GREEN BAY, Wis. -- There was no reason to think Davante Adams might have a big game on Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys.

After all, the Green Bay Packers' rookie receiver had caught just four passes for 29 yards in his previous four games combined. That's how he followed up his six-catch, 121-yard showing against the New England Patriots on Nov. 30, a game that was supposed to be his breakout but until Sunday looked like an anomaly.

But his quarterback had a feeling.

"I expected him to play this way this week based on matchups," Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said.

Rodgers figured the Cowboys would put Orlando Scandrick on Randall Cobb and Brandon Carr on Jordy Nelson. And they did when they weren't playing zone.

That left nickel cornerback Sterling Moore on Adams for most of the game. Adams won that matchup to the tune of seven catches, which matched his career best, for 117 yards and a touchdown.

From the slot on third-and-15 late in the third quarter, he beat Moore on an in-breaking route and then cut it outside for a 46-yard, catch-and-run touchdown -- his first since Nov. 16 against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Just as important was the catch he made on the Packers' final drive, the one that ate up the last 4 minutes, 6 seconds of the game. Three plays in, the Packers faced third-and-3 from their own 40. Rodgers hit Adams in the left flat and when Moore tried to rip the ball free, Adams muscled him out of the way and ran 26 yards. The Packers would need just one more third-down conversion, a 12-yarder to Cobb (eight catches for 116 yards) after which he chucked the ball in excitement, to wrap up the game.

The Packers needed Adams and Cobb on a day when their Pro Bowl receiver, Nelson, was held to just two catches for 22 yards in the 26-21 victory that sent them into the NFC Championship Game next Sunday at the Seattle Seahawks.

"A lot of what he does is just his skill set and his ability," Cobb said of Adams. "He brings something special to this team, and the way he played is unbelievable. Once you get the ball in his hands, he's special with it. He came to play and made the plays, and we're going to need more of that from him moving forward."

And it led to a special moment for the rookie receiver and his quarterback after the game.

"I just actually talked to him in the locker room," Rodgers said. "I just told him how proud I was of him.

"He went through a stretch where he didn't get the ball a lot for about four games, and that was kind of after he had a big game against New England, and everybody was kind of thinking this is when he's going to come on. But I'm really proud of him. He's a great player. He prepares every week the exact same. You don't see a difference in his attitude, and it says a lot about the kind of guy he is and the kind of player he's going to be for us."