NFC North Insiders Break Down 2024 NFL Draft Classes

Who are the most intriguing players drafted by the Packers, Bears, Lions and Vikings, and what perhaps didn’t turn out quite right for the teams?

Receiver Matthew Golden of Texas poses after being selected in the first round by the Green Bay Packers. | Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – While it didn’t show up in the playoffs, the NFC North was the most powerful division in the NFL last season. Just how good was the North? The Packers’ 11 wins tied for the most ever for a third-place team.

The teams added to their powerful rosters during last week’s NFL Draft. Our NFC North publishers, Bill Huber in Green Bay, John Maakaron in Detroit, Gene Chamberlain in Chicago and Joe Nelson in Minnesota, break it down.

Green Bay Packers

• Round 1: No. 23: Matthew Golden, WR, Texas
• Round 2: No. 54: Anthony Belton, OT, North Carolina State
• Round 3: No. 87: Savion Williams, WR, TCU
• Round 4: No. 124: Barryn Sorrell, edge, Texas
• Round 5: No. 159: Collin Oliver, LB, Oklahoma State
• Round 6: No. 198: Warren Brinson, DT, Georgia
• Round 7: No. 237: Micah Robinson, CB, Tulane
• Round 7: No. 250: John Williams, OT, Cincinnati  

Most intriguing player: While Matthew Golden got the hype as the team picked a receiver in the first round for the first time since 2002, fellow receiver Savion Williams could be a big-time difference-maker.

A scout called him “Deebo Samuel-light,” though there’s nothing light about the 6-foot-4, 222-pound former TCU star. There’s nothing slow, either, with 4.47 speed.

Williams is unpolished as a route-runner. His hands are suspect. But he was a tackle-breaking, playmaking machine as a receiver and runner, with power, athleticism and a wicked open-field spin move. “The only thing that limits you in terms of your creativity is your imagination,” coach Matt LaFleur said.

Williams should be an immediate weapon on screens and jet sweeps. Because of his talent, he should impact the game even when he doesn’t get the ball.

Green Bay Packers rookie wide receiver Savion Williams talks to reporters at rookie camp on Friday. | Tork Mason / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The good and the bad: The Packers desperately needed to upgrade their receiver corps. Green Bay’s end-of-season offensive funk coincided with Christian Watson’s knee injuries. While not a premier player, his elite combination of size and speed had to be accounted for by defenses, which opened things underneath.

Golden should help fix that. With 4.29 speed in the 40, he was the fastest receiver in the draft. At 5-foot-11, he doesn’t have Watson’s imposing size but he’s a more polished player. With Golen’s big-play ability and Williams unique skill-set, Jordan Love should have plenty of options alongside receivers Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed and Dontayvion Wicks and tight ends Tucker Kraft and Luke Musgrave.

The second-round pick, offensive lineman Anthony Belton, was deemed a reach by the pundits but he fits with Green Bay’s desire to play with size and physicality up front.

The problem is the defense was largely unaddressed. The pass rush wasn’t good enough last season; the Packers added Barryn Sorrell, who had decent production at Texas, and Collin Oliver, who had great production at Oklahoma State but is undersized. The only cornerback was a seventh-round flier on Tulane’s Micah Robinson.

Detroit Lions

Arkansas Razorbacks wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa (4) scores a touchdown against Louisiana Tech. | Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

• Round 1: No. 28: Tyleik Williams, DT, Ohio State
• Round 2: No. 57: Tate Ratledge, G, Georgia
• Round 3: No. 70: Isaac TeSlaa, WR, Arkansas
• Round 5: No. 171: Miles Frazier, G, LSU
• Round 6: No. 196: Ahmed Hassanein, edge, Boise State
• Round 7: No. 230: Dan Jackson, S, Georgia
• Round 7: No. 244: Dominic Lovett, WR, Georgia

Most intriguing draft pick: The Lions gave up three third-round picks over this year and next to get Arkansas receiver Isaac TeSlaa. He's an easy player to root for amongst the fanbase as a local product who began his college career at Division II Hillsdale. At 6-foot-3 5/8 with 4.43 speed in the 40 and a 39.5-inch vertical leap, his Relative Athletic Score of 9.93 ranks as the 29th-highest out of 3,816 receivers dating to 1987.

However, he didn't have eye-popping production at Arkansas and there are concerns that his standout testing numbers may not translate. If he's able to unlock his physical gifts, the Lions will reap big rewards. 

The potential is there. In 2024, he caught 28 passes for 546 yards (19.5 average) and three touchdowns. With size and speed, he caught 7-of-9 deep passes and scored two touchdowns. He averaged 6.0 yards after the catch and had zero drops. When targeted, he rewarded the quarterback with a 146.5 passer rating.

The good and the bad: Detroit's front office faces a challenge much different than when it first started. Instead of picking early in every round, the Lions are forced to try to find standouts at the bottom of rounds. It’s obviously a different pool of players picking 28th in the first round, which is where they picked defensive tackle Tyleik Williams this year, compared to 2021, when GM Brad Holmes picked offensive tackle Penei Sewell at No. 8.

