NFC North's Biggest Improvements..........

Biggest improvements in NFC North

June, 19, 2012 Jun 19

11:30

AM ET


By Kevin Seifert | ESPN.com



SportsCenter's divisional analysis moves to the NFC North on Tuesday night (ESPN2, 7 p.m. ET). We've already discussed our most versatile players as well as potential breakout players, so let's give our television pals a pre-show primer on the biggest improvement (and regression) each division team made this offseason:

http://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nfl/med/trans/chi.gifChicago Bears: Enhanced comfort zone for quarterback Jay Cutler
In detail: The Bears fully committed to Cutler three years after acquiring him from the Denver Broncos. They finally gave him a full complement of promising receivers, most notably his all-time favorite in Brandon Marshall. Cutler will have his choice of big downfield threats, be it Marshall or rookie Alshon Jeffery, and Devin Hester has drawn rave reviews for his work within the team's new concepts. Coach Lovie Smith hired one of Cutler's favorite former coaches, Jeremy Bates, as quarterbacks coach, and offensive coordinator Mike Tice has liberally assimilated thoughts from Bates and Cutler into his scheme. For the first time the Bears feel like Cutler's team.

Biggest regression: The Bears' top four defensive players -- linebacker Brian Urlacher, defensive end Julius Peppers, linebacker Lance Briggs and cornerback Charles Tillman -- all got a year older without the team acquiring a potential heir at any of their positions. (Rookie defensive end Shea McClellin is projected to fill the Bears' spot opposite of Peppers.)

http://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nfl/med/trans/det.gifDetroit Lions: Insurance and a long-term plan at left tackle
In detail: The Lions mostly stood pat this offseason, making it their top priority to keep together a nucleus that earned a playoff spot three years after the franchise bottomed out at 0-16. They accomplished that goal by reaching contract agreements with receiver Calvin Johnson and linebacker Stephen Tulloch while franchising defensive end Cliff Avril. Retaining young players with room for growth counts as an improvement, but most notably, the Lions hatched a legitimate plan for the end of left tackle Jeff Backus' career. First-round draft choice Riley Reiff could replace Backus this season if necessary but could also get a year to develop. Regardless, it's a rare luxury for a team to have a legitimate succession plan in place at left tackle.

Biggest regression: It might not qualify as a step back, but the Lions didn't do much to improve a secondary that struggled for large portions of the 2011 season. Nickel back Aaron Berry will compete with free agent acquisition Jacob Lacey to start opposite Chris Houston, and the Lions appear set to give safety Amari Spievey one more chance to lock down a long-term job.

http://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nfl/med/trans/gnb.gifGreen Bay Packers: Adding juice to their defensive front
In detail: As we discussed in May, the Packers devoted a large portion of their offseason to elevating the energy and competition along their defensive line. They hope to manage the playing time of nose tackle B.J. Raji more efficiently by calling on rookies Jerel Worthy and Mike Daniels, along with eventual contributions from Anthony Hargrove (eight-game suspension) and Mike Neal (four-game suspension). The Packers have also signed Phillip Merling, a former second-round draft pick of the Miami Dolphins, and veteran Daniel Muir.

Biggest regression: The Packers had near-ideal insurance at quarterback when Matt Flynn was their backup quarterback. Presumptive replacement Graham Harrell has extensive experience in the Packers' system and has been widely praised by coaches this offseason, but no one has suggested he is the equivalent of Flynn just yet.

http://a.espncdn.com/i/teamlogos/nfl/med/trans/min.gifMinnesota Vikings: A better situation for a young quarterback
In detail: Quarterback Christian Ponder will have a blue-chip left tackle in rookie Matt Kalil protecting his backside and two proven pass-catchers for mid-range passing in tight ends Kyle Rudolph and John Carlson. The Vikings have also added a receiver who can stretch the field in Jerome Simpson, who will be eligible to play in Week 4 after an NFL suspension, and might have unearthed a draft steal if Arkansas' Greg Childs is healthy. The offense is far from a finished product, but it is staffed much better at multiple positions than it was in 2011.

Biggest regression: The Vikings appear to have cast aside E.J. Henderson, their middle linebacker for most of the past decade. For now, that means they are hoping to make fourth-year player Jasper Brinkley their new starter. Brinkley played decently when he started four games as a rookie in 2009, but he missed all of 2011 because of a hamstring injury and coaches are waiting for him to turn it loose this spring.

Looks like the major battle here will be the Bears improved offense against the Packers improving defense. Personally I don't see the Lions having improved themselves all that much. They should be able to maintain status quo but I think the greater improvements made by the Bears will allow up to leap frog them in the NFCN.

I think it's still just a two way battle at the top.

I'd question whether at this point in time you could call the Bears defense one in regression in the same manner that the Packers QB situation has regressed. They lost a very good #2 QB who can start elsewhere.

The Bears lost no one and I doubt anyone could claim the play of any one of those players mentioned has deteriorated one bit. Briggs made his 7th consecutive pro bowl and Tillman his long over due first. Urlacher had a pro bowl season that unfortunately ended poorly and Pep still put up double digit sacks and who knows how many pressures despite having little help pulling double and triple team blocking away from him.

I don't see the regression. It may be on the horizon but it's not there yet.

I don't think the Kitties were better then us last year, it took injuries to our primary O weapons to make that happen; on top of the inj's to the OL. They have to jump us, not vice versa.

As for the GB, losing your backup qb doesn't mean you've lost anything. Besides that team has traditionally been deep at qb; until I see the backup play poorly for multiple games I'll go ahead and assume they're fine. I do think we came closer to them, even if we didn't leap them. Our aging D is still well capable of shutting teams down. And w/the O able to run and pass look for the D to be fresher as te season goes along.

It remains to be seen as to whether Harrell is anywhere near as good as Flynn was. I don't really know but maybe Loki of Evernight can provide some insight. Heck my Packer fan daughters probably know more about Harrell than I do.

We may never know anyway if Rodgers doesn't go down. That's when it's either a surprise or a shock. Pretty much the same as when Hanie came in last year. After his showing in the last quarter of that NFCC Game who would have thought he would play the way he did last year?

Bottom line is that neither the Bears or the Packers are likely to make the SB without their starting QB's but I'd rather have our situation as far as depth goes.

I think its a pretty even three team battle here. Pack upgraded their defense, Lions need their promising youth to keep developing, and we improved our offense to the point that even Im happy lol. But logically speaking I put my money on our division looking like this

1.pack
2.bears
3.lions
4.vikes

but I wouldnt be surprised if the top three flips flops all over the place all three good teams

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by soulman

It remains to be seen as to whether Harrell is anywhere near as good as Flynn was. I don't really know but maybe Loki of Evernight can provide some insight. Heck my Packer fan daughters probably know more about Harrell than I do.

We may never know anyway if Rodgers doesn't go down. That's when it's either a surprise or a shock. Pretty much the same as when Hanie came in last year. After his showing in the last quarter of that NFCC Game who would have thought he would play the way he did last year?

Bottom line is that neither the Bears or the Packers are likely to make the SB without their starting QB's but I'd rather have our situation as far as depth goes.

---

Packer fan IQs are fairly low so I'm not sure Loki and Evernight are going to be able to shed much light on that Soul. Those short bus riders are probably still trying to figure out if those foam cheeseheads are real cheddar or not.

pot is that you?