ESPN

	Packers fans must think it's 2004.

When you ask fans of a team to assess their team's chances prior to any given season, you are more than likely going to receive a more optimistic forecast than from an impartial source.

We asked SportsNation to go through their favorite team's 2006 schedule game-by-game and decide which games they will win and lose. There are many observations to make from the results, but one thing is abundantly clear: SportsNation is full of homers! While parity certainly reigns supreme in the NFL these days, only three teams came up with losing records in the poll (all in the AFC).

Before we dissect SportsNation's brains to see exactly what is going on up there, here's "Exhibit A" - a look at how SportsNation feels the 2006 NFL standings will end up.

We've included a quick statement on what we think about your predictions. Don't take it personally, please:

SportsNation's 2006 NFL Predictions
AFC East	SN Prediction	Reality
Miami	12-4	Nick Saban is quickly turning this team around.
New England	11-5	Unless healthy, hard to imagine an improvement over 2005.
Buffalo	9-7	Can the Bills win? Or will their QB be J.P. "Loss-man"?
New York	9-7	Too many question marks to forecast winning season.
AFC North	SN Prediction	Reality
Pittsburgh	15-1	Can they win 15 games for second season in a row? No.
Cincinnati	12-4	Is 12 wins possible? Only if Carson Palmer is healthy.
Cleveland	9-7	At least this team appears on the rise.
Baltimore	7-9	Even SportsNation forecasts only a one-game improvement.
AFC South	SN Prediction	Reality
Indianapolis	15-1	Last year's machine "only" went 14-2.
Jacksonville	15-1	Playoff team? Sure. But 15 wins? Please.
Houston	7-9	Reggie Bush and Eric Moulds could make this a possibility.
Tennessee	7-9	In a word . . . no.
AFC West	SN Prediction	Reality
Denver	14-2	Broncos could lose at least two games in the division alone.
Kansas City	13-3	Highly doubtful with aging, injury-susceptible roster.
San Diego	10-6	If Philip Rivers is the next Bernie Kosar, 10 wins is possible.
Oakland	10-6	Bay Area water may be contaminated, causing hallucinations.
NFC East	SN Prediction	Reality
Dallas	14-2	Very solid team, but Bledsoe could lose two games on his own.
Washington	13-3	Another big jump in wins is unlikely.
New York	12-4	12 wins doesn't even get you to NFC playoffs in BizarroNation.
Philadelphia	9-7	This could be one of the couple teams we'd take the ''over'' on.
NFC North	SN Prediction	Reality
Chicago	13-3	13 may be too many, but who forecasted 11 wins last season?
Minnesota	12-4	Double digits should thrill new head coach Brad Childress.
Detroit	10-6	Wow. Harrington is out and suddenly the Lions are contenders?
Green Bay	10-6	Favre or no Favre, this is 2006, right?
NFC South	SN Prediction	Reality
Carolina	14-2	Very dangerous, but a tough division to reach 14 wins.
Tampa Bay	14-2	Chris Simms is still learning Gruden's system. No chance.
Atlanta	12-4	Certainly possible if Michael Vick and Warrick Dunn are healthy.
New Orleans	9-7	Drew Brees for Aaron Brooks is an upgrade, but nine wins?
NFC West	SN Prediction	Reality
Seattle	14-2	Formerly pessimistic Seattle fans have turned over a new leaf.
St. Louis	10-6	In this division it would seem anything is possible.
Arizona	8-8	A championship contender . . . if this were Arena Football.
San Francisco	8-8	See Oakland above.

Here's hoping we can agree on something real quick, before we move on here. In nearly every NFL game, there is a winner and a loser, right?

Just checking because the combined records above are 358-154, for a sterling .699 average winning percentage. While you expect a little "homerism", it's not even close. Naturally, there have to be the same number of wins as losses, so the "homerism" epidemic is apparently widespread. How bad is it?

It's so bad that SportsNation only has two teams finishing below .500 (Texans and Titans at 7-9). In addition, six teams were voted to win 14 games or more, including a trio of AFC heavyweights going 15-1.

Yet another impossibility from the poll results deals with the fact that SportsNation forecasts each team will improve its win total from last season. While we certainly endorse the power of positive thinking, you'll really be sick of the word parity if this happens.

Three teams would make six-game improvements from 2005: Green Bay, New Orleans and Oakland; Meanwhile, four others are forecast to make five-game jumps in the win column (Dallas, Detroit, N.Y. Jets and Houston).

We don't mean to make too much fun of you, SportsNation (OK, yes we do). But may you enjoy your team's season in 2006 as much as we've enjoyed making light of the results.