Lions and Packers and Vikings and Bears, oh my! The NFC North has become a daunting division

The week before Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was picked by Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris to be her running mate, he visited Vikings training camp and made a glowing 11-win prediction for his favorite team in that other fall season that will dominate American attention this year.

While Walz’s optimistic projection for Minnesota might well turn out to be glossy politician-speak, his assessment of the division — he is a former high school football coach, after all — was hard to argue from either side of the aisle.

“The NFC North,” Walz said, “is the one.”

With 38 combined wins including the playoffs, the NFC North was second in the league behind the AFC North (44) last season and ought to have as good of an opportunity as any of the eight quartets to stake that claim as the NFL’s best in 2024.

The Detroit Lions unfamiliarly have a division title to defend and the bitter taste to erase of a blown lead in the NFC championship game that kept them from their first Super Bowl appearance.

The Green Bay Packers hit their stride down the stretch last season, won a playoff game on the road and, once again, appear to have aced the quarterback development program and set themselves up for success for years to come with Jordan Love.

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The Minnesota Vikings are the trendy pick for last place in the group, having already had rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy undergo season-ending knee surgery, but they’re only two years removed from the division title and have superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson in his prime.

The Chicago Bears had the first pick in the NFL draft with quarterback Caleb Williams, who has a stacked collection of wide receivers in D.J. Moore, newcomer Keenan Allen and rookie Rome Odunze to help break him in with a suddenly energized franchise that hasn’t had a playoff game win in 14 years.

Here’s a look at the top storylines around the division:

Fluke fighters

The Lions not only won the NFC North last season for the first time in 30 years but led San Francisco by 17 points in the third quarter of the NFC championship game, before watching the Super Bowl dream die down the stretch. But tough-minded coach Dan Campbell and his players are determined to prove that last season was more than just a feel-good story.

The Lions have revamped a vulnerable secondary and solidified an offense that was third in the NFL in yards and fifth in points last season by signing quarterback Jared Goff, wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and left tackle Penei Sewell to contract extensions.

“There is no complacency. There is no entitlement,” Campbell said. “We go back to work.”

Running for Love

The Packers are well-positioned to make a push for their first Super Bowl appearance in 14 years, given the way Love threw the ball over the second half of the regular season and in the playoffs. They’re breaking in a new defensive coordinator in Jeff Hafley, a source of optimism for an improvement on that side of the ball, but their most important offseason addition was running back Josh Jacobs.

The 2022 All-Pro led the league with 1,653 rushing yards two seasons ago.

“When I hand the ball off to him, just watching the way he’s able to get through the holes, find those holes, and his cutting ability in and out of the holes is crazy,” Love said. “It’s fun to watch.”

Transition team

The Vikings signaled a clear shift in the strategic plan initiated by general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and coach Kevin O’Connell two years ago when they declined to match Atlanta’s contract for quarterback Kirk Cousins and drafted McCarthy with the 10th overall pick.

McCarthy’s injury was a major buzz kill for the fan base, but Sam Darnold was signed to be the bridge and will now keep the job all season as long as he’s healthy. Despite the in-between mode the Vikings have found themselves in, they’re far from out of it with six new starters for defensive coordinator Brian Flores to work with. That includes first-round edge rusher Dallas Turner and veteran cornerback Stephon Gilmore, who was a late signing to boost a thin group.

“He’s a great human being. He’s a great teammate. He’s going to be great for the young guys,” Flores said.

No waiting

Unlike Love with the Packers, the Bears won’t be giving Williams any redshirt years. He’ll be thrown in right away with a team that won four of its last six games last season and might finally be rounding into form with some promising skill-position talent and standouts on the other side of the ball in cornerback Jaylon Johnson, linebacker T.J. Edwards and defensive end Montez Sweat.

“Obviously getting into the playoffs and winning playoff games would be outstanding,” general manager Ryan Poles said, “but I think the biggest thing is can we take that big jump from where we were last year to this year?”

Predicted order of finish

Lions, Packers, Vikings, Bears.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL