Green Bay Packers vs. Buffalo Bills: Lombardiave staffers predict
Trying to predict the winner of the Green Bay Packers and Buffalo Bills shouldn’t be too difficult – at least on paper.
We here at Lombardiave.com are ready to give our predictions …
Is this trap game?
The Bills, playing at home, are an uncommon opponent – one that has plenty for which to play.
But the Packers also have plenty for which to play.
Your thoughts?
Leave some comments below … would love to hear your predictions …
In the meantime, here are our predictions:
Josh McPeak
Josh McPeak: The Buffalo Bills did a great job on Peyton Manning last week. Holding the future Hall of Famer to only 173 yards passing with 2 interceptions and 0 touchdowns. Buffalo also leads the NFL in sacks with 48. Green Bay could possibly have the premiere offensive line in all of the NFL however.
Dom Capers’ squad looked like shades of old in the second half against the Atlanta Falcons on Mondaynight, nearly blowing a 24 point halftime lead. It will be interesting to see what kind of pressure they can get on old foe Kyle Orton, along with how they contain the rookie speedster wide receiver Sammy Watkins. All three of Green Bay’s losses have come on the road as well. At 7-6 this Bills team record doesn’t indicate the caliber of team the Packers will be up against on Sunday. If there are still questions to be answered, I think Sunday will do just that.
Aaron Rodgers is the best player in the NFL right now and I believe Kyle Orton will provide #12 with a few extra possessions. Remember what I said, no losses until the 2015 season.
Packers 31 Bills 17
Kevin Gibson
Kevin Gibson: If there was ever such thing as a “trap” game, this road contest at Buffalo would have to be it.
The Green Bay Packers defense is coming off an embarrassing half of football in a near come-from-ahead disaster against the Falcons on Monday night.
However, I wouldn’t say the 10-3 Packers are necessarily reeling. The team, defense included, didn’t seem shaken by the awful second half against at Atlanta, and the fact is, Green Bay did hold on for the win.
And yet, something in the pit of my stomach tells me this will be no cakewalk against the Bills. Buffalo’s fifth-ranked pass defense will pose a challenge even to the seemingly unstoppable Packers offense.
It also bears noting that the Bills are also ranked fifth overall defensively (they are eighth in rush defense), so the Pack could need its defense to rebound in a big way.
I think it will happen as the Packers fight to keep its lead in the NFC Central.
Packers 26 Bills 17
Darryl Krejci
Darryl Krejci: Pulling up my Tutu and calling on all my cheesebead-wearing friends, I predict that the defense will bounce back with a strong showing this Sunday.
Look for Aaron Rodgers to continue his mastery of all things passing (At least 350 yards and three passing touchdowns) and Eddie Lacy to have another strong performance, with 135 yards on the ground and one rushing touchdown.
Ha Ha Clinton-Dix will step up and have a pick-six by the half.
Clay Matthews and Julius Peppers will dominate, each having two sacks by the end of the game.
Packers 42 Bills 17
Kenn Korb
Kenn Korb: Unlike most weeks, I’m not as confident in a win this week.
That Buffalo defense really worries me.
They will be a major challenge; based on Football Outsiders’ DVOA Ratings (which measure a team’s efficiency by comparing success on every single play to a league average based on situation and opponent), Buffalo has the #1 pass defense, #10 run defense, and #1 overall defense (by weighted DVOA; values more recent games over earlier-season contests).
That could spell trouble. At the very least they should be able to slow down Green Bay’s offense, but they have the pass rush ability to potentially bring on a Detroit-level challenge (remember, the Packers only scored 7 points while seeing Eddie Lacy get stopped for a safety AND lose a fumble for a TD in that one).
Despite my misgivings, I think Green Bay still manages a win here.
Why?
Well the offense is at a higher level now than in Week 3, for one thing. But I actually believe it will be the Packers’ defense that makes the major difference here.
Green Bay may rank only 20th in Weighted DVOA – including 17th & 23rd against the pass and rush, respectively – but Buffalo’s offense doesn’t exactly strike fear into an opponent.
They are 24th in weighted offensive DVOA – 24th pass/25th rush. Players like Fred Jackson and Sammy Watkins can make plays here and there, but as it stands the offense there is nothing to really write home about.
