The NFC North could be the most entertaining division in the NFL, loaded with charismatic and colorful franchises. We are already speculating what will happen with the division, and we are still seven months off from the NFL season! Can the Green Bay Packers top the rankings? Or will they just linger in the middle of the pack?
Packers have room to grow
Let’s remember that the Packers weren’t a bad team in 2024. Their 11-6 record allowed them to qualify for the postseason, even if they were third in the NFC North division. Jordan Love is starting to look like the franchise quarterback the team wanted in 2020.
He will be buoyed by Sean Mannion’s new coaching methods. The former player joined Green Bay as an offensive assistant for the 2024 season, but he did such a good job that he was brought in to work specifically with the quarterbacks, including Love, on a full-time basis.
The general idea is that he needs better wide receivers around him to bolster his completions. The Packers recruitment and management team have unequivocally stated that getting WRs from the draft, free agency, and trade pool will be their priority. The team has around $47m in free wage allocation to dedicate to this.
Unpredictable Lions – how they will do
The Detroit Lions were exceptional in their offense last season. The team scored more points than any other in the entirety of the NFL. Most NFL experts and draft enthusiasts have stated that the Lions will do well to select a defensive player in the draft. Does this help them go forward or just stagnate? Even if the team keeps all its players, they’re all a year older now.
Do the Lions players still have the urgency and desire to prove their worth? They already did well in 2024. Detroit should seriously consider spending some of their transfer allocation on refreshing their attack to install an element of competition for spaces and not allow any player to rest on their laurels. After all, they’ve got an estimated $51.8m in the bank to pay; they might as well attract a top player.
But who could join the team at Ford Field? Two very prosperous transfers have already circulated the Lions online community. Defensive end Myles Garrett is reportedly alluring multiple teams, filling the Cleveland Browns inbox. Given that the Browns are going through a rebuilding phase, seeing Garrett turn up in Detroit isn’t that wild to imagine.
The other key name that keeps coming up in the rumor mill is…Maxx Crosby. He’s another defensive end who has been open about his contractual situation at the Las Vegas Raiders. Sources state he’s got no guaranteed money left on his existing deal and would like an extension. The franchise, however, is acting slowly—and if the Lions don’t get Garrett, they could come for Crosby.
The Vikings could regress with a lack of QB quality
Despite only being in February, NFL news outlets speculate that the Minnesota Vikings will endure the most significant drop-off in quality. While the team won 14 games in the season just passed, a lot of their team can leave the franchise via free agency. Significantly, Sam Darnold, their starting quarterback, is expected to go and at least as far as winning the division goes, that’s completely changed the picture if you look at any Packers odds on offshore betting sites.
There’s nobody to step in for him at the same quality. All of their other QBs are paltry in comparison. If the recruitment team wanted to pick up a QB in the 2025 draft, expecting anyone of superstar status is unrealistic. The Vikings’ first pick is 24th, meaning the best players will have already gone by this point.
Bears look to build from the ground up.
The Chicago Bears have been the basement franchise of the NFC North for the last three seasons. Fourth-placed finish after fourth-placed finish after fourth-placed finish. The fans will see 2025 as a success if they can avoid an unfortunate quadruple.
Ben Johnson is now charged as the full-time head coach of the Bears. He can’t do much worse than his predecessor, Matt Eberflus, who did not do very well at all. Thomas Brown was the interim coach for five games but wasn’t selected to take the team forward. Johnson won the 2024 Assistant Coach of the Year award; time will tell if he can perform in a head coach capacity.