After getting the first weekend off, the Packers' latest attempt to finally – FINALLY! – break through to the Super Bowl begins tonight. And in case that wasn't exciting enough, the divisional round match comes at suitably frozen Lambeau Field against the San Francisco 49ers, irritating rivals then and now. With so much on the line – a third attempt at the big game, potentially Aaron Rodgers' final season in green and gold, a hated rival that we've regularly met in these major moments – the temperatures may be cold, but the excitement is heating up to steal-melting intensity.
But in case somehow you're not quite feeling power of the postseason yet – hey, the game is on a Saturday, which never quite feels right and always takes some mental rewiring – here are three pump-up videos that should hopefully get you hyped for another shot at the Super Bowl and another shot at the fool's gold Niners.
1. Savoring "The Journey"
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It's time for the playoffs.
Narrated by @AaronRodgers12 pic.twitter.com/HYJvP45rcB — Green Bay Packers (@packers) January 18, 2022
Yeah, there's something rich about Aaron Rodgers talking about how important it is to appreciate "the journey" when, beginning right after last season ended, he sure made this particularly one a lot harder and more stressful than necessary. But putting that aside, this Packers-made hype video is indeed hype-worthy, with an intense strumming score that would make Hans Zimmer proud, glorious highlights from the Packers' triumphant past and present and, yes, the pipes of Mr. Discount Double Check himself narrating it all. Maybe if he retires after this season and the whole "Jeopardy" thing doesn't work out, he can try a career in voiceover – but first things first, smacking down the Niners.
2. Remember last time ...
Much of the talk this past week has been about the Packers' previous postseason meetings against the Niners – most of which we'd rather not remember, most recently and notably that 37-20 shellacking in the NFC championship game two years ago. What we'd MUCH rather remember is our last meeting against the 49ers: just a few months ago in San Francisco, when we learned just how little time Aaron Rodgers needs to shatter his opponents' hearts. 37 seconds, as it turns out.
Now that's the stuff. That's a result worth remembering and reliving – and that isn't just the homer part of my brain speaking. Objectively it's the more relevant clip for Saturday as well. Why compare the result from two years ago with two very different teams when we saw what happened just this past season, against these exact squads? Anyways, I can't imagine how this clip could be any better and pump me up anymore ... I STAND CORRECTED!
3. A Green Bay banger
"Bang the Drum All Day" by Todd Rundgren. "Green and Yellow" by Packers superfan Lil' Wayne. "The Bears Still Suck." Green Bay has quite the playlist of supreme pump-up jams – and here's another one. Eddy J. Lemberger, the man behind former Packer jock jams like "Aaron Rodgers Rock & Roll" and the self-explanatory "I Love My Green Bay Packers" as well as this past year's Bucks championship anthem "Got Bucks Lust," is also in postseason form with his latest: "This World of Green and Gold," a funky touchdown of a tribute that I dare you to not get stuck in your head. I think we've got the theme song to our future victory parade. (*knocks on an entire forest of wood*)
As much as it is a gigantic cliché to say that one has always had a passion for film, Matt Mueller has always had a passion for film. Whether it was bringing in the latest movie reviews for his first grade show-and-tell or writing film reviews for the St. Norbert College Times as a high school student, Matt is way too obsessed with movies for his own good.
When he's not writing about the latest blockbuster or talking much too glowingly about "Piranha 3D," Matt can probably be found watching literally any sport (minus cricket) or working at - get this - a local movie theater. Or watching a movie. Yeah, he's probably watching a movie.