Green Bay Packers special teams coordinator Shawn Slocum isn't just preoccupied with whom head coach Mike McCarthy earlier this season called "the best player" on the Chicago Bears.
"First thing you have to do is protect that punter because you can't cover what you don't kick," Slocum said.

As much as Slocum has had his hands full this week coming up with the best plan of attack for Bears punt returner Devin Hester, extra attention has been given to how Chicago could try to go after Packers punter Tim Masthay in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday.

"This is my 11th ballgame going against them," Slocum said. "I think (Bears specials teams coach) Dave Toub does a great job with his game plans. He can do anything from a maximum return to a maximum pressure. I've seen it all from him."

Provided the initial part of the Packers' punt operation goes off without a hitch, the manner by which Masthay punts the football probably won't be different from the last time the division rivals met three weeks ago.

Slocum didn't come right out Thursday and say Green Bay would play keep-away with the dynamic Hester - contrary to Seattle head coach Pete Carroll's declaration last week that the Seahawks would kick to him in the divisional playoff. Yet, Slocum suggested the blueprint used to success in the Jan. 2 regular-season finale would have carryover for the rematch.

"We punted eight times. (Hester) returned two," Slocum said. "We had four punts inside the 20, and two of them were inside the 5. That was really good production. If we could get that, I think it would really help us.

"I think the objective, when you've got a guy who can change the game the way Devin can do that, is you've got to limit, No. 1, the space that he has to operate in and, No. 2, limit the total number of return opportunities."

A mixture of directional punts toward the sidelines and high-hanging, Aussie-style pooch kicks down the middle of the field accomplished any of three things of a positive nature for the Packers: keep the football out of Hester's hands, force him to make a fair catch or allow the coverage guys to be in range to close quickly on Hester when he did take off with the ball.

His runbacks in that last meeting, which the Packers won 10-3 at Green Bay to get in the playoffs, went for 19 and 16 yards. While sizable gains, they were much more tolerable than the 62-yard touchdown return Hester had on a booming punt from Masthay in the vacant middle of the field in the Bears' 20-17 win at Soldier Field in Week 3.

"Devin was at his best in that situation where he had some space to start, create pursuit angles by the defense ... and then change direction," Slocum said. "He went sideways and hit a vertical seam. That is his running style he does so well.

"I think if you can get him closer to the coverage when he starts, you're better off to eliminate that spacing, or kick the ball out of bounds if you can. (But) if it was that easy to kick the ball out of bounds considering all the things that you're dealing with as a punt unit, there would be no returners in this league."

Hester's big runback early in the fourth quarter in the first matchup this season is one of two touchdown returns allowed by Green Bay's erratic coverage units. The second came Saturday night, when the Atlanta Falcons' Eric Weems set a league postseason record with a 102-yard kickoff return in the first half, but the Packers overcame that to oust the NFC's top seed 48-21.

Incidentally, Green Bay was so proficient on offense that Masthay didn't have one punt in the game.


No one is hotter than the way Aaron Rodgers is performing in the postseason.

Even Brett Favre has taken notice in retirement of how his successor has the Packers a win away from a trip to Texas for Super Bowl XLV. Favre calls Rodgers the best quarterback and believes Green Bay will hoist the Lombardi Trophy on Feb. 6 at Cowboys Stadium.

If Rodgers and his teammates are going to prove Favre right and return the league title to Titletown for the first time in 14 years, it will be incumbent on the new face of the franchise not to follow the former leader of the Pack in what turned out to be his last hurrah with the team.

The upstart Packers and the archrival Bears will decide the NFC Championship on Sunday at Soldier Field in Chicago. It's only the second time division foes are meeting in a conference title game since the league realignment in 2002 - Pittsburgh beat Baltimore 23-14 in the 2008 AFC Championship.

The last time Green Bay was on the doorstep of the Super Bowl, Rodgers was bundled up in a heavy jacket on the sideline for the third-coldest NFL championship game. He was a third-year backup to Favre, who clearly struggled in temperatures that were in the negative numbers and wound up throwing an interception in overtime to set up a game-winning field goal by the New York Giants in the 2007 NFC title tilt at Lambeau Field.

Fast forward a little more than three years to the day, Rodgers could be faced with similar conditions on the Chicago lakefront. The forecast isn't as harsh, but the temperature could be down in the single digits with a significant wind to boot during the late-afternoon game.

"I think anytime you're playing (in) Chicago, the weather is an issue," Rodgers said. "The field could be an issue potentially. You just have to understand how to be effective in those conditions."

Problem is, Rodgers alluded Wednesday to not being a fan of playing football in frosty, blustery elements. He's a Northern California guy, and the perfect setting for him is what the Packers had Saturday night, when they played indoors at the Georgia Dome and Rodgers pierced the top-seeded Atlanta Falcons for 366 yards and three touchdowns on 31-of-36 accuracy.

