Lions Turnaround
As the four teams prepare for the 2024 season, the story has changed dramatically. The Lions are viewed as a legitimate championship contender for the first time since the 1950s. The Green Bay Packers should be right on their heels as Jordan Love has shown he is a quarterback who can lead the team to key victories in the most crucial part of the season.
Bears new Hope
The Bears have plenty of hope after drafting quarterback Caleb Williams and wide receiver Rome Odunze and signing free agent wideout Keenan Allen. As long as Williams understands offensive coordinator Shane Waldron’s plan of attack, the Bears should be contenders for a Wild Card spot in the playoffs.
Vikings facing a bad year
The Vikings are a different story. After saying goodbye to quarterback Kirk Cousins in free agency and losing superb sack artist Danielle Hunter to the Houston Texans, the Vikings are loaded with question marks. General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has attempted to answer those questions with high draft picks J.J. McCarthy and Dallas Turner along with a number of key free-agent signings, but most teams that have that many changes need time to become competitive.
What do oddsmakers predict?
Oddsmakers have listed the Lions as the +150 favorites to win the division, followed by the Packers at +225, the Bears at +350 and the Vikings at a robust +750.
The Lions nearly made it to the Super Bowl a year ago as a result of their versatile offense and improved defense. Quarterback Jared Goff has thrived in Detroit and he has one of the best receivers in the league in Amon-Ra St. Brown
There is legitimate joy in Green Bay as they prepare for the 2024 season. A year ago, the Packers did not know how the team would respond in their first season without Aaron Rodgers.
Love certainly had some growing pains at the start of the season as he learned the nuances of his Green Bay offense, but he picked it up in the season’s home stretch and was one of the league’s better quarterbacks. He led the Packers into the playoffs and they picked up a huge road postseason win over the Cowboys and then nearly did the same against the San Francisco 49ers a week later.
Final Predictions
The Lions and Packers should engage in a fight for the division title that could last until the final week of the regular season.
The Bears may be good enough to challenge both of those teams. While they were 7-10 a year ago, their defense improved significantly in 2023. If the offensive changes deliver the expected results, the Bears could have their best season in years.
The primary reason the Vikings let Cousins leave through free agency to the Atlanta Falcons was his inability to beat winning teams and his ordinary play in prime time games. Cousins is a very accurate passer and popular with his teammates and coaches, but the Vikings no longer had faith he would win key games.
That’s why they drafted J.J. McCarthy with the No. 10 pick in the draft. McCarthy proved himself as a flat-out winner during his spectacular college career at Michigan that included last season’s national championship and back-to-back seasons in the College Football Playoffs.
The NFC North ranked with the worst divisions in the NFL for years. Suddenly, this division could turn out to be the best in the league.
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