Longtime Bears, Packers are aglow

GREEN BAY, Wis. - To be clear, nobody's kicking them out the door just yet.

Veterans such as Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver, cornerback Charles Woodson, left tackle Chad Clifton and Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher will start Sunday's NFC Championship Game as cornerstone players for their teams. They believe they have good years left.

Still, any player in his 30s without a Super Bowl ring doesn't have to be told that such opportunities are hard to come by.

"I've been once, and it was an incredible experience," Woodson said of the Super Bowl. "It's been a long time ago, though, now. The thing is, you never know when you'll get back."

Woodson, 34, played for the Oakland Raiders when they were beaten by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the January 2003 Super Bowl.

Urlacher and the Bears lost a Super Bowl to Indianapolis in February 2007. Even at age 32, he made it clear this week that he doesn't think this will be his last shot.

"No," Urlacher said. "I don't see us getting any worse next year. I think we should get better . . . I am not in any way thinking this is our last shot."

Even Bears linebacker Lance Briggs was asked if his window might be closing.

"I'm 30, I'm not dead," Briggs said. "I don't see it that way. I don't know how many years I'll get to play, or all of us on the team will get to play, but we're going to enjoy it."

Until now, Driver and Clifton haven't been closer than the Packers' January 2008 NFC championship loss to the Giants.

"It's always been a dream of mine to get to the Super Bowl," Driver said. "I think everybody in this locker room believes that it's right in front of us, and we've believed it since March."

Packers coach Mike McCarthy said he sees a unique sense of urgency from Driver and his other veterans.

"It's really Donald all the way down, particularly the players that were here in '07," McCarthy said. "You really have an understanding now of how hard it is to get to this game."

Bears safety insistent

Chicago Bears safety Chris Harris practiced Friday on a limited basis for the first time this week after suffering a hip pointer in a playoff win over Seattle on Sunday. Harris, listed as questionable, said he's "definitely playing" Sunday . . . Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers made a brief onstage appearance at a Brad Paisley concert Thursday in Green Bay.- AP