NFL Week One Afternoon Games

Earlier I posted an article about the morning games—some surprises at half time. Now, I will talk about the afternoon games. There are only three games this afternoon—Chicago at Green Bay, Dallas at Jacksonville, and San Francisco at Arizona. Here are my previews of these three games. I will post about tonight’s games in a little while.

Chicago at Green Bay

The Packers were 4-12 last season and look to be about the same caliber team in 2006.Brett Favre is back for another season, but he can’t do it alone. The Bears had a good defense last season, but their offense was lacking. This season their offense should perform better. Rex Grossman will be the starting QB for the Bears and if he falters or gets hurt, they have Brian Griese in the wings. The Bears defense should be able to keep the Packers offense at bay. Pick: Chicago Bears

Dallas at Jacksonville

All the talk has been about T.O. and Bill Parcels this preseason. Just like with Philadelphia, the media is predicting that Owens will help Dallas go to the Super Bowl—even though he didn’t help the Eagles. Jacksonville was 12-4 last season and is a formidable opponent in their own yard. I’m looking for a back and forth style of game today. Will Fred Taylor have a big day? Jacksonville won’t go lightly, and Dallas might stumble out of the game. Pick: Jacksonville Jaguars

San Francisco at Arizona

If there’s one game that it hurts to write about, this is it. I’m just not that excited by the matchup. The Cardinals should play much better than last season. I don’t think they are anywhere close to playoff caliber yet, but they are definitely better than the 49ers. For San Francisco, it can’t get any worse for Alex Smith. He threw one TD last season, which came in the last meaningless game. Frank Gore needs to have a good year to give Smith some chance of passing success. The Cardinals are at home in their new stadium, and the atmosphere should be electric. Getting one of the softest NFC teams as a home opening opponent is a bonus. Pick: Arizona Cardinals