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Four Downs with Dang & Doc
2009 NFC North Preview
by Brian Davis and Paul Hopkins
12/8/2009
This week Dang and Doc move onto the NFC North, and promise a Favre-free zone. Amid all the focus this division has received, is it home to the most complete team in the NFC in the Vikings? Who is poised to challenge or even topple them this season? Will the revitalised Lions rise like a phoenix from the flames with a new head coach, new players and a new uniform? And does all this make the north the powerhouse of the NFL?
 The Minnesota Vikings are the most complete team in the NFC.
 DANG FICTION ! – The whole uncertainty over the Quarterback issues, along with the he who shall not be named saga over the last few weeks, has shown that they’re not complete. Any complete team would have been set with what they had and willing to move forward, work on what they had to making the post-season in 2009. A change of Head Coach who brings fresh ideas with a change of direction may have been an option for this franchise after last season’s playoff failure. Personally, I’m not convinced that Brad Childress is the right coach to get this team to the Super Bowl. They’re probably on a par with the Eagles and Giants and slightly ahead of the Falcons, whereas 2-3 of the AFC teams are very close to being complete, so they’d rank behind these in overall structure. The offense has got stronger this off-season. Phil Loadholt will be a big addition to the running game with his huge frame with Percy Harvin looking to be involved in mixing it up, possibly offering some gadget and Wild Cat looks. Defensively, I’m not a big fan of the Safeties, but with such a huge effort up front from one of the best front seven’s around, with decent corners; you really don’t need to have a Ronnie Lott type player back there. They should still win the North, only further Quarterback controversy and Brad Childress could stop this happening.
DOC FICTION ! As much as there can be a complete team in the NFC, let alone the NFL these days; I think the Vikings might be the closest in the NFC. There is no one ‘complete’ team who has everything in the entire league and if you take out the Steelers who look more solid than anyone, the Vikings have a legitimate shout to be seen as amongst the next group. They have arguably the best offensive player in the league in Adrian Peterson, they have a strong offensive line, good receivers, under-regarded tight ends and a defence that can match up against any particularly on the defensive line. Money has been spent to fill the gaps that the Vikings had a few years back, and appears to have been spent wisely. Despite all of this though, one issue still remains and it is all caused by the one person I still have big question marks over – the Head Coach. Childress seems to know what he wants but doesn’t appear to know how to get there. He has assembled a very strong unit across the board, but his flirting with quarterbacks that pass his fancy may undermine the teams ability to live up to the expectations that are circling around them. Neither Jackson or Rosenfels fill me with much confidence, and Childress’ apparent questioning of his own They’re good but because of this I will rank them behind both the Eagles and the Giants in the NFC hierarchy. However, get good play from the QB and they can easily jump above both.
 Packers or Bears? Assuming the Vikings win the division, who provides the sternest challenge to the Vikings?
 DANG PACKERS – It will be close though, very close. Matt Forte can make up for the lack of talent at receiver by being heavily involved in the passing game once again, likewise Greg Olsen, who I expect to put up Pro-Bowl season numbers with Jay Cutler throwing to him. Cutler will get the ball to the remaining receivers; despite the lack of quality, all they have to do is get in the right place to catch it. The Bears also added some solid players to its Offensive line and put together a very nice, day 2 picks only draft, addressing needy areas in its receivers and defensive line groups.
Kevin Jones is, by all accounts, tearing it up in camp and Garrett Wolfe is expected to be involved as the Bears look to keep Forte fresh and vary the running game. Defensively, whilst drafting some decent day 2 players, I just can’t see an improved enough group of players to deal with the likes of Aaron Rodgers, Adrian Peterson, Greg Jennings and Steve Hutchinson twice a season. The Packers are another team making the transition to a 3-4 defence, with 3-4 guru Dom Capers taking over as Defensive Coordinator. They’ve certainly done a good job of that so far with their two first round signings BJ Raji and Clay Matthews expected to take starting roles early on. The rest of the Defence appears to be making the transition smoothly, but my main concern with the Packers is on the other side of the ball. I love Aaron Rodgers, but the tackle positions on the Offensive Line and running game is a worry. Chad Clifton’s performances have dropped off, he’s also returning from another injury. Mark Tauscher wasn’t resigned, so a fierce training camp battle could now be in place for both positions, but is the quality there? On the interior, they have nothing to worry about, but against the speed rushers and heavy blitz packages, we could see Rodgers scrambling an awful lot. If the Tackles do settle in, then I believe that the Pack have to get Brandon Jackson as well as Ryan Grant involved in the running game, Grant was disappointing last term and has to regain his form of 2007.
Receiver wise, it’s looking good, Driver will start to see a decrease, but in his place, Jordy Nelson should have a nice season alongside Greg Jennings.
