I actually have them just above the Lions in our division -

GB: 10-6
MIN: 9-7
CHI: 8-8
DET: 6-10

I guess… I definitely give our Leo’s credit, they have to potential to win 8 games this year.. The Bears D isn’t what it used to be (from what I see at least). I lived in Chi-Town last year, and watching Urlacher was kinda sad. Forte was strong, but Cutler is going to win you guys maybe one or two more games this year at best.. You talk about Minny not having any WRs…. You guys are actually worse off. The NFC North is much stronger than it was last year, and I think you’re understating Dom Capers, Kevin Greene, and the new look GB 3-4 (as much as I hate to say it). BJ Raji is not going to be fun for any of us.

I’d say good luck to the Bears, but I personally hate them. :) Good luck to you, as a fan though. This year is going to be interesting.

Johnny, I think you are pretty close to being right on for the most part but I think where I disagree is the top two teams. I think the Vikings are going to more along the lines of 11-5 and the Bears will be 9-7. My reasoning for this is I agree that Cutler will win 2 more games for the Bears this year by himself but the defense is getting old and Cutler has no one to throw to (OK Hester is not bad but he is not a #1 receiver).

Lions 9-7 Culpepper makes a come back
Bears 9-7 Lose tie breaker
Vikings 8-8 Only if Favre returns
Ghost Team
Packers 5-11 Defensive change takes to long to gel

I hate the Packers so I threw in a ghost team so they would be 5th in a 4 team division.

Cutler has nobody to throw to. He had Royal, Marshall, and Scheffler to throw to in Denver, and I think those guys made him look better than he is in reality…..just my opinion. The Bears do not have a Marshall. Percy Harvin is probably going to be pretty good, maybe even good enough to take some attention off of Hester. If that is the case, Forte and the aging defense may be able to win them some games with Cutler supplemeting the running game with a decent passing attack. I think they go 9-7 at best, but again that is just my opinion. I see the Pack going 8-8 as they will struggle with their transition to the 3-4….so I agree with you there. With a healthy Favre, I see the Vikings as the best team in the Division and the team that has the best chance to go 10-6. If Favre can play without pain (emphasis on IF), then unfortunately I say they win the division hands down. As for the Lions….I fully expect 7 wins. They are going to surprise everyone. I think they have the potential to win 9 games….and no that is not the kool-aid speaking. I see them getting wins against Green Bay and Chicago this season, and maybe even splitting with Minnesota if they can bottle up AP like they did last year on Dec. 7th (I was there, and the Lions had opportunites to win that game). If they go 3-3 in the NFC North, I see them possibly beating the Redskins, the Rams, and the Browns at home, and possibly the 49ers, Bengals, and Seahawks on the road. If that happens, they will be 9-7 and the standings will look like this:

MIN: 10-6
DET: 9-7
CHI 9-7
GB: 8-8

I give the Lions the edge in the tiebreaker between them and the Bears, right or wrong. The Lions could easily be in a wildcard position after this season, and i wouldn’t cout them out. I do not think that the rest of the teams in the NFC North are as strong as alot of people see them, and I definitely think that the teams I mentioned outside of the division are beatable. Who knows…..maybe the Lions shock the Saints in week 1 and lose to the Redskins or 49ers…..anything can happen. I do not see it as unrealistic to expect that this year’s Lions team will win 7 games, and I think it is absolutely possible that they can win 9. We’ll soon find out.

I knew I was forgetting something…..lol

In that case, Cutler really has nobody to throw to.

went to Minnesota – Bernard Berrian

will be on the party boat in MINN before too long. Not too worried about him except for the return game. Lets see him on a slant route hearing Foote’steps and see how he does

I think Chicago gave up way too much to get him. Seriously, what has he really accomplished? Pro Bowl? His team tanked down the stretch last year (after most of the votes were in). Blame it on Defense if you want, but how many 3 and outs put their Defense in bad positions to begin with? I don’t buy the argument that Chicago will bring out his better side. Does Chicago really have that much better of a team to put around him than Denver did? I don’t see it. The last time Cutler faced the Lions? Yeah, whatever. Ramsey came in and looked spectacular. Go Lions! and Go Wings!

For two reasons:
First, I don’t buy Cutler as a great QB savior and I don’t think he’ll be any better in Chicago than he was in Denver. In fact, I think he’ll be worse. The offensive systems may be similar, but Chicago doesn’t have the personnel (read: receivers) to pull it off.
Second, besides Cutler (and sure, Pace), they didn’t really make any significant offseason additions. They gutted their draft for Cutler, and have mostly the same starters returning from last year’s 9-7 campaign.
I think you are, however, very close in your Lions prediction.
Vikes: 10-6 (Jackenfels keep them from being “elite”)
Pack: 9-7 (Rodgers really taking control; Capers’ 3-4 an improvement over last year.)
Bears: 9-7 (See above)
Lions: 6-10 (This would be a very solid rebuilding year record IMO.)

