With all due respect to the great home-field advantage enjoyed by the Green Bay Packers, they are not devastated to be traveling to San Francisco this weekend.
The prospect of an NFC title game in a warm climate couldn’t have been the worst thought that crossed their minds Monday morning while chipping ice from their windshields.
“All these guys on this team didn’t grow up in Wisconsin,” coach Mike Holmgren said after the Packers beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 21-7.
It is a paradox that the Packers play all season to stay in Lambeau Field, yet aren’t all that sad to leave it in January. While they have won 27 games in a row in Lambeau and love the crowd, it is not easy to perform in bitterly cold conditions. While the Packers can’t express such sentiment in a politically correct fashion, their reaction after Sunday’s final home game was more a sign of appreciation than sadness. As they stuck around to blow kisses to fans, it was more like bidding a fond farewell than dreading a trip to play the 49ers.
“The biggest game we play is away from home,” said Packers General Manager Ron Wolf, referring to the Super Bowl.
Packers quarterback Brett Favre, who ran his sub-35-degree record to 23-0, nevertheless openly detests cold weather. He called Sunday’s single-digit windchill “a nice, balmy day.”
The so-called West Coast offense employed by both the Packers and 49ers is best performed on the West Coast.
“We play in this type of weather, but it makes it difficult for the skill people to throw and catch,” Holmgren said. “It changes the game, but mentally, we have a great football team. You battle through those elements. We have players from Florida and California, but they play here and we win here this time of year because they are mentally tough guys and they block out those types of things.”
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If the Packers are mentally tough enough to endure their own unique home-field advantage, they believe they should be mentally tough enough to overcome the visitor role in San Francisco.
Return policy: The Packers, desperate all season to replace Super Bowl MVP Desmond Howard, resorted to using starting receivers Antonio Freeman to return kickoffs and Robert Brooks to return punts against Tampa.
Not a bad move. They are two of the best kick returners in NFL playoff history.
Brooks last returned punts in 1994, but he broke one for 28 yards and is now averaging 15.6 yards on 12 postseason returns, breaking the all-time record of 15.2 yards by ex-Viking Anthony Carter.
Freeman stands third on that punt-return list with an average of 14.3 yards. He last returned kickoffs in 1995, but he had two for 36 against the Bucs and one touchdown nullified by a penalty.
“I wasn’t getting the productivity I wanted out of that part. We’re in the playoffs and there’s no tomorrow, so you play your best players,” Holmgren said. “They both willingly wanted to do this. To say I don’t have my fingers crossed every time they hit up in there . . . it exposes them to one more play where they might get knocked off. But they’re tough guys and did a good job.”
Bono off hook: Nobody was happier than Packers backup quarterback Steve Bono after Sunday’s playoff games. Not only is his new team going to the conference championship game, but his old one vindicated him as well.
The Kansas City Chiefs, 13-3 with home-field advantage in the AFC, lost to the Denver Broncos 14-10. Two years ago, the Chiefs were 13-3 with home-field advantage and lost to the Indianapolis Colts 10-7. Bono was quarterback then and basically got blamed for the lack of offense. He quarterbacked the Chiefs for 13 games last season, then was released. Elvis Grbac replaced him.
Asked Monday if he felt off the hook, Bono said: “Yes. In my own mind anyway. It’s interesting. We’ll see who gets the blame. I don’t know what they’re writing, but I’m sure (they) will have somebody to blame for it.”
The Chiefs’ final drive fell short when they were left without timeouts and managed the clock poorly. It was offensive coordinator Paul Hackett’s last game before assuming the head coaching job at USC.
“My guess is he’ll take quite a bit of it. Looked like they played pretty well, but with no timeouts left, it’s a little tough,” Bono said.
This is no bull: The Packers are confident going to San Francisco.
“If the Chicago Bulls go on the road to Seattle, who’s the favorite? The Bulls. Who’s the team to beat in the NBA? The Bulls. Who’s the team to beat in the NFL? The defending champions, baby. That’s who we are,” Freeman said.
Hearst closer to return: San Francisco running back Garrison Hearst has been cleared by doctors to return to practice, although it isn’t clear whether he’ll play Sunday.
Hearst, the 49ers’ leading rusher, missed the last four games, including Saturday’s playoff victory over the Minnesota Vikings, with a broken collarbone.
Hearst will return to practice Tuesday, but he’ll undergo a CAT scan Thursday to determine if he can play against the Packers, the team said.
The 26-year-old Hearst, who was injured during the 49ers’ 44-9 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Nov. 30, has rushed for 1,019 yards in 13 games this season. He was the first San Francisco running back to rush for more than 1,000 yards since Ricky Watters in 1992.
Since Hearst was injured, the 49ers have started Terry Kirby, who had been used primarily as a receiver out of the backfield. Kirby rushed for 113 yards on 43 carries during the final three games of the regular season, then had a career-high 120 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries during Saturday’s 38-22 victory over the Vikings.