Below is my Green Bay preview I wrote for Row12. You find the rest of my NFC preview here. My AFC preview is here.

I had them going 9-7 last year, so I was pretty close. Here's what I think this year:

Key Games: Week 1 at Seattle, Week 4 at Chicago, & Week 8 at New Orleans

Breakout Player: A couple of years have passed since defensive coordinator Dom Capers had a versatile defensive back at his disposal. The last was Charles Woodson, but his last great year in Green Bay was 2010. Micah Hyde can fill the void Woodson left behind. The second-year defensive back does it all. He’ll start at safety in the base packages and move to slot corner during certain sub packages. He can blitz from either position or play coverage. He also takes great angles to the ball and is a competent run defender.

Fantasy Impact: No other team in football can top Green Bay’s fantastic four. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers, running back Eddie Lacy, and wide receivers Randall Cobb and Jordy Nelson are all No. 1 fantasy players at their positions. Together, using standard scoring, the four project to score 986.06 fantasy points.

Prediction: Overlook the Packers at your own peril. Rodgers, who is arguably the top quarterback in the league, has never had a better running game around him. Lacy’s presence forces defense to pick their poison. Will they stack the box and risk Rodgers burning them through the air or will they play off and risk Lacy bruising his way up the middle? Simply put, it doesn’t matter. This could be the best offense of the Rodgers Era. Defensively, Green Bay is betting on Julius Peppers having gas left in his tank. Peppers, who has had a strong August, will play mostly outside linebacker opposite of Clay Matthews. Many fans compare the signing of Peppers to Reggie White, but the minister of defense was Green Bay‘s top defensive player the day he walked through the door. These Packers already have a No. 1 pass rusher in Matthews. In many ways, the signing of Peppers compares more to Sean Jones, who joined the Pack in 1994. Jones became a staple part of the mid ‘90s Packers by playing opposite of White along the defensive line. If Peppers can be to Matthews what Jones was to White, then Green Bay’s pass rush will deliver. Overall, improvements to the defense, running game, and even offense line makes this the best Packers team assembled since their Super Bowl run of 2010.

12-4

If they are THAT good, why do you have them losing four games?

IMO, the Packers could go 12-4 just by outscoring teams - if they had the kind of crap defense they had a couple of years ago. With excellence there too, I don't see any reason (barring injury to Aaron Rodgers) why they should lose any - at worst, maybe slip up once or twice.

texaspackerbacker;283122If they are THAT good, why do you have them losing four games?

IMO, the Packers could go 12-4 just by outscoring teams - if they had the kind of crap defense they had a couple of years ago. With excellence there too, I don't see any reason (barring injury to Aaron Rodgers) why they should lose any - at worst, maybe slip up once or twice.

Because other teams will be THAT good as well. I have three teams in the NFC (Green Bay, Seattle, and New Orleans) with at least 12 wins. They all play each other.

I could see 14 wins, though. I think they'll probably have a bad day. Remember, the team that won the Super Bowl did lose to the Miami Dolphins at home.

Here are the Row12 Staff Season Predictions:

http://www.row12.com/article/2518/Row12_Staff_Season_Predictions/

I have the Saints winning the Super Bowl, but I think Green Bay will be in contention. I have them losing at New Orleans in the NFC Championship.

I'm also going to recap each Packers game this year for PH.

Breakout player: Richard Rodgers.

I also like DuJuan Harris, if we run some screens.
He's gonna be the lightening to Lacy's thunder.

12-4 is my selction, if the injury bug sets abit , maybe 11-5 !!

porky88;283204Because other teams will be THAT good as well. I have three teams in the NFC (Green Bay, Seattle, and New Orleans) with at least 12 wins. They all play each other.

I could see 14 wins, though. I think they'll probably have a bad day. Remember, the team that won the Super Bowl did lose to the Miami Dolphins at home.

So you automatically assume the Packers will lose to your other two "12+" teams? And throw in a couple of other losses to boot? We'll see starting Thursday night. I see the Packers as clearly the better team, and the winner if things if nothing exceptional happens.

11-5

I like our schedule for a deep run.