Brutal cold in Green Bay may be perfect weather for Aaron Rodgers in playoff game

Lambeau Field is as historic as it gets. Home to the Green Bay Packers since 1957, the stadium is touted as the "longest continuously occupied stadium" in the league and has played host to many of the coldest games the league has ever seen.

As the Packers prepare to host the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday night for an NFC Divisional Round playoff game, extremely cold conditions will yet again be a factor for a matchup on Lambeau's frozen tundra. Game-time temperatures will rival those of some of the coldest games in NFL postseason history. The forecast is calling for temperatures to linger in the single digits around kickoff, with a persistent wind gust sending the AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature plummeting below zero.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) looks over the defense of the Chicago Bears during an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019, in Green Bay, Wis. The Packers won the game 21-13. (Jeff Haynes/AP Images for Panini)

In other words, the weather should be perfect for Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

The reigning NFL MVP has, on numerous occasions, expressed how much he loves playing football in the cold Green Bay weather.

"This is our weather and we love this weather," Rodgers, 38, famously said after a snowy game in late 2019. "It's not a huge decided advantage, but I think the cold can be a mental advantage and, like I said after the game, it seems like this place is becoming what it was for so long, which is a very difficult place to play."

General view of Lambeau field before an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec 27. 2020, between the Tennessee Titans and Green Bay Packers in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

According to a report by WFRV, which cited data from Pro Football Reference, statistics show that Rodgers and the Packers have played remarkably well in cold-weather games. Over his 17-season career, Rodgers is 28-8 overall and 6-3 in the playoffs in games played in freezing conditions. Compared to his career overall winning percentage of 67 percent, Rodgers' winning percentage actually climbs to nearly 78 percent when kickoff temperatures were 32 degrees or below.

Just a few weeks ago, on Jan. 2, Rodgers played one of his strongest games of the season against the Minnesota Vikings in 11-degree F temperatures. Despite being the coldest game of the year, the franchise legend completed a season-high 29 passes on 38 attempts, tossed two touchdowns without throwing a pick and finished with a sparkling 114.8 quarterback rating.

San Francisco quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, on the other hand, lacks that cold-game experience. WFRV reported that of the 68 games the 30-year-old quarterback has started over his eight seasons in the league, Garoppolo has never started a game in which the temperature was below 40 degrees at kickoff.

At a press conference this week, Packers wide receiver Allen Lazard told reporters that the extreme cold can create challenges "when running routes, getting hit, tackled, catching the ball" not to mention just maintaining sharp concentration.

And he went on to explain the thinking behind why most Packers players won't even be wearing long sleeves despite the punishing cold.

Green Bay Packers' Allen Lazard celebrates his touchdown catch during the first half of an NFL football game against the Chicago Bears Sunday, Dec. 12, 2021, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Matt Ludtke)

"That's why we don't wear sleeves and that's why we love playing here at home," Lazard said. "Because it's a tough environment to play in and if you're able to adapt to those elements then you're going to have the leg up on your opponent."

It won't just be the players on the field at Lambeau dealing with the brutal cold. The weather has the potential to be an even greater challenge for thousands from Packers Nation packed into the seats there.

For Packers superfans like Zac Couvillion, the stakes of the game help nullify the sting of the cold. With the Packers just two wins away from the franchise's sixth Super Bowl appearance, and first in more than a decade, Couvillion said diehards like himself know there's something different about a playoff game.

"It'll be a crazy atmosphere for sure," he told AccuWeather.

A lifelong fan, Couvillion, 36, said he's been to more than 20 Packers games in his life and can thank northern Wisconsin's blustery weather for some of his most memorable games, including the first one he ever attended.

Fans watch during the first half of an NFL football game between the Green Bay Packers and the Minnesota Vikings at Lambeau Field Sunday, Jan. 2, 2022, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)

"My first game wasn't until my senior year of high school and it was in December of 2002," he recalled. "It was a Sunday Night Football game against the Vikings, so a good rivalry game to kick off my first trip to Lambeau. My aunt is a diehard Packers fan and her and I used to watch games together, so she got me the ticket. It was cold, it was really cold." According to Pro Football Reference, the game-time temperature for the game on that December night was a frigid 11 degrees.

In his decades of attending games since then, Couvillion said he has learned plenty of tricks to keep warm during low-temperature games.

This weekend, all those tricks will certainly come in handy, as AccuWeather meteorologists expect conditions to be frigid at the 7:15 p.m. kickoff, local time, and only get colder as the game wears on.

AccuWeather Meteorologist Maxwell Gawryla said that while the thermometer's mercury will certainly be low, windy conditions will make it feel even colder.

Nicholas Nesvacil walks on a pile of snow outside Lambeau Field before an NFL football game between the Green Bay Packers and the Seattle Seahawks Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)

"Between the cold, Arctic air mass over the region and reasonably breezy winds throughout the day, it's going to feel notably colder than it actually is," he said, adding that gusts could reach up to 25 mph. "Temperatures around the start of the game will be around 12 degrees and continue to fall through the game. By the time the match is over, it's entirely possible temperatures will have fallen into the single digits."

Due to the wind gusts, the AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature will stay below zero the entire game, he said, likely hovering between 1 below zero and 3 below zero.

In preparation for Saturday's game, Couvillion said he knows his reliable outfit will keep him warm.

"I'll have my Carhartt overalls that are insulated, with a Carhartt jacket. Then, of course, I have an oversized Aaron Rodgers jersey that I'll throw over top all that," he said. "But, then, underneath I'll have long johns and probably some insulated sweatpants."

Plus, he said he knows to remember one trick that too many fans forget.

"Here's the key, everyone who gets cold at Lambeau gets cold because they forget their feet," Couvillion said. "I'll be wearing my hunting boots with the feet warmers that stick to the bottom of your socks. So you put your first socks on, you stick those to the bottom, then you put your wool socks on and then you're good for the game, you won't get cold."

Keeping those feet warm is extra important for playoff games because, as Couvillion said, fans treat them much differently than regular-season contests. While fans may spend the bulk of a game sitting in a seat during a regular-season game, the majority of Packers fans, lovingly referred to as "Cheeseheads," spend playoff games out of their seats and cheering on their feet.

A Green Bay Packers fan watches the second half of an NFL football game between the Packers and the Baltimore Ravens, Sunday, Dec. 19, 2021, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

The excitement of the high-stakes game also helps.

"Your adrenaline will start to rush. For me, it's already going and the game is on Saturday," he said on Wednesday. "I'm already jacked and ready for the game. Once you get in the stadium, especially in a playoff atmosphere, there is definitely a difference at Lambeau Field."

But even though the 49ers will be traveling to Green Bay from warm-weather California, Couvillion said he doesn't expect the conditions to give his team too big of an advantage because of San Francisco's play style. The run-heavy team is accustomed to grinding out games without having to rely too much on the passing game.

But when San Fransisco quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo does need to drop back to pass, Couvillion predicted that Garoppolo's recent thumb injury could prove problematic in the cold.

As for Couvillion staying warm in the stands, it also doesn't hurt that he has high expectations for this year's Packers team. Along with predicting a win over the 49ers on Saturday, he thinks this year's team has real potential to be Super Bowl champs.

"I'm going to sound like a homer here," he confessed, "but I think this weekend the Packers will win it 31-20 and I just have a feeling that the Packers will end up in the Super Bowl against the Buffalo Bills," he said, which would make for an intriguing matchup against yet another team that has excelled in cold weather.

For the latest weather news check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch the AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeather Now is now available on your preferred streaming platform.