The Green Bay Packers have already locked up the #1 seed in the NFC Playoffs, so look for them to get their starters out of this game by the end of the first quarter.  They beat the Lions 27-15 earlier this year on Thanksgiving in Detroit.  The Lions have won three games in a row and they need a win or a Falcons’ loss to the Bucs to lock up the #5 seed.  Look for the Lions to play this like a regular game.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Packers have the ball:  The Packers’ offense is likely going to be the Matt Flynn, Brandon Saine and Randall Cobb show this weekend.  Aaron Rodgers will likely start this game, but he’s not going to play long.  Flynn will use this game as a showcase for himself as he will become a free agent next March.  The Lions are giving up 224.0 yards passing so far this year, but they have 39 sacks and 20 interceptions so far this year…so Flynn is going to have to be careful with the football.  The Lions are giving up 131.4 yards rushing per game and 5.1 yards per carry so far this year, so Brandon Saine could have a big day for the Packers.

When the Lions have the ball:  The Lions are going to air it out against the Packers’ secondary.  Look for Matt Stafford to look down the field to WRs Calvin Johnson, Nate Burleson and Titus Young.  He will also be aiming for his TEs, Tony Scheffler and Brandon Pettigrew on the short stuff.  The Lions are going to be resting Kevin Smith in this game, so look for Maurice Morris and Keiland Williams to get a lot of work for them this Sunday.

PREDICTION:  LIONS 31, PACKERS 20

The Green Bay Packers are sending 7 players to the Pro Bowl.  Four offensive players and three defensive players is the breakdown of the Packers’ Pro Bowlers. 28-year old  QB Aaron Rodgers will be the starter for the NFC in the Pro Bowl.  Rodgers has played in 15 games for the Packers so far this year and he has completed 343 of 502 passes (68.3%) for 4,643 yards with 45 TD passes and 6 INTs (122.5 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 60 times for 257 yards (4.3 ypc) with 3 TD runs so far this year.  28-year old WR Greg Jennings might not be healthy enough to play in the Pro Bowl.  Jennings has played in 13 games so far this year for the Packers and he has caught 67 passes for 949 yards (14.2 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  30-year old center Scott Wells will be a backup in the Pro Bowl.  He has played in 15 games (all starts) for the Packers so far this year.  29-year old fullback John Kuhn will be a starter in the Pro Bowl for the NFC.  He has played in 15 games for the Packers so far this year and he has carried the ball 28 times for 73 yards (2.6 ypc) with 4 TD runs and he has caught 13 passes for 67 yards (5.2 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Kuhn is a good blocker, but the Packers like giving him the ball around the end zone.

35-year old CB Charles Woodson will be a starter for the NFC.  He has played in 15 games for the Packers so far this year and he has 74 tackles, 17 passes defensed, 7 interceptions (1 returned for a TD), 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery and 2 tackles for a loss.  25-year old OLB Clay Matthews will also be a starter for the NFC.  He has played in 15 games for the Packers so far this year and he has 50 tackles, 6 sacks, 5 tackles for a loss, 3 forced fumbles, 9 passes defensed and 3 interceptions (one returned for a TD).  25-year old DT B.J. Raji has played in 15 games for the Packers so far this year and he has 21 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 fumble recovery and 2 passes defensed.  Raji also has 1 carry that went for a 1-yard TD.

The Packers were up 35-10 early in the 4th quarter before essentially calling off the dogs last night.  Aaron Rodgers was amazing again last night as he completed 21 of 29 passes for 283 yards with 5 TD passes and 0 INTs.  He also carried the ball 4 times for 18 yards (4.5 ypc) in this game.  Ryan Grant led the way on the ground for the Packers last night with 8 carries for 44 yards (5.5 ypc) and 2 catches for 34 yards (17.0 avg).  James Starks pitched in with 13 yards rushing on 6 carries (2.2 ypc) in this game.  WR Jordy Nelson led the way for the Packers in the passing game last night with 6 grabs for 115 yards (19.2 avg) and 2 TDs.  WR James Jones (4 rec, 50 yards, 2 TDs) and TE Jermichael Finley (3 rec, 20 yards, TD) also pitched in big time for the Packers last night.  The Packers finished up with 81 yards rushing on 21 carries (3.9 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 29 passes (72.4%) for 282 yards as they only had possession of the ball for 24:12.

The defense played pretty well for 3 quarters last night.  LBs Desmond Bishop (12 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss) and A.J. Hawk (12 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss) led the way for the Packers last night on D.  Safety Charlie Peprah (11 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception) and OLB Clay Matthews (6 tackles, 1 pass defensed, 1 QB hit and 1 interception) also pitched in with solid games for the Packers in this game.  The Bears finished up with 199 yards rushing on 42 carries (4.7 ypc) and they also completed 19 of 28 passes (67.9%) for 242 yards.  The Packers now have home field advantage throughout the playoffs as they are now 14-1 on the season.

The Green Bay Packers lost their first game last weekend in K.C. against the Chiefs, so look for them to be very focused tonight against their bitter rivals….the Chicago Bears.  The Bears have lost four games in a row, but they can still make the playoffs if they win their last two games and the Falcons lose their last two games.  The Packers beat the Bears 27-17 earlier this year in Chicago.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Packers have the ball:  The Packers are going to come out throwing the ball.  Rodgers is going to spread the field out tonight and move the ball around to his receivers.  Look for TE Jermichael Finley to have a big game as he is a mis-match physically for the Bears’ safeties.  WRs Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb, James Jones and Donald Driver give Rodgers a lot of other options in the passing game tonight against a Bears’ D that is giving up 254.4 yards passing per game so far this year.  Ryan Grant will lend ground support for the Packers in this game.

