Aidan Hutchinson is capable of taking over a game at any time. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
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If the NFC Central was considered the best division in football last year, it may be even better this season.
Start with the Detroit Lions and the focus should be on head coach Dan Campbell, quarterback Jared Goff and edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson. The Lions finished 15-2 last year and matching that record will be difficult, especially after losing both coordinators.
Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson left the Lions coaching staff to take over as head coach of the Chicago Bears and he is working hand in hand with Caleb Williams and helping him improve. Aaron Glenn is trying to do the same with the New York Jets and that team has shown some battle even if it is winless in three games.
The Lions were dominant on the road in their Week 3 Monday night game against the Baltimore Ravens. There are three rules to football that may seem old school, but by getting the best of the Ravens in all three, they were able to dominate the game by far more than the 38-30 final score. Run the football, protect the quarterback and pressure the opposing quarterback.
The Lions outrushed the Ravens 224-85 and the offensive line did not allow the opponents to get to quarterback Jared Goff even once. At the same time, Hutchinson and the Lions defense sacked Lamar Jackson seven times.
Campbell said the Lions’ sack explosion did not surprise him in any way. “We know what we’ve got here,” Campbell said. “We don’t need anybody telling us what we do or don’t have. We feel good about it. It takes everybody doing their job, and our guys did that.”
If the Lions can do this to the Ravens – one of the elite teams in the AFC despite a 1-2 start – they have created a roadmap towards domination of the NFC.
The Green Bay Packers beat the Lions in Week One as they were riding the high of Micah Parsons trade with the Dallas Cowboys. The Packers were a playoff team in each of the last two years with Jordan Love at quarterback, and even though they lost their Week Three game to the dominant Cleveland Browns defense, their focus will be intense in Week Four as Parsons goes back to Dallas to face the Cowboys.
“I’m sure it’s probably a weird feeling for him,” Love said about Parsons. “But for the rest of us, just focus on another week for going 1-0. Obviously we want to get it for him, but every week we’re trying to win.”
Love should be able to move the ball up and down the field against a Cowboys defense that has been taken apart by the New York Giants and the Chicago Bears in consecutive weeks. Love should be ready for a 3-TD effort throwing to tight end Tucker Kraft and wide out Romeo Doubs against a soft Cowboys secondary that ranks dead last in passing yards allowed (288.0 per game).
Vikings have the defense to support back up QB Carson Wentz
Carson Wentz has a clear-cut understanding of the Vikings offensive gameplan. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)
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The Vikings are competing with a backup quarterback in Carson Wentz for the next month until J.J. McCarthy recovers from his high ankle sprain. Wentz has the advantage of working with head coach Kevin O’Connell, the premier quarterback whisperer in the league. He also has one of the best defensive teams in the league supporting the offense.
The Vikings can’t expect defensive back Isaiah Rodgers to deliver an interception for a TD and force a fumble, recover it and return it for a score each week. However, the Vikings have Andrew Van Ginkel, Jonathan Greenard and Harrison Smith who can all make big-time contributions on an every-week basis.
Finally, the Bears are a better team than they were last year as Johnson is a demanding coach who wants to see Williams fulfill his potential at quarterback. One huge week against the Cowboys is just a first step. Long-suffering Bears fans are encouraged by Williams 298-yard, 4-TD performance, and now he has to pick it up where he left off against the Las Vegas Raiders.
If he can, the Bears can easily be the fourth team in the division to put together a winning record in 2025. That’s something that no other division is even close to at this point.