The Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions kick off Sunday in Lambeau Field with the NFC North title and No. 2 seed in the playoffs on the line. The two teams are the polar opposites, the Packers with the explosive offense, the Lions with the ferocious defense. It is the classic matchup.
If the Packers beat the Lions they will have beaten three playoff teams at home and none on the road, which of course begs the question – can the Packers win on the road in the playoffs should they lose this game? The bigger question should be can the Packers win at home in the playoffs? Other than beating a Joe Webb quarterbacked Vikings after the 2012 season they haven’t won a playoff game at Lambeau since 2007.
The case can be made the Packers aren’t built for Lambeau in January. Their precision offense can be affected by bad footing and cold weather. While they have built a better running game the last two years, I don’t think Eddie Lacy alone can carry the Packers to victory when the passing game is not clicking. Not in the playoffs.
The Packers would head to Dallas if they lose, which would mean weather would not be a factor. Should the Packers win Sunday they would play in Lambeau on January 10 or 11. The forecast high for those days is 19, which means it will be around 10 at game time if its a night game. The Packers haven’t won a cold weather game since the Ice Bowl it seems.
Other than having to win another game, I am not that concerned about the Packers being the sixth seed should they lose Sunday. Because they lost to the Bills two weeks ago the road to the Super Bowl goes through Seattle, so whether you play them in the divisional round or the conference championship, you still have to beat them. And all remaining venues are indoors, where Aaron Rodgers is at his best.
While I definitely would prefer to see the Packers win the NFC North title for the fourth straight year and have the divisional game at home, it does have that “be careful what you wish for” feel to it.