NFL Divisional Play-Offs: Dallas Cowboys visit Green Bay Packers in a frozen Wisconsin as Ice Bowl II looms
Aaron Rodgers' fitness in question
Sunday 11 January 2015 17:33, UK
For the first time since an iconic 1967 encounter that saw a quarterback catch frostbite and Vince Lombardi at his most brutally efficient, the Green Bay Packers will host the Dallas Cowboys in the play-offs.
Temperatures are anticipated to plummet to -21C on Sunday and the Packers will dish out complimentary hot drinks and hand warmers to the dedicated followers for whom Wisconsin weather is no reason to miss football.
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A look back on history
The original Ice Bowl, an NFC championship game for a Super Bowl berth, was blighted by an expensive heating system spectacularly failing and turning the pitch into a sheet of ice.
The Cowboys led 17-14 with just seconds remaining but the Packers won the match with a notorious play to reward their fans – dressed in hunting attire to brave the elements.
Donny Anderson, the Packers’ running back, had slipped twice on the ice and their legendary coach Lombardi needed to improvise to win the match. Bart Starr, the quarterback who later suffered signs of frostbite after Lombardi refused him gloves, sneaked over the line himself with the next play.
Lambeau Field was rebranded the Frozen Tundra, a nickname it has upheld to this day, and one that will live up to its billing this weekend.
Braving the elements
The Packers against the Cowboys will be just the third time that teams with perfect records have clashed in the play-offs – Green Bay have won all eight at home and Texas are unbeaten away.
Aaron Rodgers’ fitness is most intriguing pre-match storyline and while his presence is almost guaranteed, his limitations on an icy pitch could determine whether the Packers can repeat their 1967 win.
Rodgers’ form at Lambeau makes intimidating reading for any visitor – he hasn’t thrown an interception in more than two years spanning 15 games and 451 passes. That type of accuracy has the Packers leading the league for scoring with an average of 30.4 points per game and links Rodgers to the NFL’s MVP accolade.
Yet his opposite number Tony Romo is the NFL’s top rated QB this season after amassing a 113.2 pass rating. He’ll be picking out Dez Bryant, who leads the NFL with 16 touchdown receptions, and the league’s leading rusher DeMarco Murray whose style might suit a difficult, frozen surface.
It will be extremely cold on Sunday but the consensus is that if the match was a night later it may have eclipsed the Ice Bowl itself – but Sky Sports will brave the weather so you don’t have to.
Stay at home with a hot drink for Cowboys @ Packers on Sunday at 5.30pm on Sky Sports 3.
