The Packers are coming off a very hard fought win against the Giants.  They still have found a way to win every game they have played so far this year.  The Raiders are now tied with the Broncos atop of the AFC West, so this is a HUGE game for them.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Packers have the ball:  The Packers are going to try to get this game over quickly.  Aaron Rodgers is going to be throwing the ball all over the field in this game, in order to build a big lead.  The Raiders are giving up 239.1 yards passing per game so far this year, but they do have 14 interceptions, so they can make some plays.  I still don’t see them offering must resistance to the Packers’ air attack.  James Starks and Ryan Grant will try to grind the game out late on the ground against a Raiders’ D that is allowing 141.2 yards rushing per game and 5.2 yards per carry so far this year.

When the Raiders have the ball:  The Raiders like to run the ball and throw it deep.  RB Michael Bush is a good power running back, so the front seven of the Packers are going to have to tighten up the chinstraps.  The Packers must also watch out for FB Marcel Reece.  He doesn’t get the ball a lot, but he makes plays both running and catching the ball when he does get his chances.  The Packers are going to have to get after Carson Palmer, because he still has a good enough arm to get the ball deep to his WRs.  He doesn’t have a favorite receiver which makes the Raiders’ passing game hard to defend.

PREDICTION:  PACKERS 37, RAIDERS 20

26-year old WR Jordy Nelson is really stepping up for the Green Bay Packers this year.  He has played in 12 games for the Packers so far this year and he has caught 48 passes for 876 yards (18.3 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  Nelson has already set career highs in receptions, yards and TDs with 4 games left in the 2011 season.  Packers’ QBs are completing an amazing 48 of 63 passes (76.2%) thrown in Nelson’s direction.  The most amazing thing about that completion % is that a lot of Nelson’s catches are down the field.  Nelson has now played in 57 games in his first four years with the Packers and he has caught 148 passes for 2,144 yards (14.5 avg) with 15 TD grabs.

23-year old TE Andrew Quarless is done for the season due to a knee injury that requires surgery.  Quarless played in 10 games for the Packers this year and he caught 3 passes for 36 yards (12.0 avg).  He has now played in 23 games in his first two years with the Packers and he has caught 24 passes for 274 yards (11.4 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Quarless was the Packers’ #3 TE, so they should be o.k. without him the rest of the way.

The Giants tied this game up with 58 seconds left in the game, as they scored too quickly.  Aaron Rodgers quickly drove the Packers right down the field for a 31-yard, game winning field goal from Mason Crosby.  Rodgers completed 28 of 46 passes for 369 yards with 4 TD passes and 1 INT.  He also carried the ball 4 times for 32 yards (8.0 ypc) in this game.  Ryan Grant “led” the way on the ground for the Packers yesterday with 13 carries for 29 yards (2.2 ypc).  WR Greg  Jennings (7 rec, 94 yards, TD), WR Jordy Nelson (4 rec, 94 yards), TE Jermichael Finley (6 rec, 87 yards, TD) and WR Donald Driver (4 rec, 34 yards, 2 TDs) led the way in the passing game for the Packers yesterday.  The Packers finished up with 89 yards rushing on 28 carries (3.2 ypc) and they also completed 28 of 47 passes (59.6%) for 360 yards as they had possession of the ball for 33:03.

The Packers gave up a ton of yards yesterday as the Giants’ offense gave them fits all day long.  Safety Charlie Peprah (9 tackles, 1 pass defensed) and LB D.J. Smith (8 tackles) led the way for the Packers on D in this game.  NT B.J. Raji (fumble recovery) and OLB Clay Matthews (38-yard interception return for a TD) also made HUGE plays for the Packers in this game.  The Giants finished up with 100 yards rushing on 20 carries (5.0 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 40 passes (57.5%) for 347 yards.  The Packers are now 12-0 on the season.

The Green Bay Packers are making a very serious run at a undefeated record in 2011,  and the Giants are likely the toughest game they will have the rest of the regular season.  The Giants have lost three games in a row, in which they have been outscored 93-54!  The Giants need this game in the worst way.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Packers have the ball:  The Packers aren’t going to change for the Giants, as Aaron Rodgers is going to come after them with his right arm.  The Giants have 31 sacks on the year, so they are going to be coming after Aaron Rodgers.  Rodgers will likely be getting rid of the ball quickly, using all of his WRs and TEs to catch shorter passes and make something happen with their legs.  The Giants just don’t have the depth in the secondary to cover all of Rodgers’ receivers effectively.  James Starks and Ryan Grant will give the Packers some ground support when they are called on.

When the Giants have the ball:  The Giants are likely to have Ahmad Bradshaw back in this game.  But, he’s likely going to be on a hit count, so Brandon Jacobs will also get his work in.  The Packers are giving up 4.9 yards per carry, so the Giants might have some success on the ground.  The Packers like to get after the QB, but the Giants’ O-Line has protected Eli Manning pretty well so far this year.  He has very solid weapons in WRs Victor Cruz, Hakeem Nicks, Mario Manningham and TE Jake Ballard…..but the Packers have 22 interceptions this year, so they are going to be ballhawking in this game.

