A lot of people will point out to pundits and Niners fans that the Packers team heading to San Francisco this week is very different than the one who lost in Week 1.

The same is actually true of the 49ers as well, because it's second-year quarterback Colin Kaepernick who is under center now, not Alex Smith.

You probably know Kaepernick because of the tattoo flap a month or so ago, or maybe because of his SportsCenter highlights.

He's going to be a handful for the Packers defense, make no mistake.

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There are more than a few eerie (or for Packers fans, heartening) similarities between this season and the 2010 Super Bowl run for the Green Bay Packers.

These similarities include lots of injuries, big years by the receivers and Aaron Rodgers, and a running back coming out of nowhere.

Second-year running back DuJuan Harris has been impressive this season since taking over a major role in the offense—well, major for the Packers, who never run the ball all that much over the course of a game.

Tyler Dunne of the Journal-Sentinel takes a look at the undrafted second-year player who was cut by two teams before coming to the Packers.

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Since he's a punter, I don't get to talk about Chris Kluwe nearly enough—though he has been mentioned on the NFC North blog more than a few times this year for non-football items.

Kluwe (who you can follow on Twitter here) was once again in the news for non-football reasons when he stepped onstage at The Colbert Report Tuesday night (click the link for video).

If you follow Kluwe on Twitter (or have heard him speak), you won't be surprised by how engaging and entertaining he is. Of course, Colbert's show isn't exactly Crossfire, so Kluwe had no problem slipping in more than a few yucks (the high points of which was calling himself a "Professional Surrenderer" and describing the forums at World of Warcraft as "cesspools of humanity").

However, he also continued to eloquently discuss and defend his stand on marriage equality, gun control and more, even if the interview was brief and lighthearted.

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My illustrious comrade, Josh Zerkle, called into question how useful the play of aging Packers defensive back Charles Woodson would be in the coming game against San Francisco, citing age and lack of playing time as why he will not help in taking down the 49ers.

I must humbly disagree.

Yes, Woodson is old and on the downside of his career. And yes, he's been out for several months.

However he was also a huge factor in holding Adrian Peterson to a modest—for Peterson—99 yards on the ground.

Frank Gore is very, very good, but he's not Adrian Peterson—especially this season. Here's what Woodson brought to the table Saturday night and will do again this weekend.

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It's no secret that Percy Harvin's relationship to the Vikings has seemed strained at times over the last few years.

The latest moment to trigger murmurs of his dissatisfaction was his absence from the facilities (via CBSsports.com) once he was placed on injured reserve.

It does strike one as odd, especially given that the team was up against a wall and could have used some veteran leadership on the offense during its big run in December and in their playoff game.

It's not totally unheard of for a player to skip out once he's on injured reserve, even when the playoffs are at stake. His job is to get healthy—how and where he chooses to do it is up to him and the team.

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With all the hubbub about Robert Griffin III's torn up knee (someone needs to get him on the phone with Adrian Peterson), it's worth talking a little about Christian Ponder's messed up arm.

It's hard to imagine Ponder with a bruised up arm would have been worse than Joe Webb Saturday night but the pictures are nasty.

The question a lot of fans have had is why the Vikings waited so long to make the switch, but according to the Pioneer-Press' Ben Goessling, they really thought he might be able to play come Saturday night.

As with RG3, you have to assume that the player wanted to play—really, really, wanted to play. It's the playoffs, and the chance to play in postseason action isn't one you get every season—just ask the former Super Bowl winning New York Giants.

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One of the key skills for any new coach for the Chicago Bears will be an ability to get a languishing offense moving. With that, of course, is the obvious point that said coach will need to help Jay Cutler take his play to a whole new level.

Nobody fits that bill better than Mike McCoy, offensive coordinator for the Denver Broncos.

For those who are not familiar with his resume, it's very impressive.

In just the time he has been in Colorado, McCoy has shaped successful offenses for quarterbacks as disparate as Peyton Manning, Tim Tebow and Kyle Orton.

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The season is officially over for the Minnesota Vikings, so they can turn their attention to trying to sign the 17 free agents they have.

They should start by signing Jerome Felton.

Felton was the fifth overall ranked fullback by Pro Football Focus, but the second-highest graded blocker (with over 400 snaps, also Premium Stat).

In other words, he's very, very good at what he does.

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