DOC PACKERS In a bounce back year I think the Packers might well show that 2008 was simply an aberration. Aaron Rodgers looks like the real deal and he has a vast array of weapons available to him. The offensive line remains very strong and even in the areas where age is slowly creeping up there is some good, solid depth beneath them. Ryan Grant now has his contract and should be looking to revert back to the form he showed in his breakout 2007 year. Of course, though it is defensively where most of the interest has come in the Packers. The move to the 3-4 will see the Packers following the trend that most teams are now looking towards although, intriguingly not any of the ‘big’ three NFC North teams. But as the year since Dom Capers was appointed has passed, the news from Green Bay seems to be that they are going to follow the trend of many now and go for a hybrid defence, with a bit of 3-4 meshed with a bit of 4-3. Either way, there still remains some high quality personnel there and Capers and his coaches are looking to give the flexibility to allow them all to make some plays. I think they will push the Vikings hard, and edge out the Bears to finish second (albeit maybe not securing a wild-card spot in the process). The acquisition of Jay Cutler has led to much renewed hope and optimism in the Windy City, and with good reason. The big-armed sulker from Vanderbilt is not just an immediate upgrade over Grossman and Orton but gives the Bears one of the best quarterbacks in the league, despite his now well-publicised attitude issues. Last week’s consternation over Brian Urlacher’s view of Cutler caused much controversy in the press but it was merely a storm in the teacup. Urlacher is not stupid enough now he has an elite quarterback to rile him.
 The Detroit Lions will win five games this season.
 DANG FICTION ! – I just can’t see it I’m afraid, Lions fans. You look at the schedule and it’s difficult to point at that many games they can win. I really don’t like the fact that at several points in the draft they passed up, what I believe would have been more solid options for them on their Offensive Line. What I don’t want to see is a scenario similar to that of Alex Smith’s first season in San Francisco repeating itself here in Detroit. Smith was thrown in at the deep end with his feet in dried concrete, at an awfully run franchise and has struggled ever since. Matthew Stafford should be left to learn until they feel he’s ready, not just throw him in because of the money they threw at him. The trouble with having three tough teams in your division when you are a 0-16 team is you’re almost six games back from week 1. The Rams and Browns will be opportunities to get a W on the board and if something disastrous happens elsewhere in the North, then, they might pick off a divisional rival faltering near the seasons end with no playoff opportunity in sight. The Lions had to address their woeful defence and with additions through Free Agency such as Grady Jackson, Julian Peterson, Larry Foote and Anthony Henry it signals that they have addressed this area pretty well. The signs of improvement are slowly moving into place, but I don’t see much more than a 3-13 season.
DOC FICTION ! On the face of it I think the Lions do not face too tough a schedule, I can certainly see half a dozen games that I think they have the ability to keep close and potentially win if they eradicate mistakes or get a flash of magic. Having the NFC West and the AFC North in 2009 gives them potential victories over fellow transition teams like the Browns, Bengals, 49ers and Seahawks and we have to also consider they may spring a surprise over one of the bigger teams could the home opener against the Vikings be their coming out party perhaps? Of course this comes back to the real hindrance in this team winning five games, having three strong sides in their division who they must play home and away. And there is only one divisional game I see them having a realistic chance in, and that is in week 17 at home to the Bears. But only if the Bears find themselves out of the playoff picture by then as I believe they might. Steve Schwartz has assembled a good cast of players to help lead this revival. In particular I like the improvements made on the defensive side of the ball and as the man who made the Titans defence so feared last year I will watch the defense with intrigue. They have a good, healthy battle for the QB position and in adding Brandon Pettigrew have a strong WR-TE tandem to pair with Calvin Johnson for years to come. The only worry seems to be that the offensive line has not seen the necessary improvements. They may get to five wins which would be an excellent first year for the new coaching team and players, but I don’t believe it will be happening this year.
 The NFC North is now the toughest division in the NFL.
 DANG FICTION ! – The Detroit Lions are in there. I’m somewhere in between the South and the East for the strongest. I really like the South, three teams, which will have a shout of winning the division in Carolina, Atlanta and New Orleans, all of which could get 10 wins plus on the year. Whilst Tampa maybe the slightly weaker team at this moment in time, it’s one hell of a division and ultra competitive. Who can call it comfortably as to what will happen in 2009? In the East you should have two definite for the post-season, the Giants and the Eagles, with the Redskins and the Cowboys backing them up, also looking for winning seasons. The North should map itself out in terms of Vikings first, Packers/Bears 2nd and 3rd one way or the other and the Lions on the bottom in 09. Between the East and South, there really is just a rizla paper in it, as to who is the best, with the North and then the West a little way behind.
DOC FICTION ! Maybe its homerism, but I would still say that it is the East. The gap between the two divisions is close but the presence of the Detroit Lions one year removed from being 0-16 knocks the North down. There are three strong teams in the division and they may provide one of the most fascinating battles to get to the post-season as its likely that one, if not two of them will miss out. But the East offers two, potentially three (and even four) very good teams. There is no real weak link there, but the North suffers because of their weakest link the Lions.
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