With their backs pinned firmly against the wall in the NFC North race, the Green Bay Packers must do something that has been part of the franchise's M.O. for decades - defending Lambeau Field in the month of December.

The Houston Texans will be the opponent for Green Bay on Sunday, and will be attempting to extend the misery for a Packers club that has gone 1-4 over its past five games to fall two games back of the first-place Vikings in the NFC North.

The Packers have exhibited particularly poor play over the past two weeks, allowing a total of 86 points in back-to-back losses to the Saints (51-29) and Panthers (35-31). The defeats have coincided with a pair of victories for Minnesota, but the uncertainty on the Vikings roster following this week's string of suspensions seems to leave the division as something of a wide open affair.

Green Bay can inject itself back into the heart of the race with a strong December, but a loss on Sunday would figure to all but eliminate Mike McCarthy's team from contention.

Following the Texans tilt, the Pack will travel to Jacksonville (4-8) and arch rival Chicago (6-6) before finishing up at home against currently winless Detroit (0-12).

Houston, meanwhile, comes into Lambeau sporting the same record as its competitor, but not its standing in the postseason hunt.

The Texans have long been out of an AFC South race commanded by first-place Tennessee (11-1), and would need four more wins plus a great deal of help around the league in order to reach its first postseason as a Wild Card entry.

That said, Gary Kubiak and company do come off perhaps their most encouraging performance of the year, a 30-17 beat-down of the Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday night.

Texans running back Steve Slaton rushed for 130 yards and two touchdowns to continue a scintillating rookie season, and was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts.

Houston quarterback Sage Rosenfels presided over his second win in five starts this season, but will not be in the lineup this week to try to acquire a third.

Matt Schaub will return this week from a four-game absence that followed a knee injury suffered in a 28-21 loss to the Vikings on Nov. 2nd. In that game, Schaub sprained his left MCL on a low hit from Minnesota end Jared Allen, a hit that drew a $50,000 fine for the Pro Bowl defensive end.

Schaub and Houston continue to hold out hope for the franchise's first winning season in its seven-year history, but will need to win their final four contests in order to achieve it.

SERIES HISTORY

The Packers won the only meeting with the Texans all-time, scoring a 16-13 victory when they visited Reliant Stadium in 2004. A Houston-based franchise has not traveled to Green Bay since the Oilers dealt the Packers a 31-3 setback at Lambeau Field in 1986.

The Texans' Kubiak and Packers' McCarthy will be meeting each other, as well as their counterpart's respective team, for the first time as head coaches.

WHEN THE TEXANS HAVE THE BALL

The big story for the Texans this week will be the return of Schaub (1762 passing yards, 10 TD, 8 INT), who had Houston in the midst of a mini-winning run before becoming injured on Nov. 2nd. The ex-Falcon and Virginia product has a solid 91.0 passer rating on the year, and will try to regain the form he displayed before going down. Schaub will work with one of the underrated receiving corps in the league, one that includes near-certain Pro Bowler Andre Johnson (88 receptions, 4 TD) on one side, red-zone vulture Kevin Walter (49 receptions, 7 TD) on the other, and trusty tight end Owen Daniels (50 receptions, 2 TD) across the middle of the field. Johnson, the NFL leader in both receptions and receiving yards, finished with seven catches for 75 yards and a score against Jacksonville on Monday. Were it not for him, the Texans' offensive MVP would undoubtedly be NFL Rookie of the Year candidate Steve Slaton (904 rushing yards, 34 receptions, 9 TD), whose strong rookie season has included two 100-yard games in his past three appearances. Slaton is averaging a healthy 5.0 yards per carry as Week 14 begins. An important charge for the Houston o-line on Sunday will be protecting the less-than-mobile Schaub, who has been sacked 16 times in his seven appearances this year.

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