"I kind of like practicing indoors in the winter," Rodgers confessed.

Head coach Mike McCarthy took the team outside their indoor practice facility for a short time Wednesday, as he plans to do Thursday as well, and the usually playful Rodgers wasn't jumping at the chance to do snow angels on a 20-degree day.

"Mike created that outdoor area where we can practice outdoors, and as much as I like to fight it sometimes, it really probably does help us to be able to practice in that weather in December and now January as well," Rodgers said.

For the Packers to have their best chance to complete the three-week road odyssey of becoming the first No. 6 seed from the NFC to advance to the Super Bowl, they can't have Rodgers unnerved by Mother Nature as a 12th Man on Sunday.

He is playing so exceptional right now - 49-of-63 passing for 546 yards, six touchdowns and zero interceptions for a 134.5 rating in the first two rounds of the playoffs - for the weather, no matter how uncomfortable it may be, to be the Packers' undoing.

"I think he's definitely the quarterback we all hoped he would become," McCarthy said. "He's in a great rhythm right now. He's playing his best football of his career at this point, and that's what you want, especially this time of year. He's definitely a big-time quarterback. He's everything we hoped he'd be."

The Bears, however, have a good track record of throwing Rodgers off his top-notch game.

Rodgers has a 4-2 record against Chicago since replacing Favre as the starter in 2008, but the production has been un-Rodgers-like. He has only one 300-yard game, just one game with a passer rating of at least 100 and an aggregate rating of 92.6 - well below his career efficiency mark of 98.4.

Simply, the Bears with their two-deep coverage principles and keeping things in front of them haven't allowed Rodgers to beat them with big plays. His longest throw against them is a 50-yard strike to Greg Jennings for a game-winning touchdown in the final minute of the 2009 season opener at Green Bay.

In the teams' last meeting, when the Bears didn't have anything to play for and the Packers had to win the Jan. 2 regular-season finale at Green Bay to get in the playoffs, Rodgers was a sluggish 19-of-28 for 229 yards and a touchdown with an interception. The Packers hung on for a 10-3 win.

"One of the keys to containing Aaron Rodgers is to do similar stuff that we did last time we played 'em," Bears linebacker Lance Briggs said. "Defensively, we did a lot of good things. We got off the field a lot on third down. We got a lot of pressure, made him move his feet, throw the ball quick.

"One thing we've done well all year is we've been great tacklers. Guys don't get a whole lot of yards after first contact, and guys that do tend to get punished by the other 10 guys running to the ball. Those are things that we're going to need to do, continue to (be) us but just raise it up a notch."

Green Bay's explosive offense converted only two of 11 third-down chances in that game and is 6-for-21 this season against Chicago's tenacious defense, which Packers receiver Greg Jennings said is the fastest they have faced.

"They do a great job of flowing to the ball," Jennings said.

Overall, with Rodgers at quarterback, the Packers have a conversion rate of only 38 percent (30-for-79) in the six games against the Bears.


SERIES HISTORY: 182nd meeting. Bears lead series, 92-83-6. The league's oldest rivals, going back to their first game in 1921 when Chicago was known as the Staleys, are meeting in the postseason for only the second time. The Bears won 33-14 on Dec. 14, 1941, in the Western Division playoff at Wrigley Field in Chicago. The NFC North foes split the two games in the regular season with the home team winning. The last five meetings and six of the past eight encounters have been decided by seven points or less.

NOTES, QUOTES

The league's selection of Terry McAulay to be the referee for the NFC Championship between the Packers and the Bears on Sunday in Chicago raised eyebrows in Green Bay.

McAulay also was the referee when the division rivals met at Soldier Field on Sept. 27. The Packers committed a team-record 18 penalties for 152 yards in the Monday night game, which the Bears won 20-17 on a late field goal by Robbie Gould.

Packers head coach Mike McCarthy, who wasn't happy then with the officiating by McAulay's crew, spoke in a measured tone Wednesday about having to see McAulay again, albeit with a different set of officials.

"Eighteen penalties in one game, we looked at that as an anomaly," McCarthy said. "I know it's more of an all-star crew (for Sunday). Terry is the referee. He's obviously been selected for this game for good reason.

"We look at that game as an anomaly, and I don't think this game is going to be about anomaly officiating. These are two very good teams that earned the right to play in this game, and this game will be about the football teams."

As it turned out, the flag fest in Week 3 was an aberration for the Packers, who committed only 78 penalties in the regular season - tied for third fewest in the league.

Green Bay has been penalized a total of eight times in the first two rounds of the playoffs.

