The NFC North has seen significant improvement recently.
Last season, the Lions won the NFC North but lost in the NFC Divisional round.
Detroit had a record of 15-2 last season.
The Vikings were second in the NFC North with a 14-3 record. They collapsed in the final game of the season and lost in the wild-card round.
Green Bay finished third in the NFC North with an 11-6 record.
The Packers made the playoffs but lost 22-10 in the wild-card round against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Chicago finished last in the NFC North with a 5-12 record, but they improved drastically this offseason. The offensive line will be much better, and Ben Johnson will help Williams improve in his second season.
Below is a breakdown of the NFC North.
NFC North Breakdown
The NFC North has seen significant improvement over the last couple of years.
Every divisional matchup will be a close and tough contest.
Detroit Lions
Last season, the Lions won the NFC North but lost in the NFC Divisional round.
The Lions lost their only playoff game last year as the Commanders defeated the Lions. Detroit was the heavy favorite but struggled to stop Jayden Daniels from the start of the game.
Their offense was one of the best last year.
They are getting the best out of Jared Goff and have helped him with a top rush attack.
Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery led an excellent rush attack behind one of the best offensive lines in the league.
Amon-Ra St. Brown has established himself as one of the best wideouts in the NFL.
Sam Laporta is one of the best Tight Ends in the game.
The offense has weapons, but they lost offensive coordinator Ben Johnson. Time will tell if the offense will remain as efficient or if Goff and the offense take a step back.
Aidan Hutchinson’s health will be the biggest concern for the defense. He was the front-runner for DPOY last season before a leg injury ended his season in week six.
The Lions suffered many injuries to defensive players last season and lost defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn to the Jets.
Losing both coordinators may hurt the Lions in 2025.
They will look to repeat as NFC North champions, but it will be challenging.
Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings were second in the NFC North with a 14-3 record.
J.J. McCarthy will be the starting QB in 2025. He was out all last year due to injury. Minnesota elected to let Darnold go and is fine with going with McCarthy as their QB.
Justin Jefferson remains one of the best wideouts in the NFL.
Jordan Addison is also a very good WR.
Aaron Jones remains a steady and productive back.
Minnesota still has weapons on offense, but their success will highly depend on the play of their QB.
The Vikings attack the QB on defense. They ranked sixth in sacks per game last season. Minnesota also stopped the run at an elite rate. They ranked second in the league in rushing yards allowed per game. Minnesota ranked fourth in points allowed per game last year.
If McCarthy plays well, this is a Vikings team capable of winning the NFC North and is a Super Bowl contender. However, if McCarthy does not play well, Minnesota will likely miss the playoffs entirely.
Green Bay Packers
Green Bay finished third in the NFC North with an 11-6 record.
The Packers made the playoffs but lost 22-10 in the wild-card round against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Jordan Love did not have as good a season as expected. He played in 15 games and 3,389 ing yards, 25 ing TDs, and 11 interceptions. This was a dip from his 2023 season.
Josh Jacobs had the best year of his career in his first season with the Packers. He played in all 17 games and had 1,329 rushing yards and 15 rushing TDs.
The defense was good for the Packers last season, ranking fifth in points allowed per game.
If Jordan Love has a better 2025 season than 2024, Green Bay is a threat to win the NFC North.
Chicago Bears
Chicago finished last in the NFC North with a 5-12 record, but they improved drastically this offseason.
The offensive line will be much better, and Ben Johnson will help Williams improve in his second season.
Their offense hurt the team last year. They had no rush attack, and Williams was under constant pressure.
The defense was fairly average for Chicago last season. With an improved offense, the defense will improve as well.
Chicago will be better in 2025.
Which Team Will Win The NFC North?
With Detroit losing their offensive and defensive coordinators, they will take a step back this season.
Minnesota’s season highly depends on J.J. McCarthy. They will go as far as he takes them. There is just too much uncertainty to predict them winning the NFC North.
Chicago improved, but is not yet there to win the NFC North.
This leaves the Green Bay Packers as the team to win the NFC North. Jordan Love will have a better season. Their defense was good last year. The Packers have a good all-around team. Wideout Matthew Golden was selected in the first round to help give Love some more weapons. Golden has a huge opportunity from week 1 to make his presence felt. Green Bay will be better than last year, which saw them win 11 games. With Detroit losing their offensive and defensive coordinators and Minnesota’s season depending heavily on the uncertainty of J.J. McCarthy, the Packers are the most logical team to win the NFC North.
