The injury report:
PACKERS
Out ? RT Bryan Bulaga (knee); CB Demetri Goodson (hamstring); S Morgan Burnett.
Questionable ? OLB Mike Neal (groin); S Morgan Burnett (calf); S Sean Richardson (ankle).
Probable ? WR Davante Adams (ankle); RB Eddie Lacy (ankle); WR Randall Cobb (shoulder); CB Sam Shields (calf); FB Aaron Ripkowski (shoulder).
CHIEFS
Probable ?OL Jeff Allen (knee); T Eric Fisher (ankle); TE Demetrius Harris (foot); WR Jeremy Maclin (knee); LB Josh Mauga (Achilles?); T Donald Stephenson (ankle); WR De?Anthony Thomas (ankle); RB Charcandrick West (Achilles?); WR Albert Wilson (shoulder).
THE BREAKDOWN: FIVE THINGS TO WATCH
It?s been a while: Aaron Rodgers claimed not to remember. The Packers quarterback made this claim shortly after he?d rattled off the specific pass play on which the Packers took the lead against the Chiefs ? in a game in 2007. And the pass was thrown not by him, but by Brett Favre.
So whether you believe Rodgers ? the man who remembers everything ? or not, he claimed not to remember the details of his last regular-season interception at Lambeau Field, thrown 451 passes ago.
?I don?t remember that,? Rodgers insisted.
When cued that the interception came on a flea-flicker against Minnesota on Dec. 2, 2012, Rodgers replied, ?That?s what it was? [I guess we] shouldn?t have called that play.?
Rodgers can downplay it all he wants, but his interception-averse approach is historic. Since ascending to the starting job in 2008, no one in the NFL has had more zero-interception games (62), and his career interception percentage of 1.6 (57 INTs on 3,531 attempts) ranks No. 1 in NFL history.
While going those 451 attempts without throwing a pick at Lambeau Field, Rodgers has also thrown 38 touchdowns during that time ? also an NFL record.
?That?s quite a streak,? Reid said when told of Rodgers? run. ?That?s pretty impressive.?
Asked to explain the streak, McCarthy didn?t have much insight.
?He?s a perfectionist. He?s very much into his craft,? McCarthy said in a conference call with reporters who cover the Chiefs. ?Obviously, when you play at home you?re a lot more comfortable than when you are on the road. He takes a lot of pride in his performance, he?s a preparation junkie, so I think we?re just seeing a great player on a great stretch in his career.?
Houston, we have a problem: Eight days after Seattle?s Michael Bennett, Bruce Irvin and Cliff Avril generated all kind of pressure against Packers tackles David Bakhtiari and Don Barclay ? only Rodgers? deft footwork inside and outside the pocket kept the sack number at 2 ? the Packers? line will be challenged again by Chiefs? rushers Justin Houston and Tamba Hali.
Based on their tendencies so far this season, Bakhtiari will see Hali most of the time and Houston, who had 22 sacks last season, will be going against Barlcay, starting his second straight game with Bulaga out.
?It?s always good when you get really good pass rushers that want to test your skills, test your fundamentals and test you as a player. I think being a left tackle, every week?s a challenge in and of itself. But when you get guys who have more notoriety, bigger names, I think their names are known because of how well they play. You?ve just got to bring it,? Bakhtiari said.
?[Houston] is a hell of a player. He?s got a motor, he?s big, strong, fast, great fundamentals, great hands, so he?s going to be a great test. It?ll be fun. [But] you can?t forget about the guy on the other side of the ball. I know Houston has got a lot of cred ? he?s probably one of the best in the biz ? but don?t forget about 91 now. I think he?s a special player as well. He?s been doing it for a while.?
?Ancient history?: Other than going out of his way to correct his head coach, who apparently told Sports Illustrated that Rodgers brings up the San Francisco 49ers? 2005 NFL Draft decision ? drafting Alex Smith No. 1 overall instead of Rodgers, a call that McCarthy, the 49ers offensive coordinator at the time, was on board with ? every year, there was precious little discussion this week of the Rodgers-Smith history.
Maybe that?s because Rodgers has never had an issue with Smith ? only the 49ers? decision to take the former University of Utah quarterback instead of him.
?Alex and I are good buddies. I love seeing him and his family in Tahoe [at the annual American Century Celebrity Golf tournament],? Rodgers said. ?He?s one of the guys I pull for. He?s a great guy ? and he?s been through a lot in his career with different coaches and teams now, and he?s done a great job. I?m really happy for him. He?s one of those guys I really pull for when I?m not playing him. So, it?s good to spend a little time with him and [there is] no animosity whatsoever.?
