Only Two Weeks Left to See Who Rules The NFC North
Remember when the final two episodes of Game of Thrones were coming up? Even if you weren’t watching, you still felt invested simply because of the pop culture references. Would everything be frozen forever, or would the entire world burn?
With injuries piling up and playoff math tightening, the NFC North has become a week-to-week survival test where one win or concussion could flip the standings overnight.
The show was known to be unpredictable, so anything was possible. The 2025 NFL Season has been similarly unpredictable, with moments of teams being burned down and others freezing to death.
The NFC North Sprint Nears the Finish Line
These last two weeks will have plenty of drama as many a mighty warrior has fallen. Micah Parsons, Tucker Kraft, Christian Darrisaw, Johnathan Greenard, Rome Odunze, Braxton Jones, Brian Branch, and Sam LaPorta have all been removed from the battlefield, causing the fights to swing wildly from one moment to the next.
Now, Jordan Love and JJ McCarthy are hurt and might not be available for next week or maybe the rest of the season.
Packers at Bears
The battle for the top spot had a Saturday spotlight! Most of the year, I’ve had the Bears near or at the bottom of my personal standings based on who they beat or lost to. The Packers have dipped a few times, but I felt as of last week they were the top team regardless of teams’ records.
The game started just as I thought it would, with the teams bending but not really breaking. However, the Packers were the ones taking a slight advantage, chipping in field goals in the first half, going in at the half up 6-0. I felt that the Packers were in a perfect position to start getting into the end zone in the second half and sweep the Bears.
Caleb Williams wasn’t lighting up the Green Bay defense, but was still doing enough to keep them in the game. The Chicago defense was playing with plenty of intensity and somewhat recklessly, and that’s what turned the game in a way many didn’t anticipate.
No, Chicago didn’t blow the game by playing bad defense. They won it because their defense did something wrong. In the second quarter, Love was exposed to a sack and got nailed by Bears defensive end Austin Booker. Booker lowered his helmet and hit Love in the head with it.
Granted, Love ducked into it a little, trying to protect himself, but Booker should have kept his head up. Straight to concussion protocol for Love, do not pass go. He may be out for the next game, or even both, since their next game against the Ravens is on Saturday and the Vikings game in Minnesota is on Sunday. But concussions can be tricky things, especially if they are going to be in the playoffs regardless of the final game.
Luckily, Malik Willis is a competent starter with more running ability to keep teams off balance, but he’s a step down from Love.
The Bears never led in this game, and with Love down, they were able to take advantage defensively and keep chipping away. They eventually got into the end zone to tie it up, force overtime, and have Williams do his best Brett Favre/Aaron Rodgers imitation, throwing a ball that DJ Moore brought in for a touchdown, sending Green Bay packing. The win may be a little tainted, but it’s still a win that puts the Bears in the driver’s seat.
Lions vs Steelers
If there was a team looking to make a last-gasp comeback, it was the Lions. They needed a win over the Steelers Sunday night to stay in the playoff hunt and needed a little help around the league. One thing that helped was the Bears’ win over the Packers the day before.
Taking on a dangerous Pittsburgh team at home was at least a positive advantage. What is not is the string of injuries that have once again stripped the Lions of playmakers in too many key positions. Aaron Rodgers returned to take on another NFC North opponent as he continued his “Welcome Home-Esque” tour to see if he still “owns” most of them. From the get-go, the Lions looked lifeless.
Not defeated but just looked like they were tired of the grind that the NFL had doled out on them this year. They drove for a nice touchdown from Jared Goff to Isaac TeSlaa, who made a tough catch while getting hit by two defenders to give them a 10-3 lead. Immediately after that, they let Rodgers drive the field and throw an improbable touchdown to Kenneth Gainwell, where he fell and, while lying on the ground, tipped the ball to himself, got up, and ran into the endzone.
Tied at the half is not where you wanted to let the Steelers be, especially in that manner. Pittsburgh drove the field again to start the third quarter, but the Lions got a fumble in the same area that Gainwell made his miracle catch! They followed that up by getting Goff sacked in the endzone for a safety. After that, the Steelers matched almost everything the Lions threw at them.
With just over 2 minutes to go, the Steelers missed a field goal, giving Detroit some life down 29-24. Since this game wasn’t as exciting as I thought it would be, it definitely ended in an exciting, if not crazy, fashion. While the Lions scored a touchdown on a pass lateraled back to Goff, the touchdown was negated because Amon-Ra St. Brown committed offensive pass interference, which basically pushed the Lions out of the playoffs.
The Dan Campbell magic seems to have disappeared with his coordinators and the injury bug taking another big bite out of them.
