Notes: Julius Peppers’ sack of Eli Manning changes the momentum.

Green Bay — It was third-and-6, the New York Giants were backed into the shadow of their goal post, and the Green Bay Packers desperately needed a momentum-changing play.

They had been outmatched early in Sunday’s wild-card game at Lambeau Field, held scoreless and trailing late in the second quarter. Their defense struggled early, but was finding its footing.

One third-down stop could swing field position, potentially turn the game.

“Sometimes,” veteran edge rusher Julius Peppers said, “you’ve got to just dig down deep and be accountable for the role that you have on the team.”

Peppers’ sack against Giants quarterback Eli Manning might be identified as the turning point in Sunday’s 38-13 win. Until then, the Packers had trailed, 6-0.

The Packers took advantage of a short field to score their first touchdown three snaps after Peppers’ sack. They scored another touchdown on their next drive, taking a 14-6 lead into intermission thanks to a Hail Mary from Aaron Rodgers to Randall Cobb that ended the half. From there, the rout was on. “I thought that was a timely play that I came up with,” Peppers said. “I thought it was a big shift in momentum.”

All season, the Packers tapered Peppers’ snaps so he could be his most productive in the playoffs. On Sunday, they saw their plan pay off. Along with his sack, Peppers hit Manning two more times and batted down two passes.

Whether Peppers was an interior rusher or coming from the edge, the Giants offensive line couldn’t block him. Not bad for man 10 days from his 37th birthday.

“He looked like 27,” defensive tackle Letroy Guion said. “Julius is an amazing athlete. He ages amazing. He still look like he’s in his 20s to me.”

In the playoffs, game-changing plays have been the norm for Peppers in Green Bay with 4.5 sacks in five playoff games.

Peppers, who had 7.5 sacks in the regular season, is clearly still a leader in the Packers locker room.

Teammates voted him as a playoff captain, representing the defense with safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix.

But Peppers isn’t under contract next year. At his age, there’s a chance this playoff run could be his last.

“It’s just a heightened sense of urgency,” Peppers said. “A heightened sense of intensity. It’s playoff football, so there’s another level from regular season that you go to in the playoffs. I guess that’s what you can attribute it to.”

Nelson leaves game: Wide receiver Jordy Nelson left the game in the second quarter after absorbing a hard hit from safety Leon Hall, whose helmet collided with Nelson’s ribs.

Nelson remained on the ground for several minutes along the sideline as the game continued. Eventually, he walked gingerly to the cart and was taken to the locker room. He did not return to the game.

“I mean, obviously I’m concerned for Jordy,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “I don’t have the information yet. I haven’t even been in the training room so I can’t give you an update there.”

Nelson was not in the locker room after the game.

Beached: Odell Beckham Jr. and a few of his fellow receivers were the hot topic around the water cooler earlier this week when pictures of their off-day trip to Miami exploded on social media.

That Beckham, Victor Cruz and Sterling Shepard spent their off day in Florida was heavily criticized as the Giants prepared to play the Packers in the playoffs.

When Beckham put on a poor performance at Lambeau Field on Sunday — he caught four of 11 targets for 28 yards and had multiple drops — questions about the influence of that trip quickly followed.

“That sounds typical to me,” Beckham said. “At the end of the day, I went through practice, had zero drops, zero missed assignments.

“There’s just no way you could connect something that happened seven days ago to this game today and how we came out and played and how the Packers have won seven in a row and how they scored 38 points and how they executed and came up with the third downs . ... They did what they needed to do. The connection is just not there, in my opinion. But everybody’s going to have their own opinion.”

Injury report: Running back Ty Montgomery left briefly with an ankle injury before returning to finish the game.

“Why play it safe?” Montgomery said when asked why he came back with the Packers comfortably ahead. “It’s the playoffs.”

The Packers struggled to run the ball against the Giants’ stout front. They managed only 75 yards as a team on 25 attempts. Montgomery carried 11 times for 27 yards.

Montgomery’s backup, Christine Michael, finished as the leading rusher for the Packers. He carried 10 times for 47 yards and gave the offense a boost in the second half.