Still, this was a solid class as each of their first four picks could be instant contributors. They may have waited too long to find a defensive end to complement Aidan Hutchinson – Boise State’s Ahmed Hassanein was taken at No. 196 of the sixth round – but Holmes has made it perfectly clear he will not reach, regardless of position. It was a trademark Lions draft, as they got stronger in the trenches and took a chance on a high-upside talent at a skill position. 

Minnesota Vikings

Maryland Terrapins wide receiver Tai Felton (10) had a predraft visit with the Packers but was drafted by the Vikings. | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

• Round 1: No. 24: Donovan Jackson, G, Ohio State
• Round 3: No. 102: Tai Felton, WR, Maryland
• Round 5: No. 139: Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, edge, Georgia
• Round 6: No. 201: Kobe King, LB, Penn State
• Round 6: No. 202: Gavin Bartholomew, TE, Pittsburgh

 Most intriguing player: Fifth-round pick Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins is quite exciting because this front office has had a knack for finding undersized talent in the late rounds or even as undrafted signees. Ivan Pace Jr. was one of the best linebackers in the country at Cincinnati before going undrafted, and he was an instant impact starter in the middle of Minnesota's defense.

Ingram-Dawkins fits the undersized bill as a bit of a tweener playing on the defensive line. At 6-foot-5, 280 pounds, he doesn't fit the bill of a modern monster at defensive tackle, but the Vikings will be able to develop him into a versatile player who can rush from the edge and use his elite athletic traits to put pressure on quarterbacks from the interior. There's no rush to play him since Javon Hargrave, Jonathan Allen and Harrison Phillips will command the snaps in 2025. 

The good and the bad: Getting Maryland wide receiver Tai Felton in the third round could be a steal. He's lightning-quick with explosive return traits. If Jalen Nailor doesn't make another jump in 2025, Felton could have the inside track to WR3. That could be a WR2 role right away since Jordan Addison could be facing a three-game suspension to start the season. 

We're waiting way too long to address the first-round pick, Donovan Jackson. He's an instant starter at left guard and should secure the final weak spot on Minnesota's offensive line. If he's legit, the Vikings will offer excellent pass protection for J.J. McCarthy while having potential to dominate on the ground with Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason toting the rock.  

The only bad part of the draft was the limited number of picks. Minnesota entered the draft with four picks and left it with five. The risk is that none of their picks are guaranteed to succeed, and that's dangerous for general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, who is on a lame-duck contract and completely whiffed on his first draft three years ago. 

Chicago Bears

Michigan tight end Colston Loveland was the first-round pick for the Bears. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

• Round 1: No. 10: Colston Loveland, TE, Michigan
• Round 2: No. 39: Luther Burden III, WR, Missouri
• Round 2: No. 56: Ozzy Trapilo, OT, Boston College
• Round 2: No. 62: Shemar Turner, DT, Texas A&M
• Round 4: No. 132: Ruben Hyppolite II, LB, Maryland
• Round 5: No. 169: Zah Frazier, CB, UTSA
• Round 6: No. 195: Luke Newman, OT, Michigan
• Round 7: No. 233: Kyle Monangai, RB, Rutgers

Most intriguing player: First-round tight end Colston Loveland is intriguing down to his core mainly because of his head coach's creativity.

Second-round receiver Luther Burden III normally might rate even as a more exciting pick because of his great speed and elusiveness as a slot receiver, but the fact coach Ben Johnson has a history of running 12 personnel and now has two quality tight ends to do it with has stirred great anticipation about he'll devise ways to use Loveland and veteran Cole Kmet.

Loveland's toughness and ability to get downfield give him the role of the move-tight end to Kmet's Y or in-line spot. Loveland also has the quickness to be a slot receiver.

The good and the bad: The obvious bad is the Bears didn't draft a running back until Round 7. Although they like seventh-rounder Kyle Monangai from Rutgers as a smaller, power type, he wasn’t a premier back in a loaded draft class.

The other bad was they failed to come up with a legitimate edge rusher, although their third second-round pick, defensive tackle Shemar Turner, had his best season when he was a Texas A&M edge in 2023. Turner, though, earned rave reviews for the pressure he generated rapidly off the snap as a three-technique last year. He’ll be a backup at the start but part of a regular pass-rush rotation. 

The good was Burden's explosiveness as a player who really should have been taken in Round 1 and can do many of the things Johnson did with Amon-Ra St. Brown in Detroit. In fact, he's faster (4.41 in the 40) than St. Brown (4.51).

Fundamentally sound 6-foot-8 tackle Ozzy Trapilo should compete for left tackle and could eventually take the spot from Braxton Jones while they found extra depth at guard in Round 6 with Michigan State's Luke Newman. 

The goal was increasing defensive speed, and they did this with fourth-round linebacker Ruben Hyppolite II from Maryland and Texas State cornerback Zah Frazier in Round 5.