Vikings gird for Eagles fans' arsenal, be it eggs, snowballs or vulgarities

"We were on the bus and all you heard was, 'splat, splat, splat,' " Newman, now with the Vikings, said Thursday. "You looked out the windows and there was a bunch of egg shells and egg yolk on the bus. You didn't know what it was at first but then you're like, 'Wow, the fans are egging our bus.' It was kind of weird."

Just another game day for Eagles fans. Remember, these are the fans who threw snowballs at Santa Claus during a 1968 game.

On Sunday, the Vikings play at Philadelphia in the NFC championship game. Newman isn't necessarily expecting another round of egg toss from the fans, but he's sure they will be amped up.

"They are very, very happy about their team no matter who they play," said Newman, who has played in 11 regular-season games at Philadelphia in his 15-year career. "They're loud and full of energy, and probably have had a couple of drinks because it's usually a little chilly up there."

The weather forecast for Sunday in Philadelphia calls for a high of 50 and a low of 37 with a 10 percent chance of precipitation. With the kickoff at 6:40 p.m Eastern (5:40 Central), the temperature during the game should be in the 40s.

The forecast for the fans is noise.

"They're going to be loud, they're going to be saying some harsh words," said defensive end Everson Griffen, who played in Philadelphia for the Vikings in 2010 and 2016. "That really doesn't matter. How you quiet down the fans is by scoring points, stopping the run and making it happen."

That's the general attitude going around the Vikings locker room.

"It's fun to go into a stadium that's rocking and you get the boos when you're on the field," said guard Joe Berger. "To me, I think that's the fun part of it. You know you're there with your group and that's all that matters and that's all you have to win the game, and you don't need anything else."

When Berger was with Dallas from 2006-08, he attended games in Philadelphia but did not play in one. He started in Minnesota's last appearance at Lincoln Financial Field, a 21-10 loss on Oct. 23, 2016.

The Vikings entered that game 5-0, and the defeat sent them spiraling on a midseason collapse and an 8-8 final record. With the Eagles taking a 21-3 lead and cruising to the win, the fans were plenty loud that afternoon.

"They're crazy fans," said linebacker Emannuel Lamur, who played in that game and in a 2012 game with Cincinnati at Philadelphia. "They make a bunch of noise, but our philosophy is always to ignore the noise."

Playing for Minnesota last season, fullback Zach Line said the team was cautioned to expect "a pretty hostile crowd" in Philadelphia. Line, now with New Orleans, said a family friend who lives in the city suggested to Line's father it wouldn't be the best idea to wear his son's Vikings jersey in the stands.

Vikings offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur knows plenty about Philadelphia crowds. He was an Eagles assistant from 1999-2008 and their offensive coordinator from 2013-15.

"They're passionate, educated fans," Shurmur said. "They love their football team, and they're there to watch the game and contribute in a way to help their team win, so I get it. I lived it for 13 years on that side of it, and it's going to be a great environment for a game. We have to approach it as we do any road environment where it's the noise that we have to deal with and then keep the rest of it out of it."

Dealing with the crowd noise will be Vikings quarterback Case Keenum. He's never played in a game at Philadelphia but was on the St. Louis Rams practice squad when they played there in 2014.

"I'm expecting a raucous environment," Keenum said. "I'm expecting it to be crazy. ... You'd rather people be in the stands, whether they're cheering for you or against you, it creates energy... Those fans care. So, I'm excited to go play."