Countdown to Kickoff: NFC North

The NFC North was vastly different from top to bottom last year. From Super Bowl runners-up to the annual losers that are best known for their “FIRE MILLEN” signs, the North should have many interesting storylines in 2007. Can the Bears get back to the Super Bowl? How successful can Favre be? Can Kitna back up his guarantee?

1. Chicago Bears – Last Season: 13-3, Prediction: 11-5
This is a no-brainer. Let alone they are the reigning NFC Champs but the rest of the division isn’t close. However with a tumultuous offseason, defending their NFC crown might have become more difficult. Here are three events to keep in mind:

1) Tommie Harris’s comments about “G Rex”. Kind of. Tommie repeated the fact only about 10 times that he would love Donovan McNabb as his quarterback. As if Rex’s confidence isn’t low enough. Brian Griese is warming up as we speak.
2) Lance Briggs holdout. Sometimes overshadowed by Urlaucher, Briggs wants to cash in big as the Robin to Batman. Both sides seem to be unrelenting, so the juries still out on Briggs being in a Bears uni next season.
3) Releasing Tank. Everyone knows the story behind the two most talked about NFL offseason topics: Tank and Pacman. And in a case of zero tolerance, Tank Johnson was released by the Bears after a suspected DUI in Arizona. Though he was under the legal limit, the Bears pulled the plug on the DT leaving a hole in the interior of the defensive line.

With all that being said the Bears still are the class of the North. Underproductive and facing issues with teammates in the past, Cedric Benson should successfully fill the role of Thomas Jones, who was traded to the Jets. Much of the important pieces stay the same on offense and the addition of Univ. of Miami TE Greg Olsen should improve Rex’s QB efficiency. Former Pro Bowler Mike Brown will once again anchor the secondary after missing most of the year due to injury.

Bottom line: The biggest question the 2007 Bears will face is the same as last year: Can they win with Rex at QB?

2. Detroit Lions – Last Season: 3-13, Prediction: 9-7
In the 70’s, Alan Alda and George Plimpton starred in a movie called “Paper Lion”, a movie following a player trying to make the Lions roster. The term “paper lion” is a good analogy for the 2007 Detroit team. The Lions on paper look to have a bright future and possible success, but that has yet to materialize into anything. And if their abysmal play wasn’t enough, now they will try to live up to a 10-win guarantee made by their quarterback Jon Kitna.

Maybe there luck is going to change. Perhaps their best pick from a slew of Top 10 picks (Harrington, Jones, M. Williams, Rogers) landed them Calvin Johnson. I don’t think anyone doubts the future of the Georgia Tech star, and the combination of Roy Williams and him could be deadly in a pass-first system under Offensive Coordinator Mike Martz. Though they traded away their best defensive player in Dre Bly, the return is Tatum Bell, who can help take some of the pressure off of the underachieving Kevin Jones. The Lions biggest weakness on offense last season was the offensive line. Giving up 63 sacks, second only to Oakland (72), the Lions looked to give Kitna more protection by obtaining OT George Foster and OG Edwin Mulitalo. With the offense looking improved (remember at least on paper), the defense could be the Achilles’ heel. Shaun Rogers is the staple on the interior and Cory Redding DE, who is moving to DT, led the team in sacks (8). The linebacker corp is young but the emergence of rookie Ernie Sims last season with 124 tackles could anchor them. The secondary will try to rebound from the Bly loss with so-so replacements Fernando Bryant and Travis Fisher, who combined had zero INT’s in 06’.

Bottom line: The aforementioned defensive players will have to improve Detroit’s 28th total defense ranking from a year ago to balance out what should be (yes, again will say on paper) a formidable offense that will put points on the board. And if the losing continues, the Millen Man March will get a lot bigger.

3. Green Bay Packers - Last Season: 8-8, Prediction: 8-8
Coming off an 8-8 season, the Green Bay Packers look to use the momentum of their four game winning streak to end the season as fuel for 2007. The Packers ended the season 9th in total offense and 12th in total defense, stats that are usually accrued by playoff teams. However their problems consisted of a lack of consistency in the running game and the inability to stop the run. Possibly a surprise to some, Brett Favre bounced back from a 20TD, 29INT season in 05', to a 3880YD, 18TD, 18INT respectable of 06' campaign. Favre has viable targets in Donald Driver (1290 YDS), Bubba Franks, and the 2nd year player Greg Jennings, who had a very solid 45 catch, 630YD, 3TD rookie year. Their backfield may be what there success hinges on with the loss of Ahman Green. To fill the void will be Vernand Morency and their second round pick Nebraska RB Brandon Jackson.

The M.O. of recent Packers' teams has been being porous on defense. However, with 06' first rounder A.J. Hawk (leader in tackles) and the free agent pickup of Charles Woodson last offseason (team-high 8 INTS), the defense finally has impact players on that side of the ball. The D-Line will be the question mark with only Aaron Kampman (15.5 sacks) making a name for himself. The rush defense is going to have to be respectable next year. This need was addressed on draft day with the drafting of Tennessee DT Justin Harrell, who should see immediate playing time alongside Ryan Pickett.

Bottom Line: With Favre's career accomplishments in his back pocket and an improving defense, never count out the Packers with #4 under center. But the inability of running and stopping the run are so critical to success in the NFC North, these shortcomings will probably keep the Packers in mediocrity.

4. Minnesota Vikings - Last Season: 6-10, Prediction: 5-11
Changing of the guard will take place this year in Minnesota. Out with the old (Brad Johnson) and in with the new (Tavaris Jackson) will be the philosophy with Head Coach Brad Childress. In his first season after coming over from Philadelphia, he led the Viks to a disappointing 6-10 season. The 6 wins can mainly be attributed to a non-existent passing game that lead to their opponents stacking the box to stop Chester Taylor. Brad Johnson, whose best quality is having the ability to control and manage a game, struggled for most of the season due to a lack of quality targets. Brad threw only 9TDS and 15INTS, numbers that will probably be similar to Jackson this season. The Viks are hopeful that former first round pick Troy Williamson can live up to the billing to aid the passing game.

Tavaris Jackson should have no problems staying on his feet at least. The Vikings have arguably the best C, LG, LT combo in the NFL with Matt Birk, Steve Hutchinson, and Bryant McKinnie. This surely will continue to help Chester Taylor in the ground game, as he amassed 1500 total yards behind these "bigs" a year ago. And with the drafting of Adrian Peterson, it is safe to say that Minnesota will be relying heavily on their running game to control the clock and pound defenses. The addition of "A Pete" should create a great 1-2 punch in the backfield for the Viks. The weakness at receiver was addressed in the draft with the drafting of Sydney Rice. Rice is young but shows a lot of potential and his game compares to a former Vikings receiver, Randy Moss. At least Viks fans hope so.

Bottom Line: This team will be as good or bad as Tavaris Jackson is this season. Opponents will try to stop Taylor and Peterson and put the pressure on Jackson to beat them. The defense should be a strength again, but until Jackson can prove he can be a starter in this league, the losses could pile up.