I like your screen name. I’m working on that book right now.

than the defense? we need a better d-tackle od defense. on offense we need a new LT, LG, RG, and center. sure the offense has CJ, ’Grew, and K. Smith, but on defense we have Sims, Foote, Peterson, Delmas, and Avril

I have to agree that I do think that Chicago can win the division. The thing is… there are a lot of “if’s” and “but’s” for every team in the NFC North. This is truly a wait and see situation for this division. I personally think it will shake out a little something like…

Chicago 10-6
Minnesota 8-8
Green Bay 7-9
Detroit 5-11

With Chicago, the questions are:
1) Can Cutler find someone to throw to… and if he doesn’t, will he cry and want to be traded?
2) Does the defense bounce back from a subpar season and can they find a safety to play well? I think that the defense is on it’s way down (age), but right now… is still easily a top ten defense.
3) Is Forte for real? I think he is, but we’ll see for sure when opposing defenses start scheming to stop him. Chicago’s O-line seems to be a little in flux, so we’ll see what happens. Hopefully, (for you – not Lion’s fans) you guys get Williams back at tackle and he’s not a bust. But again, Forte will have to avoid the sophomore slump that many rookies fight. Kevin Smith will have to overcome this as well for the Lions.

Minnesota’s problems are well-documented:
1) Quarterback… will the “great” Brett Favre grace the NFC North with his presence once again. Either way, I’m not sure it answers the Viking’s QB problem. If he doesn’t, the great Sage Rosenfels will probably start over Jackson. I like that option!
2) Will the Williams Bros. be suspended for the first four games of the season? That could lead to a shaky season start. Otherwise, the defense is solid… probably best in the NFC North.
3) Will “All Day” stay injury free. If he does… that’s scary. But history dictates he’ll miss a game or two. Hopefully, he misses the two Lion’s games!

The mighty Green Bay Butt-Packers:
1) It’s all about the defense and how well Capers can install the 3-4. I am still a bit skeptical that their roster translates well and I think it’ll take a year to get it right. They’ll have a rookie NT and MLB and Kampman has to move to OLB. Will he be as productive as DE? I don’t know.
2) Will Rodgers bounce back from an iffy finish to the ‘08 season or is his confidence shaken? He’s still living in the shadow of Favre and the fans will give him a very short leash before the media crucifixion begins. He seems pretty sturdy, but everyone collapses when the pressure get too bad.

Ah…. the Leos. Where to start?:
1) They should have a vastly improved defense, but just how improved is the question. New coaches, new scheme, new players… how will it all mesh? Right now, no one knows. On paper, it looks good. I think the two biggest defensive questions are pressure on the quarterback (as Schwartz loves to drop seven in coverage, the front four is the key) and the deep ball man coverage. The corner upgrades are suspect, although this secondary looks better suited for the run defense than last year’s version.
2) What Culpepper will we see… 2004 or 2008? Sure, he’s lost some weight and looks like he’s in good physical shape, but the part we can’t see is the inside of that knee. What, if any, additional mobility has his offseason regimine added? If the answer is none, he’ll probably struggle behind a still weak O-line. If he struggle, the calls for Stafford will be loud and come at a feverish pace.
3) The O-line has been a weak point throughout the Millen years. This year, we are again hoping scheme helps, as most of the starters are returning. Cherilus should be much improved and Loper is a big question mark. More than anything, how does this group block for Kevin Smith? Pettigrew will help the run game, but the focus should be the guards, so he can effectively run in the inside. Loper and Peterman have a lot to prove.

All in all, the Lions will be a much better team in ’09. I think that they should enjoy a 5 to 7 win swing in comparison to last year. Although that would not be enough to win the division this year, watch out for us in 2010. There is no reason not to think that the future of the NFC North belongs to Detroit. Watch yourselves, Bears fans!

But I’d probably switch the Bears and Vikes around. I’m not gonna go into details since everyone else has, and Drew pretty muched summed up everything you could ever need to know about these teams this year but I see the Vikes coming out with the division. AP is just to dangerous and their D is very strong. Here’s hoping for a Lion’s victory in the NFC North though.

with a Bears fan.

Packers 10-6
Vikings 8-8
Lions 8-8
Bears 5-11

And Go Wings!!!!

It is a good post. But… you are a Bear’s fan. And this is a Lion’s Blog. Someone was going to do it. It had to be done. So, why not me. Did I mention that the Hawks suck?

Bear: 11-5
   new addition with Cutler
Vikings: 10-6
  always strong except QB
Lions: 7-9
   New Coach and New Players and Lots Of Luck
Packers: 5-11
  New System and can’t adjust to it yet.

Just a thought