunday  was the longest by the club since a five-game streak against Minnesota from 2006-08. Prior to that, the longest streak for either team was Green Bay's five-game winning streak from 1983-85.
• The series began when the Vikings entered the league in 1961, and Vince Lombardi's Packers won nine of the first 10.
• Over the last 19 seasons (1994-2012), these teams have accounted for 14 NFC Central/North division championships.

 NOTABLE CONNECTIONS
Packers LB Robert Francois entered the league as a non-drafted free agent with the Vikings in 2009…Packers C Jeff Saturday played for the Colts with Vikings G Charlie Johnson and when Vikings head coach Leslie Frazier and defensive coordinator Alan Williams were on the staff in Indianapolis…Packers tight ends coach Jerry Fontenot played for the Bengals in 2004 when Frazier was on Cincinnati's staff...Fontenot was a teammate of Vikings special assistant to the head coach/linebackers Mike Singletary with the Bears…Singletary coached with Packers head coach Mike McCarthy and quarterbacks coach Ben McAdoo on the San Francisco staff in 2005…Vikings tight ends coach Jimmie Johnson played for Kansas City for one season (1994) when McCarthy was an offensive asst. there…Packers assistant offensive line coach Joel Hilgenberg's uncle, Wally, played linebacker for the Vikings for 12 seasons (1968-79)...Vikings special teams coordinator Mike Priefer's father, Chuck, was an assistant coach for the Packers from 1984-85...Vikings defensive backs coach Joe Woods held the same post at Western Michigan when Packers WR Greg Jennings played there...Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers and Vikings linebackers coach Fred Pagac coached on the staff together at Ohio State in the early 1980s...Pagac coached in Oakland when Packers DB Charles Woodson played for the Raiders…Vikings asst. defensive line coach Diron Reynolds' brother, Jamal, was selected in the first round by the Packers in 2001…Packers running backs coach Alex Van Pelt played for the Bills when Vikings running backs coach James Saxon was on Buffalo's staff…Packers defensive line coach Mike Trgovac and Vikings offensive line coach Jeff Davidson coached on the staff together in Carolina...Trgovac was on the staff with Vikings strength and conditioning coach Tom Kanavy in Philadelphia and when Johnson played tight end for the Eagles...Former college teammates include Packers LB Clay Matthews and Vikings DE Everson Griffen, FB Rhett Ellison and T Matt Kalil (Southern California), Packers TE Jermichael Finley and Vikings DE Brian Robison (Texas), Packers DE Ryan Pickett and Vikings CB Antonie Winfield and WR Michael Jenkins (Ohio State), Packers LB A.J. Hawk and Jenkins (Ohio State), Packers TE D.J. Williams and Vikings WR Jarius Wright (Arkansas), Packers DE Mike Daniels and LB Dezman Moses and Vikings DT Christian Ballard and TE Allen Reisner (Iowa), and Packers LB Terrell Manning and Vikings LB Audie Cole (North Carolina State)…Packers area scout Lee Gissendaner went to training camp with the Vikings in 1996 and spent parts of that season on Minnesota's practice squad...Green Bay director of research and development Mike Eayrs (similar capacity, 1985-99) previously worked for the Vikings, as did Packers VP of football administration/player finance Russ Ball (1999-2000) and VP of sales and marketing Tim Connolly (1998-99).

LAST MEETING, POSTSEASON

• Jan. 9, 2005, at Lambeau Field; Vikings won, 31-17.
• QB Daunte Culpepper threw for 284 yards and four TDs on 19-of-29 passing as the Vikings won the first and only postseason meeting between the border rivals. The Packers had won the NFC North title two weeks earlier at the Metrodome on a last-second field goal by Ryan Longwell.
• Green Bay's offense was led by WR Donald Driver (seven catches for 78 yards) and RB Ahman Green (80 rushing yards on 20 carries).
• QB Brett Favre completed 22 of 33 passes for 216 yards and a score but was intercepted four times.
• WR Randy Moss led the Vikings with two TD catches and 70 yards receiving on four grabs.

 HOME COOKING

• The Packers have won 20 of their last 21 and 26 of their last 28 games at Lambeau Field in the regular season.
• Green Bay's .929 winning percentage (26-2) at home since Week 10 of 2009 isNo. 1 in the NFL over that span:

Team, W-L Record (Pct.) 1. Green Bay, 26-2 (.929) 2. New England, 24-3 (.889) 3. Baltimore, 24-4 (.857)