When the Bears have the ball:  The Bears are going to be starting Josh McCown at QB and Kahlil Bell at RB tonight.  The Packers are going to need to gang up and stop Kahlil Bell, because the Bears’ gameplan probably is going to revolve around him tonight.  The Packers are going to be blitzing Josh McCown like a madman, as he has not started an NFL game since 2007.  He could get rattled easily with pressure tonight.

PREDICTION:  PACKERS 38, BEARS 16

The Packers have signed 27-year old G/T Herbert Taylor.  Taylor last played way back in 2008 with the Kansas City Chiefs.  He has played in 18 games (1 start) in his first three years in the NFL.  The Packers are grasping at straws now due to a rash of injuries along the O-Line.  Taylor might get into a game or two before the season ends.

The Packers have lost 22-year old rookie OT Derek Sherrod for the rest of the season due to a broken leg suffered against the Chiefs yesterday.  Sherrod played in 5 games (0 starts) for the Packers this year.  He was a first round pick out of Mississippi State last April.  This is a bad break for the Packers and Sherrod as he was likely going to see a bump in P.T. the last two weeks of the regular season.

The Chiefs had the perfect gameplan to beat the Packers today, as they played keepaway.  Aaron Rodgers had a rough game as he only completed 17 of 35 passes for 235 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  He also carried the ball 3 times for 32 yards (10.7 ypc) with 1 TD run in this game.  Ryan Grant led the way on the ground for the Packers with 66 yards rushing on 12 carries (5.5 ypc) and he also caught 3 passes for 35 yards (11.7 avg).  TE Jermichael Finley (3 rec, 83 yards), WR Randall Cobb (4 rec, 53 yards) and WR Donald Driver (2 rec, 7 yards, TD) led the way in the passing game for the Packers today.  The Packers finished up with 102 yards rushing on 18 carries (5.7 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 35 passes (48.6%) for 213 yards as they only had possession of the ball for 23:49.

The defense gave up a ton of yards today, but not a lot of points.  CB Charles Woodson (11 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 pass defensed), LB D.J. Smith (9 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss) and LB A.J. Hawk (8 tackles) led the way for the Packers on D in this game.  The Chiefs finished up with 139 yards rushing on 39 carries (3.6 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 31 passes (74.2%) for 299 yards.  The Packers are now 13-1 on the season.

The Green Bay Packers head to Arrowhead Stadium on a roll.  They can’t overlook the Chiefs this weekend as they sometimes step up due to the home crowd getting behind them.  The Chiefs got whacked hard 37-10 last weekend by the Jets and it cost head coach Todd Haley his job.  Enter new head coach Romeo Crennel and new starting QB Kyle Orton.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Packers have the ball:  The Packers are likely going to throw the ball to get a lead and then try to grind it out on the ground some with Ryan Grant.  Aaron Rodgers will be without Greg Jennings in this game, but he still has a lot of weapons in the passing game.  Look for him to spread the ball around to TE Jermichael Finley, WR Jordy Nelson, WR James Jones, WR Donald Driver and WR Randall Cobb.  The Chiefs are giving up 132.5 yards rushing per game and 4.1 yards per carry so far this year, so RB Ryan Grant should find plenty of room to run the ball this weekend.

When the Chiefs have the ball:  New head coach Romeo Crennel is likely going to institute an offense that runs the ball a lot more than the Chiefs have been.  That means that Jackie Battle, Thomas Jones and Dexter McCluster are going to get a lot of work this Sunday.  The Packers’ front seven will have to step up as they can’t afford to give up the 4.8 yards per rush that they have allowed this year in this game.  Kyle Orton has a broken finger but he also has a decent set of  WRs in Dwayne Bowe, Steve Breaston and Jonathan Baldwin.  So the Packers will have to get after Orton this Sunday with the pass rush.

PREDICTION:  PACKERS 31, CHIEFS 20

28-year old QB Aaron Rodgers is turning in one of the best years in NFL history for a QB.  He has played in 13 games for the Packers so far this year and he has completed 305 of 438 passes (69.6%) for 4,125 yards with 39 TD passes and 6 INTs (123.3 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 53 times for 207 yards (3.9 ypc) with 2 TD runs so far this year.  These numbers might surprise people outside of Green Bay, but Packers’ fans know what they have in Aaron Rodgers.  Rodgers has now played in 67 games in his first 7 years in the NFL and he has completed 1,343 of 2,049 passes (65.5%) for 16,848 yards with 126 TD passes and 38 INTs (103.7 QB Rating).  Rodgers has also carried the ball 242 times for 1,133 yards (4.7 ypc) with 15 TD runs so far this year.  Rodgers is making everyone forget about Brett Favre in Green Bay and I never thought that would happen.

The Packers will be without 28-year old WR Greg Jennings for the next 2-3 weeks as he has a sprained left knee.  Jennings has played in 13 games for the Packers so far this year and he caught 67 passes for 949 yards (14.2 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  The Packers are going to miss Jennings some as he is the best receiver on the Packers, but, they are loaded at WR and should be able to get by fine until he’s ready to return to action.