Packers' Aaron Rodgers 'demands' cold weather, loud fans to face 49ers

For Green Bay Packers star quarterback Aaron Rodgers, managing his emotions will be vital to stay focused heading into the NFC Divisional Round playoff game when they host the San Francisco 49ers at Lambeau Field on Saturday, January 22.

"There's four teams left on the NFC side. We're one of them. We get to host playoff games," Rodgers said following Tuesday's practice. "This is a special opportunity. We're not gonna make it bigger than it is."

A helpful bye week for Rodgers

The Packers were able to comfortably watch the 49ers beat the Dallas Cowboys 23-17 in the Wild Card Round while they enjoyed a bye week that came on the heels of finishing with the best record in the entire National Conference, an issue that helped heal injuries, specifically Green Bay's franchise quarterback's fractured toe.

"We've gotten this far being level-headed and even-keeled and not riding a roller coaster of emotions, and we're gonna keep on doing the same thing. If it was good enough to get us this far, it's good enough to get us past this point."

The differences from past playoffs

The Packers were also the top seed last season and were eliminated in the NFC Championship Game at the hands of the eventual champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but on that occasion, the temperature in Green Bay was not as frigid as the 20°F or -20°F that the temperature has hovered in this week, plus Lambeau Field will be full, last year it had limited capacity.

"I'm excited about our opportunity, excited about the leadership we have on the football team, excited about the guys coming back and excited to have a full crowd this year as opposed to last year," Rodgers said. "Hoping for a loud crowd."

Aaron Rodgers has failed to defeat the 49ers three times in the playoffs in his career, including the 2019 NFC Championship Game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

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