NFL playoffs prove Bears not far behind NFC North rivals

Three teams from the NFC North made the playoffs this year after posting an impressive 40-11 combined record. They proceeded to go 0-3 in the playoffs, with each team suffering a blowout loss.

Even the mighty Lions fell with a whimper, thus opening the door to losing their hotshot coordinators much earlier than expected.

What happened? Was the regular season a fluke? Is Chicago closer to the top than their record indicates? Let's break down the future for each team and find out who has the most reason to worry.

Chicago Bears

Oddly enough, the team that finished last in the division and won just five games seems to have the brightest future. Rookie quarterback Caleb Williams proved to be legit even in the face of extreme adversity. GM Ryan Poles' first-round draft picks are all big contributors to the team. Best of all, the Bears have a chance to simultaneously strengthen themselves and weaken the division.

Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson is far and away the hottest head coaching candidate this cycle. If the Bears satisfy his salary demands, there's every reason to believe he'll jump over to his division rival, where he'll be trusted to develop their budding superstar quarterback. The Bears may also be trying to lure one of Packers' head coach Matt LaFLeur's favorite coaches over as the offensive coordinator, having recently interviewed Adam Stenavich about the open head coaching job.

Can Chicago make the worst-to-first leap in 2025? They were supposed to push for it in 2024, but that never materialized. However, if they go into the offseason with two highly regarded division rivals joining their staff, and if Johnson is the offensive guru he appears to be, the buzz around Chicago will once again be sky-high.

Detroit Lions

After losing to the San Francisco 49ers in the 2023 NFC Championship game, Lions head coach Dan Campbell famously told his players that 'this may have been [their] only shot'. Well, for at least one season, he was right. The Lions took a step back, getting dominated in the divisional round by the Washington Commanders.

To make matters worse, the Lions are probably going to lose both of their coordinators, Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, to head coaching jobs. The Eagles were in a similar situation, losing both of their coordinators following the 2022 season, and 2023 was a massive regression year for them. If history proves a steady guide, Lions fans may not have much to hope for in 2025.

After posting the best record in franchise history, the Lions head to the offseason with nothing to show for it. That kind of gut-punch can take even the best of teams a full year to recover from.

Minnesota Vikings

Unlike Detroit, the Vikings were not supposed to be good this year. They traded away starting quarterback Kirk Cousins, then lost the rookie quarterback they'd selected 11th overall to a season-ending injury. With nowhere else to turn, alleged bust Sam Darnold was named the starting quarterback.

Darnold proceeded to post his best season ever by a wide margin and led the Vikings to 14 wins. But in the end, this regular season success did not translate to the playoffs as the Vikings got blown out on the road by the LA Rams.

Of all the NFC North teams, the Vikings are most primed for a regression season in 2025. Darnold's year, while impressive, still carries undercurrents of a fluke. They may also lose superstar defensive coordinator Brian Flores. There's a lot of question marks around this team and not many answers.

Sam Darnold — Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

Green Bay Packers

Despite improving their regular season record by two wins in 2024, it's hard to argue that the Packers are in better shape today than they were a year ago. Eleven wins is impressive on the surface, but the Packers proved to be paper tigers as they went 1-5 in the division, 0-6 against the top three teams in the conference, and suffered a humiliating road loss in which quarterback Jordan Love, who they signed to a $220 million extension last summer, threw three interceptions.

Like the Vikings, there's not much to be excited about with this roster. Love regressed hard after an impressive stretch to close the 2023 season and his future as a franchise quarterback is in doubt. The defense improved somewhat but still underperforms. A wide receiver room dubbed by some as the youngest and most exciting in the league proved ineffective. In fact, the only player who seemed to take a tangible step forward in their career progression is tight end Tucker Kraft.

If they don't make some big upgrades this offseason, Green Bay could be stuck in NFL purgatory as a team just good enough to reach the playoffs but never close to seriously contending for a title.

Jordan Love — Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

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