[img_r]http://www.espnmilwaukee.com/includes/news_items/40/1888/celebrate.jpg[/img_r]GREEN BAY Aaron Rodgers knows all the clichs by rote theyre taking it one game at a time, theyre just focused on themselves and not what the other teams do but the Green Bay Packers quarterback is a smart enough dude to see the big picture.



And right now, thanks to Sundays 17-7 must-win triumph over the Dallas Cowboys at Lambeau Field, the Packers despite their still-present shortcomings, despite that horrendous loss to previously winless Tampa Bay one week earlier are very much in the frame of the NFC playoff snapshot. They may be on the edge and not front-and-center, but in a mediocre conference with two very good teams and a bunch of others still forging their identities, Rodgers Packers go into the final seven games with as good of playoff odds as anyone.



We knew at 4-4, playing a very good team, it was an important time in our season to get back in this race, Rodgers said. I think a lot of people were thinking this was going to be the end of the road for us and going to be a turning point for the negative for us this season. But it was a big win for our team.



That it was. At 5-4 entering Sundays game against 4-5 San Francisco at Lambeau Field, the Packers are tied with the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants and Atlanta Falcons for the fifth-best record in the NFC. Six teams qualify for the playoffs.



Of those four teams, the Eagles have the best conference record at 4-2, followed by the Packers and Falcons at 4-3 and the Giants, who had a bye Sunday, at 3-3.

Were right there, tied with Atlanta, Philly and the Giants, Rodgers said, needing no help to sort out the current NFC standings. We are in a spot where we know November and December games get you to the playoffs and that teams that often go the deepest in the playoffs are teams that get on a run here. So, hopefully this game will give us some momentum going into next week, another home game. Hopefully we can come out next week with the same kind of energy, enthusiasm and urgency and come out with a big win.



At this point, 9-0 New Orleans and 8-1 Minnesota (both 6-0 in NFC games) hold big leads in their divisions and are likely to earn the top two seeds and first-round playoff byes. The Saints lead the Falcons by four games in the NFC South and won the first head-to-head meeting, while the Vikings lead the Packers by three games in the NFC North and swept the season series, which essentially puts the Packers four games back.



The Cowboys (6-3 overall, 5-2 in the conference) have only a one-game lead in the NFC East over the Eagles and Giants, while the Arizona Cardinals (6-3, 4-2) have a two-game lead on the 49ers (4-5, 4-2) in the NFC West. The 49ers are one of three 4-5 teams Chicago and Carolina being the others that remain in contention despite sub.-500 records just past the seasons midpoint.



And truth be told, despite the victory, the Packers arent all that far from being one of those 4-5 teams. Some of the same problems that have plagued them all season allowing too many sacks (four Sunday, for a total of 41) and penalties (12 more for 100 yards, keeping them No. 1 in the NFL) remain



(You have to) be realistic and make the corrections as you prepare for San Francisco. That's what you have to do, Packers coach Mike McCarthy said during his usual day-after-the-game news conference Monday. Motivation comes in different forms and fashions throughout the course of a season, and that's definitely something in that victory yesterday that we can carry forward into our preparation for San Francisco, because there were obviously a lot of positives.



Perhaps the biggest positive was the way the coaches adjusted on both sides of the ball. On defense, coordinator Dom Capers dialed up five-man pressures on more than half of Dallas quarterback Tony Romos dropbacks, his strongest commitment to the blitz since the season-opening victory over Chicago.



The real good defenses Ive been around, you get that momentum going aggressively and you get the offense reacting to you, rather than you reacting to the offense, Capers said Monday. Youve seen us at times do that, and youve seen us at times when we havent been able to do that. The opener here against the Bears, we dictated the tempo of the game. Yesterday, we dictated the tempo of the game. And the times we havent been able to play real well, we havent been able to dictate the tempo.



I like the passion we played with. We still made some errors, but if you play aggressively, it covers up a lot of those. We had a lot of green jerseys around the football, and when you do that, good things are going to happen.



On offense, McCarthy and offensive coordinator Joe Philbin took a more cautious approach, abandoning the long ball for a quick, short passing game. The Packers longest gain through the air was a 24-yard completion to Donald Driver, and Driver got more than half the yardage after the catch. While the screen game wasnt overly productive, it kept the Cowboys pass rush honest, and Rodgers threw the slant well for several key completions.



Asked Monday if we will see more of the short passing game in coming weeks, Philbin replied. Weve played (the Cowboys) every year, so we have a little bit of a feel for them, and theyre a little bit of a unique 3-4 team. Weve got a rookie right tackle whos never played out there. So I think all of those factors added in to getting the ball out of our hands. Our sack issues have been well-documented. I think a little bit of everything. All those things played into consideration when we put the plan together.



McCarthy downplayed the significance of those adjustments Defensive signal-callers and offensive signal-callers call it the same way, McCarthy said, you have an intention of how you want to play every single game, but sometimes the game takes you down a different path but the Packers may have found a formula for success the rest of the year. Granted, game plans will change every week, but the approach seemed to work well in both instances.



I'm focused on winning and improving, McCarthy said, in response to a question about the playoff picture. You're probably tired of hearing about it. But that's the way we operate, so I'm not going to try to sit here and say it in different words and different statements. We need to win football games and we need to improve along the way, because you want to be playing your best football at the end of the year.



The National Football League is very competitive. I understand the passion that our fans have and the importance of winning. But as far as what people think and their opinions, I can't really concern myself with that. My concern and focus is on our football team.



Not only do the Packers seem to be getting their collective act together, but theyre getting healthier too. Wide receiver Jordy Nelson (knee) returned to action Sunday for the first time since Oct. 18; big-play tight end Jermichael Finley (knee) will practice Wednesday and should return to action for the first time since Oct. 25; left outside linebacker Aaron Kampman (concussion) is expected to return to his starting role while fill-in starter Brad Jones has earned playing time as well; veteran right tackle Mark Tauscher (knee) is expected to practice Wednesday and gives the Packers another option on the right side after rookie T.J. Lang played well against the Cowboys; and nickel linebacker Brandon Chillar (broken hand) is expected to play after missing two games, during which A.J. Hawk seemed to elevate his game.



Of course, the last time the Packers had such a key victory over a quality opponent was last October, when they beat Indianapolis at home to improve to 4-3. They followed that triumph with close road losses to then-unbeaten Tennessee and Minnesota to fall back below .500, then whipped Chicago before a five-game losing streak sunk their season.



You've got to continue to do it, said veteran cornerback Charles Woodson, whose nine tackles, two forced fumbles, one sack and one interception spurred the defensive performance. Winning just feels good. I don't care how you get 'em. We went out there and played with a lot of fire, a lot of passion that lasted from the beginning of the game to the end of the game. That has to be the mentality the rest of the season.

(Dallas is) a good team, no question, and we need to win games like that. But weve also got to win the games that were supposed to win. Theres some bad teams we played, we won. Tampa Bay was a bad team, and we let that one get away from us. To get where you need to go, youve got to beat good teams and youve got to win the games youre supposed to win. Its a good win, but from here on out, you just cant have any letdowns.