Sunday, Nov. 9 l HHH Metrodome l 12 p.m. CST
WITH THE CALL
- FOX Sports enters its 15th season as an NFL network television partner and will air the contest to a regional audience.
- Play-by-play man Joe Buck joins color analyst Troy Aikman in the booth with Pam Oliver serving as the sideline reporter.
PACKERS HEAD WEST FOR DIVISION SHOWDOWN
- Green Bay makes its annual trip to the Metrodome Sunday to face the archrival Minnesota Vikings - the 96th meeting between the two clubs.
- Both teams come into the contest at 4-4, tied for second place in the NFC North behind division leader Chicago (5-3).
- Green Bay's bid to knock off the undefeated Titans in Nashville fell short in overtime last Sunday, losing 19-16. There won't be time to dwell on the loss, as the club now faces division rivals in back-to-back weeks, which could go a long way in determining the division champion.
- The first test will come on the road in Minneapolis, a place Head Coach Mike McCarthy (2-0) has not lost since arriving in Green Bay. In fact, McCarthy is 5-0 against the Vikings.
- Green Bay has won four of the last five in Minnesota, one of the league's loudest venues. It is 23-23-0 all-time in the state against the Vikings.
- One of the NFL's great border wars has been a traditionally tight series, with the Packers holding a slight all-time advantage (49-45-1, including playoffs). The Packers' current five-game winning streak is the longest in the series since 1983-85, when Green Bay won five straight. A sixth consecutive win would be the longest in the series since its inception, when the Packers took six in a row from 1961-63 under Vince Lombardi.
- The two clubs met in Week 1 in primetime on Monday night, with the Packers winning a tight contest 24-19 at Lambeau Field. QB Aaron Rodgers was efficient (18-of-22, 178 yards, 1 TD passing, 1 TD rushing, 115.5 rating) in his first career start, while a late interception sealed the victory for Green Bay.
- This time Minnesota lines up with a different QB under center in veteran Gus Frerotte, who is 4-2 this season as the Minnesota starter.
- Behind three Frerotte touchdown passes, the Vikings defeated the Houston Texans, 28-21, Sunday at the Metrodome. Minnesota has won three of its last four games.
IN THE 'BLACK AND BLUE' DIVISION
- Two of the Packers early wins have come against division opponents.
- Since division play opened in 1967, the team has opened the season only one other time with two divisional wins: 1998.
- After this weekend's contest against the Vikings, the Packers will continue division play in Week 11, hosting the Bears, before stepping outside the NFC North for another month.
- In games that ultimately could decide playoff seeding and the division crown, Green Bay wraps up the regular season with a trip to Chicago and a home contest against the Lions.
- McCarthy's solid 11-3 record in the NFL's 'black and blue' division is noteworthy because he's undefeated against two of the division opponents: Detroit (5-0) and Minnesota (5-0). The Packers are just 1-3 against Chicago over the past two seasons.
