An die SV » know where we would be without him

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Josh Boyd isnt into making a fashion statement, and he doesnt think he needs to go sleeveless to show off his toughness. All the Packers defensive lineman wants is to stay warm in the subzero weather when Green Bay hosts the San Francisco 49ers in an NFC wild-card showdown that could be one of the coldest playoff games in NFL history. So many intriguing story lines between these two NFC powers, and yet the arctic cold may trump them all. "Yeah, Im definitely going sleeves," said Boyd, a rookie from Mississippi. "I mean, I dont see it as a tough guy thing. I just see it as being comfortable." The National Weather Service forecast called for a high temperature in Green Bay on Sunday of 2 degrees, with north-northwest winds making it feel more like minus-15 to minus-20. The coldest NFL game on record is the 1967 championship game, known as the "Ice Bowl" won by the Packers 21-17 over the Dallas Cowboys at Lambeau Field on New Years Eve. The temperature dipped to minus-13, and the wind chill that day was minus-48. This might be little consolation to Boyd, for whom cold games in college meant playing in 30- or 40-degree weather. "Im from Mississippi, so this is a whole other animal," Boyd said. "Ive never seen negatives until I got here." Linemen are renowned for toughing out inclement weather without sleeves under jerseys. Dont want to give the opponent even the slightest idea that youre soft, the line of thinking goes. Well, 49ers defensive tackle Justin Smith is as tough as they come, and even he might wear sleeves for what he estimates would be just the second or third time in his 13-year career. "Youre not going to have an advantage having no sleeves. Youre not going to scare the opponent," said Smith, who has 6 1/2 sacks. Across the line of scrimmage, centre Jonathan Goodwin said he had no problem wearing sleeves. "I gave up on the dont wear sleeves to look tough a long time ago," he said. In some ways, players might be warmer than the 80,000 fans expected to pack frigid Lambeau. Once they get to the sideline, players can take a break on heated benches. Theyll likely wear long, heavy coats while not in the game. "This is not the norm. Anytime you get outside the norm for whatever your occupation, its obviously challenging mentally and physically," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "Thats definitely going to be the case Sunday." Footing on the field will be a key issue. Lambeau does have a heating system buried beneath the turf, encompassing 30 miles of pipes. There was supposed to be a brief "break" in the cold snap with temperatures rising into the upper 20s on Saturday, which McCarthy said would give groundskeepers a key day to work on the field. "It could be just a normal game thats played at a little slower pace. Or it could be where theres a lot of slipping and sliding going on, then you have to adjust a little bit," 49ers defensive co-ordinator Vic Fangio said. "You need to wait to see Sunday exactly see how the field affects the game." Another key for players will be to stay hydrated, though McCarthy jokingly put his index finger to his lips as if to tell a reporter to not let out the secret when asked the question Friday. "Weve seen it in past games where guys do cramp, so yes, its all part of our preparation," McCarthy said. If not for the arctic front marching into Wisconsin, more of the attention before Sundays game might be focused on 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernicks mastery of Green Bay in the teams last two meetings. Or quarterback Aaron Rodgers triumphant return from a left collarbone injury to help the resurgent Packers get back into the playoffs. Instead, San Francisco and Green Bay will have to deal with an unwelcome extra opponent: the bitter cold. Packers defensive lineman Mike Daniels seems to subscribe to the sleeves-are-soft philosophy. He doesnt like wearing them and plans to just play through the big chill and block out the conditions. And dont get him started on hand warmers. "I see offensive linemen with hand warmers, that tells me about them, man," Daniels said. "A defensive line coach in college said that, so I kind of kept that mentality." Vans Shoes Outlet Uk . Tokarski, a somewhat controversial choice -- with his 10 games of NHL experience and all -- to replace an injured Carey Price in Game Two had a night to remember, turning back a Rangers team that was dominating play from the get-go, outshooting the Canadiens 14-4 in the first period and 37-25 overall. Vans Shoes Uk Sale . Sources tell TSN that union executives travelled to select CFL cities Monday to open dialogue with players and answer questions. After the tentative deal was reached Saturday night, several players posted messages of frustration and disappointment on social media - and that carried over into Sunday on both the web and the field. http://www.vanssaleuk.com/ .A. remained bitter for Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers on the long flight back home to New York. Cheap Wholesale Vans Shoes . Left back Layvin Kurzawa put Monaco ahead in the 36th minute with a low shot after being set up by midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia, sweeping the ball in after running onto Kondogbias cross from the left. Wholesale Vans Shoes . "I dont know where we would be without him," McClendon said. "Hes done a tremendous job for us and (Wednesday) was no different." Logan Morrison drove in two runs in Seattles big sixth inning, Young pitched seven strong innings and the Mariners beat the Houston Astros 5-2 to complete a three-game sweep.DETROIT - Takuma Sato has earned the pole position for Sundays second race of the Detroit Grand Prix. Satos final lap in the second of two qualifying sessions knocked Helio Castroneves out of the top spot. Castroneves, who won the pole and finished fifth in Saturdays first race, will start third under the Indy Car series qualifying rules. Canadian James Hinchcliffe, the fastest driver in the eearly qualifying session, will share the front row with Sato.dddddddddddd. Will Power, who won Saturdays first race, will start eighth Sunday. It was another short qualifying run for Indianapolis 500 champion Ryan Hunter-Reay, who crashed on his first qualifying lap and will start 21st. He had the same starting spot a day earlier and finished 16 after crashing on the last lap. ' ' '