Expect the Packers defense to redeem themselves for the weak second-half effort against Atlanta, while the offense does enough against that strong defense to put the score out of reach in the end.
Packers 27 Bills 17
Dan VerDuin
Dan VerDuin: Kyle Orton should scare Packers fans less than Matt Ryan does. Orton has 2 touchdowns for every 1 interception, which I predict will be the outcome of the game this week.
Rodgers will have a somewhat average game against a Jim Schwartz-led defense. The Packers are 1-2 against top 5 defenses, but look for the Packers to even out that record.
It will be a low scoring game, but with the slight edge going to the Packers.
Packers 24 Bills 17
Kevin Dickens
Kevin Dickens: This game will be a good test for the Packers. Jim Schwartz and his defense held Peyton Manning last week to no touchdown passes. That is an accomplishment and a shocker within itself.
However, don’t expect that to be the case this week. Aaron Rodgers is playing at another level right now and he has typically had the answer to beating Jim Schwartz and his defenses.
With that said, expect this to be a lower scoring game – one in which I don’t expect the Packers to ever trail.
The Packers will get to silence whatever critics have emerged since giving up 250-plus yards receiving to Julio Jones. Facing Kyle Orton will afford them the luxury of playing another mid level tier quarterback who seems to make bad decisions when forced into them.
All in all, the Buffalo defense is very talented especially in the front 7. The secondary has had a few injuries but I don’t think they are equipped to handle a very potent passing attack (remember Denver was without Julius Thomas last week).
Expect Lacy and Starks to hammer away at Buffalo and Rodgers to continue his superb play.
But the defense will be the ones we will be talking about in the end. Two turnovers lead to big points. Packers pull away and make sure Buffalo doesn’t have breath into a playoff berth.
Also it will give the Packers their first win at Ralph Wilson Stadium.
Packers 31 Bills 20
Patrick Hughes
Patrick Hughes: I haven’t been real worried about the outcome of a Packers’ game in several weeks. Sure, I thought there were a few games that might be close, but this upcoming game against the Bills is concerning.
Former Lions head coach Jim Schwartz is coordinating Buffalo’s defense. On one hand his Lions defense gave up a boat load of yards to Matt Flynn and the Packers a couple years back. On the other hand, his Lions defense knocked Aaron Rodgers out of a game with a concussion and defeated the Packers on Thanksgiving in Detroit in 2013.
Schwartz’s Bills’ defense is no joke. They’re tough against the pass and more than solid verses the run.
But the Bills offense is not as formative as Kyle Orton’s mustache. To some degree the Packers and the Bills are an inverse of one another. As the Packers offense is strong and the defense, well it depends on the week.
At the end of the day the Packers’ offense just knows how to score, for the Bills, the Schwartz is not with thee.
Packers 24 Bills 17
David Burdette
David Burdette: The Packers face yet another trap game. Detroit is hot on the Packers’ heels, and any losses can put them at a disadvantage come January.
The good thing for the Packers is that the Bills offense is not close to the one fielded by the Falcons. Sammy Watkins is good, but he isn’t Julio Jones. Kyle Orton will make plenty more mistakes that Matt Ryan wouldn’t. The time for the Packers D to capitalize is now.
On the other side the offense has to simply be better than the Bills D. While good, Rodgers is up to blistering them at the MVP pace he has. Can the run game go with just Starks? His combined 101 scrimmage yards makes me think he can.
Packers 31 Bills 17
Ray Rivard
Ray Rivard: This is one of the toughest games of the season for the Packers and one I had circled on the calendar as difficult.
It’s on the road and against one of, if not the best defense in the entire league. The Packers have lost on the road against top-ranked defenses … remember Seattle and Detroit?
That said, there isn’t a quarterback playing like Aaron Rodgers these days and he should make the difference. Couple that with the fact that the Bills have Kyle Orton as their quarterback.
This could be a relatively low-scoring affair, which will keep Buffalo in the game … However, the Packers defense is looking for some redemption this week after letting Julio Jones play catch with Matt Ryan last week.
Look for at least one turnover by the Packers’ defense … two would be even better …
The Packers win hard-fought game on the road and in a hostile environment – a perfect tuneup for the playoffs.
Packers 24 Bills 19