'Our season on the line': Vikings know what's at stake at frigid Lambeau Field

By the time the Vikings emerge from the visitors' locker room at Lambeau Field on Sunday night, temperatures might have dropped into the single digits, combining with subzero wind chills to make their 123rd matchup with the Packers one of the coldest in the rivalry's 61-year history.

The Vikings also will know by that point if they'll need a win to keep their playoff hopes alive.

The two games the Vikings lost to NFC teams this month (at Detroit on Dec. 5 and at home against the Rams last Sunday) mean they could be eliminated from the postseason race with a loss at Green Bay and an Eagles win at Washington. Philadelphia (8-7) plays a noon game at FedEx Field and can put the Vikings (7-8) in a win-or-be-eliminated situation on Sunday night.

"We know it's going to be a hostile environment," running back Dalvin Cook said Wednesday, when he was cleared to return from the reserve/COVID-19 list. "So, prepping these young guys and getting everyone else ready who hasn't been to Lambeau, to get their minds right for a hostile crowd. But our mind-set is right now: We have to win the rest of these games. No matter how we win it, no matter how we do it, we have to go win."

Without their first season sweep of Green Bay since 2017, the Vikings could be headed for big changes. General Manager Rick Spielman and head coach Mike Zimmer could lose their jobs if the Vikings miss the playoffs for the fifth time in eight years, and a new regime would face contract decisions on quarterback Kirk Cousins, defensive end Danielle Hunterand a defense with five regular contributors headed for free agency.

On Sunday, the Vikings will play without receiver Adam Thielen, who had season-ending ankle surgery on Tuesday. The Packers, meanwhile, will have running back Aaron Jones and linebacker Rashan Gary — who both missed the Vikings' home win over Green Bay in November — and could have cornerback Jaire Alexander, who practiced for the first time Wednesday after missing 11 games with a shoulder injury.

The Packers are trying to secure the NFC's top seed for the second year in a row, in hopes of reaching a second Super Bowl with Aaron Rodgers in what could be the quarterback's final year in Green Bay. The stakes could scarcely be higher.

"We played them once this year and had success against them," Zimmer said. "You know, it's a team we know pretty well, and they know us. Obviously, they've got a terrific quarterback and some outstanding players. They do a really good job on defense as far as rushing with their front guys and mixing up their disguises in the back end. Really good corners. So, yeah, I have confidence that we're going to go out and play well."

The Vikings practiced inside on Wednesday with the doors open to their indoor facility, and Zimmer said they plan to go outside for Thursday and Friday practices to get ready for Sunday night's temperatures. The forecast for Sunday in Green Bay calls for a low of 3 degrees, with wind chills dipping to -13.

The coldest game in the history of the rivalry was on Dec. 10, 1972, when the Packers won 23-7 in -2 degree weather. While temperatures might not be that cold by kickoff Sunday night, they could dip below the 6-degree weather on Dec. 11, 1988, to make this game the second-coldest ever played between the two teams.

"When you start getting down to single digits, zero, even negative temperatures, those games are really few and far between," Cousins said. "They just don't happen all that much. They're bound to happen when you play in the NFC North and our season goes as late into the year as it does. I've played them before, but it's certainly something that's not happening every month. So you just got to get acclimated to it and ready to go and be ready to execute."

Players spend the season in Minnesota, but never play in the cold at home and rarely practice in it. For South Florida natives like Cook, time spent in the harsh weather is still a relatively new experience.

"I live here, but I be in the house," Cook said. "I don't be outside — unless Zim tells us to go outside. For me, with this cold thing, I just love playing football. Once the pads and the cleats come on and everything else, it's not cold no more. It's not none of that. I don't know how this single digit weather is going to be, but we're about to find out.

"It's like another milestone that I'm checking off. I get to play in another good atmosphere that I dreamed about playing in when I was a kid. I've seen these games on TV, these cold games. It's fun, it's football, so I'm trying to go have some fun on Sunday night. Get these guys to go have some fun, and win a football game."

Cook said he didn't think the Vikings did anything out of the ordinary in a 34-31 win over the Packers in November. Justin Jefferson posted 169 yards as Cousins threw for 341 and three touchdowns, leading the Vikings to a game-winning field goal after Rodgers — who ended the day with 385 yards and four TDs — hit Marquez Valdes-Scantling with a 75-yard stunner to tie the game with 2:08 left.

"With Aaron Rodgers, you've got to play clean football," said Cook, who had 226 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns in a win last season at Lambeau Field. "We can't have those mistakes that are going to put us behind and do stuff like that. So we've got to go out there and play a clean game and control the football, keep A-Rodg off the field. If we do those things, we'll be in the right place to succeed and win the football game."

Trailing the Eagles and the 49ers in the wild-card standings, it's important the Vikings win. If Philadelphia wins early Sunday afternoon, a victory will become imperative.

"[It's] a great opportunity, a division game against the Packers at Lambeau, Sunday night with basically our season on the line," Cousins said. "So, a lot to play for."