Vikings at Giants
A game that no one was really looking forward to, with nothing on the line for either team other than draft positioning. The Giants were better off losing this one to maintain their spot at the number one draft position.
The Vikings were sitting just out of the top ten, and the win doesn’t really hurt them either way if you’re living only for draft picks. Newsflash: teams and players don’t care about draft picks and where they fall. They want wins, money, and to know they will have a job in the league next year. Kevin O’Connell and the Vikings didn’t come in with “tank mode” on their minds.
They want wins and to see JJ McCarthy progress to see what they have for next year. This game was set up to be one of two things: boring or a blowout. We got the first choice. McCarthy played very well in the first half, despite marred stats due to receivers dropping the ball. Jordan Addison seemed to catch a perfectly placed pass in the endzone while falling on his back, only to have it somehow bounce out. Jalen Nailor tipped a ball that should have been a catch to the Giants’ defense.
It’s been a bit of a theme this year, with receivers dropping catchable balls, but it’s even more frustrating because it happens at the worst times, killing drives or causing turnovers. After McCarthy drove the field and ran in a touchdown, the Vikings got the ball back before the half, and he got blown up, losing the ball that became a Giants scoop-and-score. That was the last of McCarthy for the day, as it was revealed that he had an injury on his throwing hand, and later replays showed he lost the ball before he got hit.
Enter Max Brosmer. He played well and had a great throw to Justin Jefferson, but some of the shine came off the offense. Aaron Jones had a great day running. After a final Will Reichard field goal, the Vikings basically ran the clock out.
That seems like a very truncated version of the second half, but there is a reason why. The Giants almost refused to throw the ball consistently. Jaxson Dart’s first pass completion was to the Vikings’ Byron Murphy Jr. They were fine simply trying to run all day, and it wasn’t to tank for the top pick.
New York’s offensive line was decimated, and it was going against a Brian Flores defense that can confuse and get after a young quarterback. They didn’t want Dart getting hurt after coming back from a concussion earlier this year. Had McCarthy been able to stay in the game, the score may have been stretched out, but Brosmer caused the Vikings’ offense to adjust to his skills.
The other outside issue was the refs in this game having a day trying to wear out their flags, issuing a myriad of penalties that killed the flow of the game and took great plays off the board. To some, the win may feel hollow or a detriment to the team’s draft abilities, but the fanbase deserves to enjoy a win with this disaster of a year.
Division Standings
- Bears
- Packers
- Lions
- Vikings
Yes, the Bears are at the top of the NFC North, both by record and in my own personal opinion. You can’t take it away from them; they needed to do what they did to get there.
The Bears not only have played better down the stretch, but they have also overcome the one opponent that has treated them like a punching bag for the last decade. Yes, having Jordan Love go out of the game surely helped the Bears, but they could have just as easily folded and embarrassingly lost the game.
They won, they’re in the playoffs, and they’ve got the bragging rights for now. Their next game is a considerable test, traveling to the 49ers, and they finish at home against the Lions, who may have nothing to play for or everything.
The Packers have lost some key players this year, en route to possibly being in the playoffs. They hold their own destiny in their hands and need to win the last couple of games. The problem is that these games could go either way and aren’t as easy to predict as some might think.
Hey, that’s been this entire NFL season! They have to host the Ravens at home, which isn’t a given if Love is still out, and Green Bay has dropped home games to lesser opponents this year. Then they travel to Minnesota, and if anything is on the line, the Vikings would love to ruin it for the Packers. If Love misses both games due to the concussion protocol, then anything is possible.
Detroit once again had injuries derail its season. At the midway point, I thought they had the best chance of wrapping up the NFC North early on with an easier path. Now they need more help than anyone thought they would need to get into the playoffs, sitting at a 7% chance. They’ll be joining the Vikings on the couch if the Vikings ruin their Christmas by beating them on Thursday. Let’s hope the purple team is feeling Grinchy.
Will McCarthy play this Thursday? Maybe. Will the Vikings win? Maybe. Will we be able to see it? Maybe. Sadly, my primary concern is that the game is on Netflix and there could be server errors that enrage fans.
Not because of the game since it’s not a great draw, but because they are premiering the second half of Stranger Things on Christmas Day as well, and that fanbase will be more ravenous for content than the Vikings fans celebrating the holiday instead of watching the game. This year, we have lived in “The Upside Down,” and it would be fitting if it fully enveloped us. Not even Eleven (or Nine) could save us.
Regardless of the game or this season’s outcome, you shouldn’t let it ruin the holiday season or the time you’re spending with family. It can’t get worse, so why let it affect your Christmas Day or New Year’s Day celebration? Enjoy it and know that a new year is only a week away. These final two episodes of the Vikings’ season won’t be talked about or debated for years to come.
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