Tommy Hayfield's Picks, NFL 2011, Week 3: Green Bay Vs Chicago

I Have Packer Roots
I'm a Packer fan and have been one since 1970 after the Packers were done winning for a while...I've stuck with them for all these years, many of them lean as you know. My home town team the Lock Haven University Bald Eagles had a quarterback--beleive it or not--named Mike Packer who had a cup of coffee with the New York Jets in the early 1970s.

Keystone Gould
The Bears have a Lock Haven guy named Robbie Gould kicking for them...he went to my high school and then to Penn State. His brother Chris kicked at the University of Virginia which is just a short trip into the mountains from here in Richmond, Virginia.

This is the town--Lock Haven--which sent Keystone Little League to the Little League World Series this year (2011) getting to within a victory of playing for the United States championship...Robbie Gould played high school football in the middle of this sports-frenzied little town 25 miles from Penn State University.

Now that you see where my roots are you might want to hear about the game in Week 3 a bit...the Packers have the better team as evidenced by their victory over the Bears in the NFC championship game in January 2011.

Green Bay Vs Chicago
Week 3
This year the Pack put up 42 points in Week 1 of the regular season against the Saints. All the NFC North teams play the NFC South teams this year in a rotation that has appeared on the NFL schedule this year (each year each NFL division plays another entire division.) This Bears team had the number one defense in 2010 (scoring defense) just slightly edging out Green Bay for that distinction...so the game could be a defensive struggle.

No one ever seems to know where the Bears get the offense to win games, but they find it...they won the division last year so they found points when they needed them. My first estimation is that the game will be in the 20s with the game being decided by a field goal. The Packers might be favored in this road game for them based on that huge offensive potential.

I'm gonna' pick Green Bay to win by a field goal even though many people don't see Chicago staying in this game ...they don't have the big name players on offense, but they have a strong defense returning this year and have strong special teams with a lot of speed in the return game. And, even though you don't see offense on paper it shows up at game time enough to keep them in games.

Green Bay has been putting up points and the Bears are always struggling to put up points...last year in the early season I judged them as one of the ten worst teams based on a lack of offensive dynamic energy. They, of course, went on to win the division with an average offense, great defense (number one scoring defense in the league) and great special teams. I think, however, the Bears are descending while the Packers are flying high and ascending if that is even possible!

Here's my pick...

My Prediction
Straight...Green Bay
Against the Spread...Green Bay (-4)

When point spreads come out on Tuesday I'll complete my picks.

Resources:
Cooper's Pick
ESPN.go.com