Detroit was expected to lead the division after reaching the NFC title game a year ago. The Packers, the youngest team in the league, haven’t disappointed. But the rise of the Vikings, the most surprising team in the league, has made the NFC North the best division in the NFL.
Three teams in the division with at least nine wins? No other division in football can boast that.
Bears coach Matt Eberflus mismanaged games against each team over the past three weeks, or the division would have four teams with at least .500 records. Chicago could have done the Vikings a solid Thursday by knocking off the Lions, but the Bears suffered from last-second mismanagement in a 23-20 loss.
The Vikings could very well finish the season 13-4 but wind up on the road for the playoffs as a wild card. With six games left in the regular season, anything is possible. For us, it makes for interesting viewing, because the Vikings, Lions and Packers are stakeholders in the battle for NFC supremacy.
Here’s a tip of the cap to the league’s schedule-makers, who regularly set up late-season divisional collisions. This year, they outdid themselves.
The NFC North will have three teams with at least 10 wins for the first time since 2012. Each team has three division games remaining on the schedule. Starting with Thursday’s massive game between the Lions and Packers in Detroit, there will be a division battle every week through the end of the regular season. Games against the Bears will be tougher after Chicago finally dismissed Eberflus on Friday following six consecutive mismanaged losses.