Last year, the NFC North had the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings in first and second place. Well, as it would be in the NFL, the Lions and Vikings are now in third and fourth place, which is just insane to think about.
On paper, all four NFC North teams have the potential to be very good, but the Chicago Bears have left more of a mark than the other three teams. Heck, if the Minnesota Vikings can figure out something with their QB situation, they could get back into the mix in 2026, and the Detroit Lions really just need to rework the defense a little bit.
This division is still pretty good overall but does have the chance to one year in the near future have all four teams making the playoffs, which is something we have not yet seen since the NFL rolled out the seven-team playoff format. Let's power rank the division as Week 16 closes out.
Power ranking the wild NFC North following Week 16 action
Minnesota Vikings (7-8)
The Minnesota Vikings won, but JJ McCarthy again got hurt, and I have to wonder just how close the Vikings are to pulling the plug on this experiment - Minnesota can still win out for a winning record this year, which I guess is good for something, but the QB play has been horrific at best.
And this team is coming off a season in which they won 14 games. I bet they do regret letting Sam Darnold leave in free agency. Anyway. I could see a major QB change this coming offseason, as McCarthy is not only a bad QB, but he cannot stay healthy.
That is a double-whammy of 'no good' at the QB position. Minnesota is last in our NFC North rankings but do have a path to a winning record this year, so I guess that has to be good for something, right?