Rodgers has never been a fan of the what-if question ? What if he?d been the one who went through offensive coordinators like Keurig coffee pods early in his career? ? and he?s always intimated that deep down, he believes he would have overcome the coaching carousel Smith had to endure. On the flip side, perhaps Smith?s career stats (58-48-1 record as a starter, 83.0 career passer rating) would have been better had he had the coaching stability Rodgers has enjoyed in Green Bay.
?You get the what-ifs, and our guys even ask me here. I don?t give it any thought. I am where I am, and in the end it?s not a reality to even think about that stuff, so why would I even do that?? Smith said. ?I?m so happy with where I?m at right now professionally and in life, and I think Aaron has done OK for himself. You don?t play that way. It?s irrational and I think it would detract you from what you?re trying to do.
?Certainly I had my struggles early. And Aaron wasn?t playing. So it was different. It wasn?t until Years 4, 5, 6 that I started just playing, and playing really well. At that point, though, you?re beyond it ? at least I was. You?re over it. The last thing you?re thinking about is where I got drafted.
?At the time, coming out of college, of course we?re all competing. You?re at the same position, so certainly you?re competing against each other. You can definitely understand it at the time, but at this point? Eleven years later, he?s got 2 MVPs and a Super Bowl. I think he?s done OK, you know??
Home cooking: The remark was subtle, but keen ears caught it. In the aftermath of last Sunday night?s victory over Seattle, Rodgers said the Packers? success at Lambeau Field ? they?ve now won 10 in a row there, having gone 9-0 last season (including playoffs) ? is more than just an improved game-day experience, passionate loud fans and good acoustics. Rodgers used the word ?culture? and said the vibe around the team hasn?t always been like it is now when it comes to playing at home.
Asked to clarify on Thursday, Rodgers replied, ?Our game-day operations have improved. We?re still playing ?Roll out the Barrel,? which is awesome. We still have the beer races [on the scoreboard video screens], which are great. But we?re really getting loud. The game had a great feel as far as the noise for them when they were on offense. That?s a big asset. You know when you?re playing on the road and you go into a hostile environment, when you cannot communicate with your offense, it makes it so much more difficult. We?re so happy our fans have really embraced that, I think.
?Also, inside the locker room there?s a mindset now that we expect to win when we play at home. This hasn?t really been the case over my 10 years plus, so it?s exciting to see that attitude change.?
The Packers have squandered home-field advantage in the postseason three times under McCarthy: In losing the 2007 NFC Championship Game to the New York Giants; in losing in the 2011 NFC Divisional Round to the Giants as the No. 1 seed in the conference; and in the 2013 playoffs, losing at home to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Wild Card round after getting into the playoffs on the final day of the season in thrilling fashion.
With the team?s stated goal being to have homefield advantage throughout the postseason in January, winning all their home games ? this would be No. 2 ? is an obvious priority, however you try to describe it.
?The fact that our players are talking about it, they?re much more aware and understand the importance ? I don?t want to say more than before, but it?s more evident how important it is to win at home. And how tough it is if you?re fortunate to get into that playoff situation,? McCarthy said. ?It?s definitely more of a, I don?t want to say a focus point, but our guys are much more aware of it.?
The closers: While McCarthy has been talking since the beginning of the offseason about getting off to a fast start ? and after opening the last three seasons at 1-2, a 3-0 start would certainly fit the bill ? defensive coordinator Dom Capers? mantra has been the opposite with his guys: We have to finish.
That message, borne from the Packers? collapse in the NFC Championship Game in Seattle in January, has been constant in defensive meetings since the team came back together in April.
?That was an emphasis coming into the season ? finishing the drills in practice, finishing games,? veteran outside linebacker Julius Peppers said. ?It?s shown up in the games when we needed it. Guys made big plays for us to finish both games.?
That?s exactly what has happened. In the opener in Chicago, linebacker Clay Matthews delivered the finishing play ? the defensive ?dagger,? to use play-by-play man Wayne Larrivee?s word ? with his interception of Jay Cutler?s fourth-quarter pass. Last week against the Seahawks, it was second-year outside linebacker Jayrone Elliott, who had a terrific one-handed interception of a Russell Wilson pass and then forced a fumble to end the Seahawks? final possession.
Who?ll be the closer on Monday night? McCarthy hopes the culture the defensive group has created means anyone can be that player.
?Finishing football games is always an emphasis. We talk about finishing every play, every practice, every day,? McCarthy said. ?If you look at the way the game was played Sunday night, we came out strong ? I?m sure [the Seahawks] felt there was a big surge, and they came out and felt like they probably handled our surge in the first half.
?Then obviously they took the lead in the third quarter, and frankly we took the game over in the fourth quarter. Those are definitely confidence-builders that your team can build off of. Frankly, that?s what you?re looking for because early in the season you?ve just got to find ways to win games. It?s never as clean as you like it to be.
?We?ve done that the first two weeks, and we need to take it to another level Monday night.?