NFC North Preview

Now, here's a really cut throat division. You're looking at a division with three legit good teams. Green Bay, Minnesota and Chicago will all be in the mix for a playoff bid this season. I think Green Bay and Minnesota will be duking it out for the North crown all season.

Chicago is what it is. A team that can win 9-11 games when everyone is healthy and a team that's going to struggle when people start getting hurt. Cutler and Marshall have something special on offense. They've always been a good combo in the passing game. Matt Forte is really a hit and miss prospect from season to season. Sometimes, he's awesome and unstoppable and other seasons he's not so good. The defense has most of the players back and they were pretty good last year. I expect that to continue this season. Where this team HAS to win this year is against Green Bay. Chicago has to beat Green Bay at least once if they want to win the division. I'm going to say 9-7 for the Bears this year. No real reason, just seems like a good number for them.

Green Bay took a bit of a step back last year. They came a little slow out of the gate but eventually figured it out. I like most of the moves the team made in the offseason. I think Lacey is a great fit for their running game. Greg Jennings leaving hurts a bit but I'm guessing he's not going to be missed once Rogers doesn't miss a beat. The defense is about average as always. I expect the Packers to win the North again this year. I'm guessing they'll be 12-4 this season. They just have talent everywhere and it's hard to see them not excelling.

Minnesota is an interesting team this year. They replaced Percy Harvin with Greg Jennings. I think that's a push. The Cassell/Ponder situation will be interesting and probably a distraction to the team in the long run. AP is the elephant in the room with this team. He ran for 2097 yards last year. It was crazy to watch him run the ball down the stretch. As usual with Minnesota they were a one dimensional offense with a pretty good defense. I think they addressed some of the concerns in the passing game. Their receivers are generally better and Ponder has a year under his belt. If they can just get average performance in the passing game they could go really far this year. This team has some questions but I think 10-6 is where they'll end up.

Detroit is the odd man out in the North. Reggie Bush isn't the answer for Detroit. I feel kind of bad for Detroit fans. They're stuck with Matthew Stafford as their franchise QB. He's good but not an elite level QB. I think they could easily regret his contract extension after this season. I think a big problem with this team is Jim Schwartz. I think his temper and emotional state has rubbed off on the team and caused a lack of discipline. The offense is okay and the defense isn't very good. I think Detroit is in for a tough season and I could see them going winless within the division. I'll say this team is going to win 4-6 games.

I think you're looking at the best division in football right here. I could see Minnesota and Chicago taking both wildcard spots if things played out a certain way. This division is just loaded.