McCarthy apparently has a good understanding of the history of the Packers-Bears rivalry. He dropped a hint this week about possibly resorting to a ploy that the Bears pulled against Green Bay during their Super Bowl-winning season in 1985.

Then-Bears head coach Mike Ditka lined up stocky rookie defensive tackle William "The Refrigerator" Perry as a fullback for a few plays in a Monday night game at Chicago. After Perry blocked on two touchdown runs by Walter Payton, Ditka gave Perry the football and he scored on a dive across the goal line in the Bears' 23-7 win.

Packers nose tackle B.J. Raji isn't as hefty as Perry was, but McCarthy unveiled the 337-pound Raji as a blocking fullback on a 1-yard touchdown run by John Kuhn in the 48-21 win at Atlanta in the divisional round Saturday night. Raji lined up beside Quinn Johnson in front of Kuhn.

"I wouldn't want to have B.J. Raji blocking me," McCarthy said. "So, it was a good matchup for us."

When asked whether Raji was lobbying to have his role increased to get a touch of the football, McCarthy replied, "No, not that far. I mean, that would be nice to do against Chicago to have some historical relevance, I'm sure."

Packers cornerback Tramon Williams didn't get selected to the Pro Bowl for a breakout season in which he led the team in the regular season with six interceptions - although he was added as an injury replacement. Williams, though, may be getting the last laugh since he has a league-high three interceptions in the first two rounds of the playoffs.

Bears quarterback Jay Cutler is well aware of Williams' playmaking exploits, highlighted by 70-yard interception return for a touchdown to end the first half against the Falcons. Yet, mistake-prone Cutler won't be leery to throw in the direction of Williams on Sunday.

"We're not going to stay away from him, no," Cutler said Wednesday, shaking his head.

Cutler gave Williams his due, however.

"(He's a) good player, a really good player, (who) has had a lot of one-on-one matchups that he's won," Cutler said. "Teams are kind of shying away from Charles (Woodson) and those other guys and trying to attack him, and he's responded. They gave him a big contract (extension), and he's going out there and playing well."

After exchanging pleasantries 21st century-style last weekend following each other's victories, Cutler and Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers evidently aren't on texting terms in the days leading up to Sunday's showdown.

"Jay and I are buddies, but we're not going to text this week," Rodgers said Wednesday. "It's about getting through this week. So, there's not going to be a whole lot of friendship out there until after the game."

On the topic of communication, Rodgers offered some insights into the challenges Brian Urlacher presents when the All-Pro middle linebacker is standing, er, fidgeting across from Rodgers when the Packers have the football.

"Brian is probably my favorite player to play against just because I enjoy the seconds between snaps," Rodgers said. "He's a very funny guy on the field. I know a lot of his (pre-snap) calls probably don't mean a lot, and he probably knows the same thing about some of my calls. So, we have some fun with each other back and forth not only between plays, (but during) TV timeouts, at the line of scrimmage - a lot of respect, definitely on my side.

"I don't know how he feels about me. He said he voted for me for the Pro Bowl. I don't know if he's lying or not."

The acrimony that should be percolating during Bears-Packers week, especially when a berth in the Super Bowl is at stake for the first time in 182 all-time meetings, didn't keep admiration from spilling out in Chicago as well.

Bears head coach Lovie Smith singled out Woodson and Chicago cornerback Charles Tillman as the two players in the league who "can strip the ball away from the opponent as well as anyone."

"Whether he's in the slot, blitzing, dropping into coverage or playing outside at the cornerback position, we're talking about the defensive MVP of the league last year, and that's the type of player he is," Smith said of Woodson. "We'll have to know where he is at all times. I definitely respect his game."

The Packers are in the NFC Championship for the fifth time. Their last appearance was in the 2007 season, which ended with a 23-20 overtime loss to the New York Giants at Lambeau Field.

Of the lessons the current Green Bay players who were on that team can take from the disappointing finish, receiver Greg Jennings said, "Not to walk away the way I felt the last time. That's No. 1. That was a bitter taste. I remember sitting in my locker room for about 15, 20 minutes after everybody left. ... I mean, not having taken off any equipment. It was an unfamiliar feeling."

Cutler addressed the magnitude of Sunday's game between the league's oldest rivals seeing as how this is the final point they could ever meet in the playoffs being from the same conference.

"It's a huge game for Chicago and Green Bay," he said. "Just the number of times we've played each other, how familiar the two cities and the two teams are of each other, it's almost like a little, mini Super Bowl. I know Chicago will be really disappointed if we don't win this game."