POSTSEASON PROFICIENCY

• As productive as QB Aaron Rodgers has been during the regular season in his five years as the starter, he has also carried that over to the playoffs.
• Rodgers capped off the 2010 postseason with a 304-yard, three-TD effort vs. Pittsburgh that earned him Super Bowl XLV honors. He became just the fourth quarterback in NFL history to throw for 300 yards and three TDs in a Super Bowl, joining Joe Montana, Steve Young and Jake Delhomme.
• Rodgers has posted a 110-plus passer rating in four of his six career postseason starts. That already ties him for fourth in league history behind only Montana (six in 23 starts), Brett Favre (five in 24 starts) and Tom Brady (five in 22 starts).
• A look at where Rodgers ranks in NFL postseason history (min. 150 attempts):

Quarterback, Passer Rating1. Aaron Rodgers, GB, 105.5
2. Bart Starr, GB, 104.8
3. Drew Brees, SD/NO, 104.2

AT THE HELM

• Having led Green Bay to the playoffs in five of his seven seasons as head coach, Mike McCarthy is joined by Vince Lombardi and Mike Holmgren as the only coaches to guide the Packers to a Super Bowl win with a victory over Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XLV.
• McCarthy led the Packers to a Super Bowl win in his fifth season in Green Bay (2010), the same point that Holmgren led the Packers for the first time to the NFL title game in 1996.
• McCarthy joined Pittsburgh's Bill Cowher (2005) as the only Super Bowl-winning coaches to lead their respective teams to three road wins as the No. 6 seed in the postseason en route to a world title.
• The Packers' 21-14 win at Chicago in the 2010 season was their second NFC Championship Game appearance in four seasons, the only team in the conference to do so over that span.
• Including playoffs, McCarthy has a 79-41 record since taking over as head coach in 2006, a .658 winning percentage that ranks No. 3 among current NFL head coaches (minimum 50 games):

Coach, Winning Pct.**

1. Mike Smith, ATL, .675 (56-27)
2. John Harbaugh, BAL, .659 (58-30) 3. Mike McCarthy, GB, .658 (79-41) 4t. Bill Belichick, CLE/NE, .654 (204-108) 4t. Mike Tomlin, PIT, .654 (68-36)

• McCarthy's .625 winning percentage in the playoffs (5-3) ranks No. 3 in franchise history behind only the legendary Lombardi (9-1, .900) and Holmgren (9-5, .643). With the five postseason wins, McCarthy trails only Lombardi and Holmgren (nine each) for the most in Packers annals.
• With 79 overall wins, McCarthy ranks No. 4 in team history:

* Coach, Overall Wins* 1. Curly Lambeau, 1921-49, 212 2. Vince Lombardi, 1959-67, 98 3. Mike Holmgren, 1992-98, 84 4. Mike McCarthy, 2006-12, 79 5. Mike Sherman, 2000-05, 59

JONES JOINS SELECT COMPANY

• WR James Jones led the league with 14 touchdown catches this season, becoming the first Packer to lead the NFL in TD catches in a season since WR Sterling Sharpe did so with a franchise-record 18 in 1994.
• A look at the top receiving-TD totals in the league this season:

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Player, Receiving TDs**

1. James Jones, GB, 14 2. Eric Decker, DEN, 13 3. Dez Bryant, DAL, 12 4t. A.J. Green, CIN, 11 4t. Rob Gronkowski, NE, 11 4t. Brandon Marshall, CHI, 11  

AMONG THE LEADERS ONCE AGAIN

• Coming off one of the finest campaigns by a quarterback in NFL history, QB Aaron Rodgers once again was among the league leaders in several categories this season (min. 224 attempts/14 per game):

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Quarterback, Passer Rating**

1. Aaron Rodgers, GB, 108.0 2. Peyton Manning, DEN, 105.8 3. Robert Griffin III, WAS, 102.4 *  * Quarterback, Passing TDs 1. Drew Brees, NO, 43 2. Aaron Rodgers, GB, 39 3. Peyton Manning, DEN, 37 *  * Quarterback, TD/INT Ratio 1. Aaron Rodgers, GB, 4.88 (39/8) 2. Tom Brady, NE, 4.25 (34/8) 3. Robert Griffin III, WAS, 4.00 (20/5)

* *

• Rodgers led the league in passer rating for the second consecutive season, becoming the first NFL quarterback to do so since Peyton Manning led the league in the category in three straight seasons (2004-06).
• Rodgers' combined passer rating of 114.9 from 2011-12 was the best two-season passer rating in NFL history (min. 700 att.):

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Quarterback, Passer Rating**

1. Aaron Rodgers, GB, 2011-12, 114.9 2. Peyton Manning, IND, 2004-05, 113.0 3. Aaron Rodgers, 2010-11, 112.1

• With 39 TD passes on the season, Rodgers now has two of the top three single-season totals in franchise annals:

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Quarterback, Passing TDs**

1. Aaron Rodgers, 2011, 45 2t. Aaron Rodgers, 2012, 39 2t. Brett Favre, 1996, 39

• This is an abbreviated version of the Dope Sheet. To read the full version, download the PDF by **clicking here**. *