Packers wide receiver Davante Adams hurts his knee in the third quarter against the Redskins on Sunday. He did not return to the game. Credit: Mark Hoffman

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Landover, Md. — Maybe it's best that the Green Bay Packers head out to Arizona on a short week.

It's not like they need to study up on the Cardinals.

It was just two weeks ago that the Packers suffered a humiliating 38-8 defeat in the desert in a game in which they trailed 17-0 at half. They entered that game badly missing left tackle David Bakhtiari (ankle) and wound up losing right tackle Bryan Bulaga (ankle) in the middle of the game.

The Cardinals had nine sacks in the dismantling of the Packers.

"It's a new season," receiver Randall Cobb said after the Packers' 35-18 victory over Washington in an NFC wild-card game at FedEx Field. "The playoffs are win and go home and fortunately enough we were able to win tonight and give ourselves another opportunity next week. And that's all we can ask for."

The Packers, seeded No. 5 in the NFC, play at No. 2-seeded Arizona Saturday at 7:15 p.m. Sixth-seeded Seattle beat Minnesota earlier in the day and as the lowest remaining seed plays at No. 1 seed Carolina at 12:05 p.m. Sunday.

The Cardinals had a bye this weekend, so they will have had 13 days to prepare for the Packers, who returned home late Sunday night. For a Saturday game, Green Bay would normally begin the practice week on a Tuesday, but coach Mike McCarthy indicated he would be giving the players two days off from practice to help them recuperate.

They will probably fly out to Phoenix on Friday.

Arizona finished the regular season on a down note, getting destroyed at home, 36-6, by the Seahawks. But they had already clinched a first-round bye and their motivation wasn't as high as it will be Saturday for their rematch with the Packers.

It would help the Packers immensely if Bakhtiari would be available to play, but it's still unknown whether his ankle will be in good enough shape by then. He has been trying to practice, but the ankle has not responded and he was inactive against Washington.

"He's getting better and hopefully he can do something Wednesday," McCarthy said.

The Packers took a similar path through the playoffs in 2010, winning three games on the road to get to Super Bowl XLV, so they know it's not impossible to go on the road and win again. But they beat a team Sunday that finished the season 9-7 and now they're going to face one that some consider the best in the NFC.

"We're the 2015 Packers," McCarthy said when asked about the 2010 team. "That's something we've thought a lot about. So, this is our opportunity. We're a different team and obviously we've got a different challenge going into Arizona."

On the mend: In addition to Bakhtiari, cornerback Sam Shields missed a fourth straight game because of a concussion.

It's questionable whether either of the two will be ready for the Cardinals and now McCarthy has two other injuries to worry about.

Wide receiver Davante Adams twisted his knee and cornerback Quinten Rollins injured his thigh. Neither returned to the game.

Adams said tight end Richard Rodgers landed on his right leg after a reception in the third quarter.

"He just rolled up on me after I got tackled on that screen," Adams said after the game. "It's a little sore right now, but I think I'll be fine."

Adams said the medical staff thought it wouldn't be wise for him to return. Jared Abbrederisreceived most of the snaps that Adams would have had. Adams finished with four catches for 48 yards and a touchdown and appeared to be en route to his best game of the season before getting hurt.

"They said that it's just going to be a thing that they felt it would probably be best and smartest if I sat out the rest of the half," Adams said. "It's a situation where you just feel it out throughout the week, but I think I'll be fine."

Bang-up job: Center JC Tretter was the next man up for the left tackle position after backup tackle Don Barclay and guard Josh Sitton were unable to handle the spot adequately.

Tretter got beat early in the game for a safety when linebacker Preston Smith rushed around him and corralled quarterback Aaron Rodgers. But Tretter performed solidly after that and Rodgers suffered one sack and one other quarterback hit.

"I thought he did a great job," said Sitton, who returned to his left guard position. "He had the early sack there and rebounded and played awesome. A lot of guys would let that get in their head the rest of the game. He responded and played his (butt) off."

Windy city: The official weather report said that the wind was blowing 9 mph at game time, which isn't an exceptionally strong wind, but the players said it could be extremely difficult to handle because of its unpredictability.

Punt returner Micah Hyde said the wind was giving him fits while he was trying to field punts. He said it didn't matter which end of the field you were on.

"The wind out there was brutal," Hyde said. "The flags were blowing one way, the ball was going the other way. It was pretty tough to read that ball. The one that bounced and rolled 20 yards, I just kind of got a bad read on it.

"It kind of just died on me. I should have played the hop. I think it was too late. Playing outdoors this time of year is rough. Glad we're going to Arizona, that's for sure."

Reading it right: Running back Eddie Lacy wasn't having a particularly good game until the Packers first possession of the second half.

Washington had scored on a nine-play, 73-yard drive to take an 18-17 lead at the start of the third quarter, but the Packers responded and faced a fourth and 1 at the Washington 45. Lacy got around left end for an 11-yard gain to pick up the first down.

On the very next play, he took the ball on an inside zone play and found a cutback lane for a 30-yard gain to the 4-yard line.

"It was kind of in the play, but it was sort of run and react," Lacy said of his decision to cut back. "When I saw the cutback side and saw I had blockers over there, it pretty much went together perfectly. I just had to make sure I held onto the football."

Lacy said that on his late fumble he was trying to gain some extra yards and should have just gone down more easily.

Michael Cohen contributed to this report.