2015 All-NFC North Team

OLB: Clay Matthews, GB

Naturally an edge defender, Clay Matthews has become arguably the best 3-4 outside linebacker in the entire NFL. His impressive combination of speed, strength and quickness has allowed Matthews to become an elite-level pass rusher for many years. Last season, Matthews showed off his versatility by filling in at inside linebacker for a handful of games. Matthews is an extremely talented player who is in-arguably the most important player on the Packers’ defense.

OLB: DeAndre Levy, DET

Playing a traditional 4-3 outside linebacker position, DeAndre Levy was incredible in 2014. He particularly excelled as a run defender, and finished the regular season with an incredible 121 total tackles. Levy also uses his skills very well in pass coverage, and is always in position to make a play. Levy took his game to the next level in 2014, and it will be very exciting to see how much better he can get.

MLB: Stephen Tulloch, DET

Levy’s running mate at the linebacker position missed a majority of the 2014 season after suffering a major knee injury. Stephen Tulloch is a fantastic run defender, and is good in coverage. Despite missing a huge chunk of time last season, Tulloch is clearly the best player at the middle linebacker position in the NFC North.

OLB: Anthony Barr, MIN

Anthony Barr joined the Vikings as a raw rookie with massive upside. While he seemed to be an odd fit for the 4-3 defense, Barr made the most of it by becoming very good in coverage and as a run defender. Barr is a special athlete with seemingly unlimited upside, and he showed off that incredible talent when the Vikings used him as a pass rusher last season. He still needs to clean his game up a bit, but Barr is an extremely talented player who stepped up in a big way in 2014.

Next: Secondary