NFC North Championship Odds Revealed

The Green Bay Packers struggled, the Detroit Lions are ascending and the Minnesota Vikings are the champs. Here are the early division odds.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
Mar 2, 2023 3:40 PM EST

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Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The NFC North was created in 2002. The Green Bay Packers have won or shared 12 of the 21 division championships.

The Detroit Lions have won zero. In fact, they haven’t won a division title since claiming the NFC Central crown in 1993. Only three members of the Packers who are under contract were alive to see it: punter Pat O’Donnell, left tackle David Bakhtiari and outside linebacker Preston Smith.

There could be a changing of the guard, though. At FanDuel Sportsbook, the Lions are the early favorite to be kings of the North.

In odds that were released on Thursday, the Lions are +180 to win the NFC North, followed by the Packers at +260, Minnesota Vikings at +300 and Chicago Bears at +350.

Detroit started the 2022 season with a 1-6 record. An ugly win at home against Green Bay in Week 9 changed the season. The Lions finished with eight wins in their final 10 games, including an upset victory at Lambeau Field to keep the Packers out of the playoffs.

“We ended the season with a lot of momentum,” Lions general manager Brad Holmes said at the Scouting Combine. “I think we’re heading in the right direction. So, this is going to be a big offseason. Never like to put too much pressure on myself, but I think we just remain confident in our process, which we’ve done, and which has worked so far.”

The Lions have two first-round picks: No. 6 from the 2021 trade of Matthew Stafford to the Rams and their own pick at No. 18.

“Last year was exciting. It doesn’t matter whether you win three or 13 games,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “You got a chance to continue to improve your team, and that’s always an exciting thing. To be able to find these guys or identify these guys that fit what you’re about, that’s fun, man.

“This is a fun time of year, no matter where you’re at, from free agency to the draft, because it’s not just about acquiring the most talented players. They got to fit your locker room, too. They got to fit your locker room, they got to fit a certain need.”

The Vikings won the division in a runaway with their 13-4 record. Sandwiched between their first win and last win, 11 consecutive victories were by one score. They might not be able to afford star running back Dalvin Cook but bolstered a putrid defense by hiring highly regarded Brian Flores as coordinator.

“I can’t say enough great things about that addition,” Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said at the Combine. “It’s not just the football mind, which is special. I’m always going to be a numbers guy, so I’m always going to go look at the results of his defenses, and they played a lot of good, efficient football with a lot of young players, and that’s something that really drew us to him.

“And then you talk about the leader, how passionate he is. He fits so well in our culture where our culture is positivity. It’s about reshaping our vision for the roster going forward, not just to compete in today’s NFL, but where it could go. He’s the type of thinker that I need, combined with Kevin [O’Connell], that’ll help us do that.”

The Lions finished second with their 9-8 record, and Green Bay crashed from three consecutive seasons of 13 wins to 8-9. From an odds perspective, they’ll likely close the gap if Aaron Rodgers returns or trend down toward the Vikings if Rodgers is traded or retires.

Regardless of the quarterback and last year’s results, the Packers believe they have a talented roster.

“There’s obviously a lot of unknowns right now but I really like the nucleus of guys we’ve got coming back,” Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst told a group of local reporters at the Combine.

“We have some really young, promising players that are going to step into new roles, probably. So, I really like the nucleus of this team. It was very frustrating last year. We didn’t perform to our capabilities at times for a variety of reasons, but I’m excited about where this group can go.”

The Bears are sitting pretty, even with their last-place roster. They have the No. 1 overall pick, which will be auctioned off to the highest quarterback-needy bidder, and almost as much cap space as the next two teams combined.

“I try not to get too high or too low and try to stay on our toes,” Bears GM Ryan Poles said at the Combine. “I’ve been in this league long enough [to know] that some curveball’s going to pop up and we’re going to have to adapt and adjust to it.

“But, if anything, the feeling is of excitement because as a front office person, this is a bit of a dream in terms of the flexibility and options that you have to improve the football team.”