Green Bay, Wis. — Don't expect Ice Bowl II.
When the San Francisco 49ers play at Lambeau Field today, this will be the deepest into January the Green Bay Packers have ever played a home game.
The teams awoke to a fresh snowfall Saturday that forced them to move their walkthroughs indoors. But in this wimpy winter, temperatures are expected only in the 20s, with some sunshine, by kickoff.
"Although, the forecast the night before the Ice Bowl was 20 to 25 degrees and we woke up Sunday morning and it was minus-13," said Lee Remell, the Packers' longtime public relations director.
Nobody's counting on another deep freeze, but the Packers are anticipating the weather working to their advantage.
"We seem to handle it better than other teams," quarterback Brett Favre said.
Green Bay is 12-0 at home in the playoffs, and Favre has won all 30 times he's played at home when the temperature at kickoff was 34 or below.
Defense to rule AFC game
Miami Combine two dominating defenses with a pair of turnover-prone, spasmodic offenses led by erratic quarterbacks, and you've got today's AFC playoff game between the Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins.
Should be a bruising, low-scoring scrum, right?
"It'll be 69-68," Ravens coach Brian Billick joked.
Not likely; 9-8 is a better bet. One touchdown may be enough to win, which means one turnover may be enough to lose. For both teams, the goal will be to stay away from the giveaway.
"It's always a factor in the playoffs," Miami quarterback Jay Fiedler said. "Every mistake is magnified."
That's another thing the two teams have in common: mistakes.
If Miami (11-5) and Baltimore (10-6) had taken better care of the ball this season, they would have won their divisions and earned a first-round bye. But the Ravens and Dolphins ranked near the bottom in the NFL with 36 and 38 turnovers, respectively.
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