The Latest: Catch by Cook sets up winning kick for Packers
The Latest on the NFL's divisional playoffs Sunday. (all times Eastern):
8 p.m.
Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers are headed to the NFC championship game for the first time since the 2014 season after a thrilling finish in Dallas.
Mason Crosby kicked a 51-yard field goal as time expired, and the Packers edged the NFC's top-seeded Cowboys 34-31 on Sunday. The kick was set up by a Jared Cook 35-yard reception as he was sliding out of bounds.
Rodgers threw for 320 yards and two touchdowns as the Packers (12-6) won their eighth straight.
The Cowboys (13-4) rallied twice, first from 18 points down and again after the Packers went up 31-28 with 1:33 left on a 56-yard field goal by Crosby.
But Rodgers had the ball last to set up Crosby for the winning field goal.
The Packers will visit Atlanta in Rodgers' third NFC title game.
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7:50 p.m.
Just like that, the NFC divisional playoff game is tied up again.
Dan Bailey kicked a 52-yard field goal for the Cowboys with 35 seconds left to tie the game at 31.
After Mason Crosby's 56-yard field goal with 1:33 left put the Packers up, the Cowboys went 42 yards in six plays for Bailey's game-tying kick.
Aaron Rodgers and the Packers have two timeouts left.
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7:45 p.m.
Mason Crosby's kick wasn't pretty, but it went through the uprights. His 56-yard field goal with 1:33 left has put the Green Bay Packers up 31-28.
Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, the first rookie in the Super Bowl era with three TD passes in a playoff game, will get another possession.
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7:25 p.m.
The Dallas Cowboys have tied their NFC divisional playoff game against Green Bay at 28-all with 4:08 left in regulation.
Dak Prescott converted a 2-point conversion with a hard-nosed run right after throwing a 7-yard TD to Dez Bryant. It was Bryant's second touchdown of the game.
Dallas trailed by 15 points going into the fourth quarter.
In the Super Bowl era, only the 1972 Cowboys and the 2002 San Francisco 49ers have won a postseason game after going into the fourth quarter down by 15 points.
- Stephen Hawkins reported from Arlington, Texas
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7:10 p.m.
Jason Witten, like Dez Bryant earlier in the game, now has his first career postseason touchdown for the Dallas Cowboys.
Witten, the tight end in his 14th NFL season, caught a 6-yard TD pass from rookie Dak Prescott early in the fourth quarter to get the Cowboys within 28-20 against the Green Bay Packers.
Bryant had a 40-yard TD catch in the first half. Bryant is in his seventh NFL season.
- Stephen Hawkins reported from Arlington, Texas
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7 p.m.
The NFC divisional playoff game is a one-score game after Dak Prescott and Aaron Rodgers traded interceptions late in the third quarter.
Dallas was on the move when Prescott tried to throw a short pass to Cole Beasley. Micah Hyde stepped in front of the pass for an interception.
On the Packers ensuing drive, Rodgers badly overthrew a receiver and the ball was picked off by Jeff Heath. The safety made a diving catch, then got up and returned it 27 yards.
The Cowboys still had the ball after Heath's interception when the third quarter ended with them trailing 28-13. They scored to cut the lead to 28-20 early in the fourth.
- Stephen Hawkins reported from Arlington, Texas
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6:35 p.m.
Packers safety Morgan Burnett won't play in the second half against the Cowboys because of quad injury.
Burnett apparently got hurt on the opening drive of the game when he collided with teammate LaDarius Gunter when they were both trying to defend a pass thrown toward Dez Bryant .
Both were slow to get up after that play. Gunter was tended by trainers on the field while Burnett went to the sideline.
When the Cowboys offense took the field for their second possession, Gunter was back in the game.
The Packers said after halftime that Burnett, who hadn't played since the opening series, was out for the rest of the game
- Stephen Hawkins reported from Arlington, Texas
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6:20 p.m.
The Green Bay Packers lead the Cowboys 21-13 at halftime.
Dallas was facing its largest deficit of the season halfway through the second quarter before scoring 10 points on its last two drives.
Green Bay will get the ball to start the second half.
Aaron Rodgers is 15 of 24 passing for 191 yards with a touchdown. Ty Montgomery has only four carries for 26 yards, but also has his first two rushing touchdowns ever in the postseason .
Cowboys rookie quarterback Dak Prescott is 10-of-18 for 147 yards with a 40-yard TD to Dez Bryant.
Ezekiel Elliott, the other standout rookie in the Dallas backfield, has 10 carries for 44 yards.
- Stephen Hawkins reported from Arlington, Texas
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5:50 p.m.
The Dallas Cowboys faced their largest deficit of the season halfway through the second quarter of their first NFC Divisional playoff game at AT&T Stadium.
Ty Montgomery's 1-yard TD put Green Bay up 21-3 with 7:37 left in the first half.
The Cowboys answered with a 75-yard drive that took about 90 seconds and cut the lead to 21-10.
- Stephen Hawkins reported from Arlington, Texas
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5:30 p.m.
Green Bay running back Ty Montgomery, a converted receiver, has a rushing touchdown near his old hometown, and the Packers have a 14-3 lead early in the second quarter on the Dallas Cowboys, the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs.
