GREEN BAY, Wis. — Little did anyone know outside the Green Bay Packers locker room at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis before Sunday’s game against Minnesota — the Packers were relying on an ailing back as their key point of attack.

The fact that running back Eddie Lacy went out and had one of his best games this season is all the more impressive considering word didn’t get out until afterward that he played sick with an intestinal disorder.

“I knew he wasn’t feeling great,” left guard Josh Sitton said after the Packers’ 24-21 win over the Vikings. “(But) he’s a tough son of a bitch. You could see it on his face a little bit that he wasn’t feeling too good. He’s just tough, man.”

Lacy willed NFC North-leading Green Bay to the closer-than-predicted victory against its sub-.500 division rival. He had season highs for carries (25) and rushing yards (125) and also scored two touchdowns – one by run and another on a 10-yard shovel pass from Aaron Rodgers.

That latter score at the end of an 11-play, 87-yard drive that chewed up more than six minutes proved to be the decisive points as it put the Packers ahead 24-13 with 8 1/2 minutes to play.

Yet, Lacy’s most critical contribution arguably came a little more than five minutes of game action later after the Vikings cut their deficit to 24-21 on a touchdown and two-point conversion.

Minnesota’s decision to forsake an onside kick with three minutes, 23 seconds to go put the football back in Green Bay’s hands – or, to be more precise, Lacy’s hands.

“All the weight was on the O-line (offensive line) and the running backs that last possession, and they came through,” Green Bay receiver Jordy Nelson said.

Starting from their 20-yard line, the Packers ran the football with Lacy on five straight plays. His four-yard run on an inside handoff on third-and-2 at the 28 gave Green Bay a new set of downs at the two-minute warning.

“The way that Eddie was running the football and the (blocking by) the (offensive) line, you have to give the line a voice,” said quarterback Aaron Rodgers, explaining why he and head coach/play caller Mike McCarthy mutually agreed to stick with the run on that third-down play. “Those guys know the pulse of the game there, especially late in the game there. They felt like a run was something we could get.”

Lacy followed with runs of five and 10 yards for another first down to effectively end the game since Minnesota was out of timeouts.

“It’s a hell of a feeling,” Sitton said. “It’s probably the best feeling in football for an offensive lineman. We don’t get touchdowns and stats, so that’s about as good as it gets for us.”

And, no doubt provided a lift by game’s end to the illness-stricken Lacy, who didn’t talk to the media afterward.

McCarthy said Monday that Lacy was “fighting through a GI (gastrointestinal) illness.”

“He was in today for the regen(eration) workout, so he went through the weight-room work and so forth,” McCarthy added. “But, it’s something that we’re still monitoring.”

Lacy touched the football 27 times Sunday, getting two catches for 13 yards.

He became the first Green Bay running back to have at least 100 yards from scrimmage and a receiving touchdown in three straight games.

“He was great,” Rodgers said of Lacy’s performance Sunday with the Vikings determined to stifle Green Bay’s passing attack. “He’s a workhorse. We need him in the winter months. He runs really hard, he’s really tough to tackle, never goes down with the first contact. He’s really good in the passing game, too. He’s agile for a guy of his size. He’s got a great spin move, takes care of the football, does all of the things you want.”

–McCarthy also spotted linebacker Clay Matthews in for treatment and workout at the team’s Lambeau Field facility Monday.

For the second time this season, Matthews wasn’t full go for the entire game Sunday. He aggravated a groin injury in the 53-20 win over the Philadelphia Eagles the previous week and practiced on a limited basis ahead of the matchup with the Vikings.

McCarthy and defensive coordinator Dom Capers compensated for Matthews’ health situation by taking him off the field typically in obvious passing situations on third down. Former starter Brad Jones went in as the lone inside linebacker in place of Matthews and fellow starter A.J. Hawk.

“He looked like he came out of the game OK,” McCarthy said Monday.

Matthews had just two tackles but batted down a pass from Teddy Bridgewater and also had a hit on Minnesota’s rookie quarterback.

Matthews said after the game he’s feeling “close to 100 percent” with the groin.

“I have to take care of it, monitor your reps,” he said. “The more I got comfortable with it, the more I was out there (Sunday), which was good to see. It made it through (the game), so I feel good.

“Obviously, with another week of rest, I’ll be back to 100 percent next week,” he added, referring to the upcoming showdown with the New England Patriots at Lambeau on Sunday. “I was happy with the way it held up and plays I was able to make and getting after the quarterback. So, we’re all good there.”