PREDICTION:  PACKERS 33, GIANTS 30

29-year old fullback John Kuhn knows how to get over the goal line for the Packers.  He has played in 11 games so far this year for the Packers and he has carried the ball 14 times for 20 yards (1.4 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  Kuhn has also caught 12 passes for 56 yards (4.7 avg) with 2 TD grabs so far this year.  He has now played in 73 games in his first five years with the Packers and he has carried the ball 114 times for 329 yards (2.9 ypc) with 10 TD runs.  Kuhn has also caught 40 passes for 228 yards (5.7 avg) with 8 TD grabs in his career with the Packers.  Aaron Rodgers is very comfortable in handing the ball off or throwing it to John Kuhn when he gets near the goal line, so look for him to continue getting his fair share of Lambeau Leaps.

The Packers smoked  the Lions yesterday in Detroit.  Aaron Rodgers spread the ball around to 9 different receivers yesterday as he was outstanding once again.  He completed 22 of 33 passes for 307 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 INTs.  Ryan Grant led the way on the ground for the Packers with 20 yards rushing on 6 carries (3.3 ypc) and he also caught 3 passes for 20 yards (6.7 avg) in his game.  John Kuhn pitched in with 5 carries for 5 yards (1.0 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 1 pass for 10 yards.  WRs James Jones (3 rec, 94 yards, TD) and Greg Jennings (5 rec, 74 yards, TD) led the way for the Packers in the passing game yesterday.  The Packers finished up with 53 yards rushing on 18 carries (2.9 ypc) and they also completed 22 of 33 passes (66.7%) for 296 yards as they had possession of the ball for 29:12.

The defense gave up a lot of yards yesterday, but they did an outstanding job of keeping the Lions off the scoreboard.  LBs Erik Walden (8 tackles and 2 QB hits), D.J. Smith (6 tackles), A.J. Hawk (6 tackles and 1 pass defensed) and Clay Matthews (4 tackles, 2 passes defensed, 1 QB hit and 1 interception) led the way for the Packers’ D yesterday.  CB Charles Woodson (5 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception) and LB Rob Francois (3 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception) also made big plays on D for the Packers yesterday.  The Lions finished up with 136 yards rushing on 21 carries (6.5 ypc) and they also completed 32 of 45 passes (71.1%) for 273 yards in this game.  The Packers are now a perfect 11-0 on the season.

This game is going to be a blast later today as the Packers and Lions average a combined 65.6 points per game.  The Packers can’t afford to let up on the gas if they get the lead in this game as the Lions are the first team in NFL history to win three games in a season in which they were losing by 17 points at one point in the game!  The Lions want to win the AFC North and they are going to have to win this game to have any chance at that.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Packers have the ball:  The Packers aren’t going to change anything today.  Aaron Rodgers is going to spread the field and look for the open man.  The Lions have a pretty decent pass rush (27 sacks), so Rodgers will likely have to move around in the pocket a little more than usual in this game.  He will have to be careful with the ball too as the Lions already have 15 interceptions this year and they are averaging 22.1 yards per return.  The Lions do have a soft run defense as they are giving up 134.7 yards rushing per game and 5.0 yards per carry.  Don’t be surprised if Ryan Grant has a big game today.

When the Lions have the ball:  The Lions are a pass first team, so the Packers are going to have to get after Matt Stafford.  Stafford has a nice set of receivers to throw to in Calvin Johnson, Nate Burleson, Titus Young, Brandon Pettigrew and Tony Scheffler.  That is going to put pressure on the Packers’ secondary as they are giving up 289.3 yards passing per game so far this year.  RB Kevin Smith exploded last weekend against the Panthers and he will make the Packers’ D pay if they gang up to stop the passing game of the Lions.

PREDICTION:  PACKERS 34, LIONS 31 IN O.T.

27-year old QB Aaron Rodgers has taken his game to a whole new level this year.  He has played in 10 games for the Packers so far this year and he has completed 238 of 329 passes (72.3%) for 3,168 yards with 31 TD passes and 4 INTs (128.8 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 48 times for 176 yards (3.7 ypc) with 2 TD runs so far this year as he isn’t afraid to take off running when need be.  The Packers are going to go as far as Aaron Rodgers takes them this year as they have weaknesses, especially on defense this year.

The Packers had to play all the way to the end of the game to beat the Bucs today in Green Bay.  Aaron Rodgers was effective as he completed 23 of 34 passes for 299 yards with 3 TD passes and 1 INT.  He also carried the ball 5 times for 28 yards (5.6 ypc) in this game.  James Starks led the way on the ground with 11 carries for 38 yards (3.5 ypc) and 6 grabs for 53 yards (8.8 avg) in this game before leaving injured.  Ryan Grant (4 carries for 16 yards), John Kuhn (1 carry for 2 yards with a TD) and DT B.J. Raji (1 carry for 1 yard with a TD) also pitched in offensively on the ground for the Packers today.  WR Jordy Nelson led the way for the Packers in the passing game today with 6 grabs for 123 yards (20.5 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  WR Donald Driver (4 rec, 72 yards) and TE Tom Crabtree (2 rec, 5 yards, TD) also pitched in for the Packers in the passing game today.  The Packers finished up with 91 yards rushing on 23 carries (4.0 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 34 passes (67.6%) for 287 yards as they had possession of the ball for 28:39.

The defense was awful again for the Packers today.  CB Tramon Williams (9 tackles, 2 passes defensed and 2 interceptions) and LB Desmond Bishop (9 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss) led the way for the Packers on D in this game.  Safety Morgan Burnett (8 tackles) and LB Erik Walden (7 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 QB hit) also had decent games for the Packers today.  The Buccaneers finished up with 121 yards rushing on 20 carries (6.1 ypc) and they also completed 28 of 38 passes (73.7%) for 334 yards in this game.  The Packers are now a perfect 10-0 on the year.