NFL Week 11 Picks: Packers Will Stomp Buccaneers to Stay Unbeaten

The Green Bay Packers are a juggernaut. They got hot at the end of the 2010 season, and they have been hot ever since. There doesn't seem to be any stopping them.

Regardless, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are going to try their luck at stopping the Packers on Sunday. Because they're a mediocre team going up against a great team on the road, it goes without saying that their chances of actually winning are slim.

Hence the reason why the spread (per Bodog) has the Packers favored by 14.5 points. You would have to be extraordinarily optimistic (see "delusional") to actually pick the Buccaneers to win outright, but maybe you're thinking that they will at least beat the spread.

If you ask me, the Bucs aren't going to do that either. In fact, I'm of the mind that they are going to get blown out.

Let's face it, the Packers are going to score points. Aaron Rodgers has been playing incredible football all year, but the scary part is that he has been particularly brilliant in his last three games, tossing 11 touchdowns and no interceptions. 

Rodgers will have to come back down to earth sooner or later, but it won't be against the Buccaneers. Their pass defense hasn't been good this year, as they're allowing more than 260 passing yards per game. That they basically don't have a pass rush (13 sacks this season) is not helping matters.

So, in all likelihood, I think you can expect the Packers to score points. They're averaging more than 35 points per game this season, and that's where I see them ending up in this game.

The question will be whether or not the Buccaneers can keep pace. All of Green Bay's opponents are forced to abandon the run sooner or later, but the bright side for the Buccaneers is that they should be used to that by now. The Bucs have put themselves in plenty of early holes this season, and they've had to take to the air with Josh Freeman more than they would like to as a result.

We're going to see this trend hold on Sunday. The Bucs will try to establish the run with LeGarrette Blount, but he's not going to do them much good once Rodgers starts heating up. That's when Raheem Morris will put the ball in Freeman's hands.

Against a team like the Packers, this is a dicey proposition. Freeman has turned the ball over a lot this season, and he'll be going up against a Packers team that leads the league in interceptions with 17. He will also have to deal with Green Bay's dangerous pass rush, which almost isn't fair.

So, when you take a step back and put all the components of this game in perspective, it's pretty clear that the Packers have a few too many advantages. For the Bucs to win this game, the Packers will have to be at less than their best. 

I'll believe it when I see it.

Packers 35, Buccaneers 14