NFC North Standings: The Vikings Can Clinch the Division in Week 13
The Minnesota Vikings will likely be one of the NFL's first teams — if not the first — to clinch a division title this season. They can do it as soon as next Sunday.
All that needs to happen is the Vikings beating the Jets and the Lions losing to the Jaguars. If both of those results occur, the Vikings will clinch the NFC North in Week 13. If one or both don't happen, Minnesota will have another opportunity to clinch when it travels to Detroit the following Sunday.
This was yet another week where the Vikings won and every other team in the division lost. That's happened four times now, if you include Week 6 when the Bears and Packers lost but the Lions were on their bye.
Here's a look at the NFC North standings after the Packers lost to the Eagles on Sunday night.
The Vikings bounced back in a big way from their embarrassing loss to the Cowboys, taking down the Patriots in a Thanksgiving night thriller. Next up are the Jets, who boast one of the league's best defenses and an offense that looks much more dangerous with Mike White at quarterback instead of Zach Wilson. They beat the Justin Fields-less Bears 31-10 on Sunday — Chicago's fifth straight loss.
Minnesota opens as just three-point favorites against the Jets.
Earlier on Thanksgiving, the Lions dropped a tough game against the Bills. Dan Campbell's team had won three straight and put up a fight in the loss, so the Vikings will have their hands full in Detroit in Week 14. It's probably too late for the Lions to make a wild card push this season, but their future looks bright. Now they just need a franchise quarterback.
Wrapping up Sunday's slate of games was the Packers losing 40-33 to the Eagles. Green Bay hung around and made it interesting, but giving up 363 rushing yards (and 500 total yards) was impossible to overcome. The big news is that Aaron Rodgers, who was already dealing with a thumb injury, left the game with an oblique issue. Jordan Love, the Packers' first-round pick in 2020, came in and played quite well.
Rodgers' status for next week's game against the Bears is now in question, as is his future in Green Bay beyond this year. Will the Love era begin in 2023?
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