MIN at GB: 3 things you need to know
A pair of teams coming off bounce-back wins will meet Thursday night at Lambeau Field.
Old rivals the Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers will do battle and try to gain ground on the first-place Detroit Lions in the NFC North.
Here are three things you need to know:
Teddy Bridgewater's health
Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater is questionable for the contest with an ankle injury.
The pivot went down in Sunday's win over the Atlanta Falcons, a game in which he looked like a seasoned veteran, not a rookie quarterback making his first career start. Bridgewater ran for a touchdown and threw for more than 300 yards, leading Minnesota to 41 points. He'll need to produce more of that magic if the Vikings hope to keep up with the high-scoring Packers.
If he can't go it's going to be Christian Ponder back behind center - a sight surely no Vikings fan wants to see.
Packers offense back on track
After sputtering in two of their first three games offensively, the Packer looked like their normal selves on Sunday.
Green Bay never punted in a 38-17 win over the Chicago Bears and only a missed field goal prevented them from scoring on every drive. Aaron Rodgers had thrown for less than 200 yards in two of the first three contests, but put any fears to rest with a 302-yard, four-touchdown performance Sunday.
Two scores each went to Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb, proving it's nearly impossible for defenses to hone in on just one weapon. The Packers getting their offense running on all cylinders again came at the worst time for the Vikings.
Vikings rushing attack could be in for a big night
It sounds weird to say with Adrian Peterson out of the lineup, but the Vikings run game hasn't missed a beat.
In their victory over the Falcons, Minnesota posted more than 240 yards on the ground. Matt Asiata rumbled for three touchdowns, while Jerick McKinnon put up 135 yards on just 18 carries. The pair have a Thunder and Lightning thing working right now, and that's bad news for a Packers defense that's had major issues stopping the run.
Green Bay ranks dead last against the run and have been conceding an average of 176 yards per game so far. If that trend continues Thursday, the Vikings could be poised for an upset.