Chicago Bears
The 2013 NFL season is half over, and it’s pretty obvious who are each division’s top teams. Except, it seems, the NFC North.
Yep, the north, where so far the only thing we can say for certain is there is a mess in Minnesota. When it’s all said and done, who will come out on top? I believe it will be the Chicago Bears.
I know the Bears defense isn’t nearly as good as last year, and I know Cutler is either the best quarterback in the NFL or the worst, depending on which Bears fan you ask. But really, they won’t win the division because of how good they are, they’ll win it because the other teams are worse.
Chicago, Detroit and Green Bay are all tied at 5-3. Green Bay is going to lose Aaron Rodgers for at least two weeks, and we all saw Monday how the team plays without him. The Packers defense isn’t very good either, and without Rodgers, it’ll be exposed.
Detroit, meanwhile, can’t stop anyone in the air. They’re 26th in the league in opponent passing yards. Even though, they now have Reggie Bush, they can’t run the ball on offense. They’re simply too one-dimensional on both sides of the ball to compete.
It won’t be pretty, but the Bears will win the NFC North.
-Garth Shanklin
Detroit Lions
It’s week nine, and the battle for the NFC North crown is heating up more than ever. And now, with the injury to Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the race got much more interesting.
Before Rodger’s injury against the Bears on Monday Night Football, the Packers were in the drivers seat of the division, with wins over the Vikings and Lions. However, the loss to the Bears puts them is a hole.
With the Bears dealing with defensive and special teams problems, the one team that’s primed to win the north title is the Detroit Lions. With an offense lead by superstar wide out Calvin Johnson, former No. 1 overall pick Matthew Stafford and a reincarnated Reggie Bush, there is no end of playmakers.
And now, with Rodgers out indefinitely, the Lions can make a serious push to the top of the division, with two of the next four games being division games, including the matchup against the Packers on Thanksgiving Day.
If the Lions can steal some games while Rodgers sits on the sideline, especially the division games, then Lions can wrap up the division easily. This means the Lions are in control of their own destiny, which starts this Sunday in a tough contest against the Bears in Soldier Field.
-Chris Kwiecinski
