The Chicago Bears are building around Justin Fields, the Detroit Lions are entering the season as betting favorites to win the division, the Green Bay Packers are transitioning from Aaron Rodgers to Jordan Love and the Minnesota Vikings are attempting to repeat as division champs for the first time since 2008-09.
There’s a lot going on in the NFC North this season.
In the latest of a series of posts previewing the division ahead of the 2023 season, Alyssa Barbieri of Bears Wire, Jeff Risdon of Lions Wire, Zach Kruse of Packers Wire and Tyler Forness of Vikings Wire answered the question: Which players are on the hot seat in 2023?
NFC North roundtable: Realistic expectations for each team in 2023
NFC North roundtable: Biggest impact rookie for each team in 2023
NFC North roundtable: Biggest offseason addition for each team in 2023
NFC North roundtable: Who will be division’s most valuable player in 2023?
NFC North roundtable: Who is the division favorite entering 2023?
NFC North roundtable: Players on the hot seat entering 2023
Chicago Bears: Justin Fields can't throw the ball
It doesn’t matter where it started, but there’s been a ridiculous notion that Fields is a running back playing quarterback. There’s no denying that Fields is electric when he’s running the ball, and he certainly needs to improve as a passer at the NFL level. But the lack of a supporting cast and poor pass protection in his first two seasons haven’t made it easy to showcase how effective he can be as a passer. In fact, back at Ohio State, he was hailed for his deep-ball accuracy rather than his ability on the ground. With upgrades across the board, including wide receiver DJ Moore and offensive linemen Darnell Wright and Nate Davis, Fields has everything he needs to take that step forward in the passing game and become a true dual-threat quarterback for the Bears.
Lions: Defense was a disaster all of 2022
No one would argue that the Lions defense was good in 2022. They ranked 28th in points and 32nd in yardage in the NFL. But the defense in November and December was a lot different–and better–than the unit was in the first eight weeks of the season.
With one notable game exception on each side of the ledger, it was very much a tale of two seasons for the Lions defense. The first nine weeks of the season, Detroit’s defense earned an average PFF grade of 55.5. In the final eight weeks, that jumps up to 66.2. That would have ranked 22nd for the season. They had more sacks in the final four games (13) than the first eight (12). Still not good enough, but far from the narrative that the Lions defensive incompetence did not improve with a few lineup tweaks and a coaching change during the season.
Packers: Roster lacks talent in post-Aaron Rodgers era
The Packers traded away Aaron Rodgers and let several veteran free agents depart, but this isn’t a roster suddenly lacking talent. While Jordan Love is a big unknown at quarterback, the Packers have two solid running backs (including Pro Bowler Aaron Jones), a deep and experienced offensive line (including an elite left side in David Bakhtiari and Elgton Jenkins), Pro Bowl-caliber talent at all of the most important defensive positions (Rashan Gary at edge rusher, Jaire Alexander at cornerback, Kenny Clark at interior defensive line) and an All-Pro returner (Keisean Nixon). There is youth and inexperience at important spots, but the Packers have big pieces in place on offense around Love and a lot of money and draft capital invested in the defense. The Packers have talent, but the final product will depend on Love’s progression during his first season as a starter.
Minnesota Vikings: Regression can't be positive
One of the pain talking points with the 2023 Vikings team is that they will regress from their 11-0 record. Yes, that will regress back to the mean, as will a lot of teams in multiple areas. At the same time, there is such a thing as positive regression where you naturally grow toward the mean. The Vikings won’t have all of their regular season losses by double digits and be an utter disaster on defense. Those things will show growth, especially with the addition of Brian Flores as defensive coordinator. If you are going to talk about how the Vikings are going to be worse in some areas, it’s only fair to discuss the improvements as well.