BY THE NUMBERS: 9 - Seasons in which the Packers have played the Bears three times since the rivalry started in 1921. The eight years that happened before this season were 1926, '28, '29, '30, '31, '32, '33 and '41.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "Doesn't matter whose name is on it. We'd like to have it, but when it comes down to it, that's not really our goal. We want to win the game, but the NFC Championship trophy is not the end for us. That's not the only thing we're looking at." - Linebacker A.J. Hawk, on whether it would be sweeter to win the George Halas Trophy at the expense of the Bears franchise he famously owned and coached.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

PLAYER NOTES

CB Tramon Williams, who has three postseason interceptions this season, has been added to the NFC Pro Bowl roster as an injury replacement for Asante Samuel.

OLB Frank Zombo has officially been ruled out for the NFC Championship Game at the Chicago Bears on Sunday. The rookie has missed the last five games because of a knee sprain.

LB Erik Walden (shoulder) was listed as probable on Friday's injury report after being a limited participant in practice. He's expected to play Sunday and start in place of injured rookie Frank Zombo.

RB John Kuhn (shoulder) was listed as probable Friday after being a limited participant in practice. He is expected to play Sunday.

FB Korey Hall is practicing this week after missing the last three games because of an aggravated knee sprain. Hall, a starter earlier in the season, has been a key contributor on special teams and might have an integral role in that regard Sunday.

S Atari Bigby will be under consideration to be activated for the game for what he can offer on special teams and also in a situational role on defense. Bigby isn't on the injury report after being out for three games because of a groin strain.

WR Antonio Robinson was signed to the practice squad Wednesday. The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Robinson originally was signed as an undrafted rookie out of Nicholls State by the Bears and also had a stint on the Seattle Seahawks practice squad this season.

S Anthony Levine was placed on the practice squad/injured list to make room for Robinson. The undrafted rookie was on the practice squad all season.

QB Aaron Rodgers leads all passers this postseason in completions (49), yards (546), completion percentage (77.8) and efficiency rating (134.5). He is second with six touchdown passes. Rodgers set a league record with 10 touchdown throws in his first three playoff games, dating to his debut last season when he had a career-high four in a wild-card loss at Arizona.

GAME PLAN: If head coach/play caller Mike McCarthy can help it, the Packers will continue to be the two-dimensional offense that in the postseason has belied their pass-happy reputation. McCarthy puts more stock in quantity of carries than quality, so he had no qualms with the meager average of a little more than 3 yards per attempt generated in 31 run plays in the divisional-round rout at Atlanta.

"If we can run the ball more than 30 times this week, I think we'll be very successful," McCarthy said.

The Packers are 7-1 when they have at least 30 rushing attempts, but they didn't come close to hitting that benchmark in the two previous games against the Bears. McCarthy probably learned his lesson and won't be so quick to forget about the run, especially if red-hot Aaron Rodgers endures a cold spell throwing the football in freezing conditions.

Rodgers' counterpart and friend has a good idea what he'll be seeing from the Packers defense.

"They're going to blitz. They're going to bring pressure," Bears quarterback Jay Cutler said. "We know that, and we expect that."

Defensive coordinator Dom Capers was relentless with his pressure schemes in the second meeting three weeks ago, leading to six sacks of Cutler and only three points on the scoreboard for Chicago even if its game plan was vanilla in a regular-season finale the Bears didn't have to win. The Packers have sacked Cutler nine times this season.

Don't look for Capers to tinker with the aggression-fueled success, but the threat of Bears running back Matt Forte could be an equalizer.

MATCHUPS TO WATCH:

Packers P Tim Masthay vs. Bears PR Devin Hester - The epic rubber match between the archrivals after they split the regular-season meetings just may hinge on the third-game tiebreaker between Masthay and Hester. After Hester burned the Packers for a 62-yard touchdown return in Chicago's Week 3 win at Soldier Field, Masthay had the upper hand in Green Bay's victory to end the regular season at Lambeau Field. Hester returned only two of Masthay's eight punts in the latter game, stymied by a mix of expertly placed directional kicks to the sidelines and also a few high hits that were well covered in the middle of the field inside the Bears' 10-yard line. The Packers figure to stick to that approach and hope for the best again against the dynamic Hester.

Packers WR Greg Jennings vs. Bears CB Charles Tillman - Donald Driver is having the better postseason among Green Bay's starting duo of receivers, but Jennings remains the top target for Chicago's defense to try to shut down as it looks to disrupt Aaron Rodgers and the passing game. Tillman had an impressive diving interception in front of Jennings in the teams' last meeting. A cat-and-mouse game should ensue as the Packers will be intent on moving Jennings around to the flanker spots and the slot, leaving it up to the Bears on whether to shadow him exclusively with Tillman. Jennings had only two catches for 18 yards (with a touchdown) in the earlier meeting at Chicago and doesn't have a 100-yard game in four appearances at Soldier Field.

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