Montgomery on a 3-yard run for his first career postseason touchdown. He was a receiver, running back, quarterback, cornerback and safety at St. Mark's High School in Dallas. He was drafted as a receiver, but the Packers figured they could use his versatility.
Montgomery had 25 yards on three carries early.
- Schuyler Dixon reported from Arlington, Texas
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5:05 p.m.
That was a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty you don't see very often.
The Dallas Cowboys had a first down wiped out by the penalty against receiver Brice Butler, who wasn't even part of the play. And that was actually the issue.
Referee Tony Corrente threw the flag immediately after the snap. After Terrance Williams made a catch the referee announced that Butler was penalized for going into the offensive huddle and then leaving the field.
There was even more confusion when the penalty was initially marked off only 5 yards.
After Packers coach Mike McCarthy pointed it out, Corrente announced the correction and the ball was moved back another 10 yards.
The Cowboys punted soon after that.
- Stephen Hawkins reported from Arlington, Texas
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4:55 p.m.
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers got a free play when the Dallas Cowboys jumped offside, and he made it count.
With flags on the field, Rodgers threw deep - and a 34-yard touchdown pass to tight end Richard Rodgers . That ended the Packers opening drive, putting them up 7-3 and quieting momentarily the raucous sellout crowd attending the first NFC Divisional playoff game at AT&T Stadium.
Dallas had the ball first and went ahead 3-0 on Dan Bailey's 50-yard field goal.
- Stephen Hawkins reported from Arlington, Texas
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4:35 p.m.
The Dallas Cowboys have long had the moniker of "America's Team" - and their legion of fans includes plenty of famous folks.
Several celebrities provided "Go Cowboys!" messages as part of a video that was shown on the large video screen that hangs over the field at AT&T Stadium during pregame activities.
Among those in the clip were Kanye West with the Kardashians, actress Kate Bosworth, All-Star guard Chris Paul from the Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher and Dallas-area native Clayton Kershaw and WWE wrestler Sting.
The final person was Papa John - yes, the man who makes pizzas and is a huge Cowboys fan. He turned to show the Cowboys star on the back of his shirt and said "Finish this Fight!" - a hashtag that has become prominent for the team heading into the playoffs.
- Stephen Hawkins reported from Arlington, Texas
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4:20 p.m.
The severe ice storm projected for the Kansas City area turned out relatively tame.
By the time the NFC game kicked off in Dallas, about when the AFC matchup of the Steelers at the Chiefs would have been ending, it was 33 degrees at Arrowhead Stadium. The rain was coming down, though not by any means torrentially, and ice was not an issue.
The game was moved from 1:05 p.m. Eastern to 7:20 p.m. so fans could avoid the worst of the expected ice.
Indeed, the parking lots were rapidly filling up and tailgating was in full swing.
A gray tarp covered the field inside the stadium, with hot air being pumped under the tarp to keep the turf warm. The Chiefs resodded the field earlier this week.
- Barry Wilner reported from Kansas City
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3:55 p.m.
There should be good vibes at AT&T Stadium for Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers and NFL rushing champion Ezekiel Elliott of Dallas.
The divisional playoff game between the Packers and Cowboys is Rodgers' first game in the $1.2 billion retractable roof stadium since winning the title as Super Bowl MVP in a 31-25 victory over Pittsburgh to conclude the 2010 season.
Rodgers, who has thrown 19 touchdown passes without an interception during a seven-game winning streak, had 304 yards passing with three TDs and no picks against the Steelers.
Elliott became a national name when he rushed for 246 yards and four touchdowns at his future home, leading Ohio State to the first College Football Playoff championship in a 42-20 victory over Oregon two years ago.
The Cowboys drafted Elliott fourth overall a year later, and he led the NFL with 1,631 yards rushing despite sitting the regular-season finale with the Cowboys already assured of the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
It's the first divisional game at AT&T Stadium. The Cowboys last hosted this round in 2007 at Texas Stadium, two years before owner Jerry Jones' showplace opened.
- Schuyler Dixon reported from Arlington, Texas
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3:25 p.m.
Old playoff foes are set to meet again with the Green Bay Packers visiting the top-seeded Dallas Cowboys in an NFC divisional game.
It's the eighth meeting - tied for the most against any opponent for both franchises. The Cowboys faced the Los Angeles Rams eight times in a span of 13 seasons from 1973-85. Green Bay just had its eighth playoff game against the New York Giants, a 38-13 win last weekend.
The Packers won the most recent meeting, 26-21 in the divisional round two years ago in a game made famous by Dallas receiver Dez Bryant's catch that wasn't .
Dallas coach Jason Garrett was quarterback Troy Aikman's backup when the Cowboys beat the Packers three straight years in the playoffs while winning two Super Bowls from 1993-95.
The Cowboys have a 4-3 series lead in the playoffs. The overall series is tied at 17-all.
- Schuyler Dixon reported from Arlington, Texas
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3:15 p.m.
NFL's Sunday divisional playoffs are about to get started, just a few hours later than expected.
With the Steelers game at Kansas City moved to a night start - 8:20 p.m. Eastern instead of 1:05 p.m. - because of an ice storm, the Packers game at the Dallas Cowboys became the opening act.
This is just the latest chapter in a great rivalry that includes the famous 1967 Ice Bowl, when the temperature at Lambeau Field was 15 below zero.
The weather will be much better in Arlington, Texas, where it is about 52 degrees.
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