December 31, 2009

Most likely, it's just a tuneup for a much more meaningful rematch with the Packers on the same field in the first round of the playoffs. Then again, there's a chance a first-round bye could be at stake for the NFC West champions.

"You have to prepare and do everything like this one means a first-round bye," Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner said. "Then, if at any point in time, that changes, it's a weird situation. You don't know how you're going to handle it until you get in there."

For the Packers (10-5), winners of six of their last seven, the game means nothing more than whether they get the No. 5 or 6 seed as a wild card. But they are insisting they won't ease up on the pedal as they approach the postseason.

"We're not going to be sitting players or anything like that," coach Mike McCarthy said. "We're going to walk into this game on Sunday with the approach to win the game."

For Arizona (10-5) to sneak into the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye, the Minnesota Vikings would have to lose at home to the New York Giants. That's an early game, so the Cardinals will know whether that's still a possibility before Sunday's kickoff.

But the scenario also would require the Cowboys to beat Philadelphia in Dallas, a game that starts at the same time as Cardinals-Packers.

"It's crazy, isn't it?" Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "We were looking at the scenarios for the NFC and I think there is eight possible scenarios for us, six of which we play the Packers, one which we get the bye, and one which we play the Cowboys."

Green Bay's dominating cornerback Charles Woodson said neither team should be concerned about holding back any secret tactics that might be used in the playoffs.

"We are who we are. At this point in the season, they are who they are," Woodson said. "There's no 'showing them too much.' They can go look at the film, they can see everything that we've done over the course of the season and vice versa."

Whisenhunt said that while there might be a few things in his game plan he wouldn't use if the game didn't mean anything, "we haven't prepared that way." Still, there is a possibility he might remove some key players early.

"We are preparing like a normal week," Whisenhunt said. "We are going in with our guys intending to play. Then I think you assess it at that time. I think it's kind of like (New England coach) Bill Belichick said, 'If they play, they play. If they don't play, then they won't play.'"

The Packers want to keep everything humming as well as it has been in recent games.

"It's important to continue this momentum we've been building up these last seven weeks," quarterback Aaron Rodgers said. "We're 6-1 and we're playing pretty good football. We want to keep this going and hit our stride entering the postseason."

Since a Nov. 8 loss at Tampa Bay left them 4-4, the Packers have just one loss, a 37-36 heartbeaker at Pittsburgh on Dec. 20. Last Sunday, Green Bay routed Seattle 48-10, a team the Cardinals have beaten twice.

Arizona is 9-3 after a 1-2 start and has won three in a row at home after starting the season 1-3 there. Overall, the Cardinals have won three of four and are coming off a 31-10 home romp over lowly St. Louis.

The Packers' defense enters the game ranked second to the New York Jets in yards allowed per game and first against the run, giving up just 85.7 yards per contest. In their storied history, the Packers have never finished the season No. 1 against the run.

"To be honest, we talk about it a lot," defensive lineman B.J. Raji said. "... It is motivation for this week because it's prideful thing. We want to finish the season as the No. 1 rush defense in the league, and this team can run the ball pretty good."

Although they remain a pass-oriented offense, the Cardinals' run game has improved markedly. With the 1-2 punch of Tim Hightower and explosive rookie Beanie Wells, Arizona has gained more than 100 yards in six of its last eight games after doing it only once in the first seven.

"That"s just a huge benefit for a quarterback," Warner said. "... Anytime you can get a defense to hesitate, to wait even a split second, it gives you an advantage in the passing game. That's what the running game does. Anytime they have the thought in their mind you might run the ball, everything is a little bit slower and it makes it easier to throw."

The Cardinals' defense, which had three players selected to the Pro Bowl, will face a Packers offense that can move on the ground — Ryan Grant has rushed for 1,202 yards — as well as through the air. Rodgers has thrown for 4,199 yards.

"This is one of the top offenses in the NFL," said Arizona defensive coordinator Bill Davis, a good friend of McCarthy's. "Aaron Rodgers is playing at a high, high level right now. Mike and those guys are doing a great job. That's why they're as hot as they are right now."

All that talk about a first-round bye will mean nothing if Arizona can't beat this multitalented team.

"The only thing we can control is how we go out there and play," said Arizona wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, chosen to his fourth Pro Bowl this week. "If we don't play well, whatever happens on the other side doesn't matter."

Associated Press