Entering the 2025 season, many experts believed the NFC North to be the toughest division in the NFL. After all, Detroit, Minnesota, and Green Bay qualified for the playoffs. Detroit had the best record in the NFL last season, but they still had to defeat Minnesota in the final game of the season to secure the NFC North title and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
Three weeks into the 2025 NFL season, the NFC North has lived up to its billing as the most competitive division in football. With three teams boasting winning records and all four showing flashes of dominance, the path to the playoffs through this division looks more brutal than ever. For the Chicago Bears, keeping pace may prove to be a daunting challenge. Here is the current state of the division after Week 3.
Detroit Lions: Still the team to beat in the division
After looking very sluggish in their loss to the Green Bay Packers, the Detroit Lions are back on track with a 52-21 demolition of the Chicago Bears in Week 2, followed by an impressive 38-30 win against the Baltimore Ravens on Monday Night Football.
The most impressive stat in their win over the Ravens was their 224 rushing yards. Ex-Bear David Montgomery ran for 151 yards and a touchdown by himself. The Lions' offensive line, featuring the rookie Tate Ratledge and second-year player Christian Mahogany, was able to dominate the strong Ravens defense, which has given up 79 points in their two losses.
Speaking of an ex-Bear, defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad stepped up with 2.5 sacks and six pressures, filling the void left by Marcus Davenport’s injury. That had to sting many Bears fans to see him thrive when he barely did anything during his time with the Bears.
It appears that the demise of the Detroit Lions was a bit overblown following the departures of both coordinators, Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn. They are thriving now with their new coordinators, John Morton and Kelvin Shepard. And that has to scare not just the NFC North rivals, but the rest of the NFL as well.
Green Bay Packers: Jordan Love remains an enigma
After an impressive win over the Detroit Lions and the Washington Commanders, the Packers' offensive lineman Rasheed Walker made a bold statement about going undefeated last week. Instead, they suffered a humbling and humiliating 13-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 3. Despite leading 10-0 in the fourth quarter, the Packers collapsed, allowing 10 points in 37 seconds, had a potential game-winning field goal blocked, only for the Browns to kick a winning field goal.
Once again, quarterback Jordan Love's performance left a lot to be desired in the eyes of many Packers fans. He threw for only 183 yards and three interceptions, including one that set up the game-tying touchdown. He only threw one pass over 10 yards while being pressured relentlessly by Myles Garrett and their defensive line the entire game.
The Packers acquired star pass rusher Micah Parsons just before the season, hoping they would take that next step. They can still run the table, but the Packers need a much better performance from Love moving forward.
Minnesota Vikings: Kevin O'Connell works his magic with Carson Wentz
After suffering an ugly 22-6 loss to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2, the Vikings face the Cincinnati Bengals without their starting quarterback Joe Burrow, who sustained a turf-toe injury that will sideline line for most of this season in Week 2. The Vikings were also without their starting quarterback, J.J. McCarthy, who suffered a high ankle sprain, and had to start former second overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, Carson Wentz.
The Vikings silenced the critics with an astonishing 48-10 demolition of the Bengals, showcasing a complete team performance. The defense was the story of this game, as they forced five turnovers, and cornerback Isaiah Rodgers had a breakout game, returning both an interception and a fumble for scores.
Wentz had an efficient game, throwing for 173 yards and two touchdowns. He was also helped out by running back Jordan Mason, who gained 116 rushing yards. Amazingly, head coach Kevin O'Connell can turn any quarterback into a decent one, even if it's a backup. Remember Sam Darnold last year? All he did was lead the Vikings to a 14-3 record last season. Could Wentz become his next successful reclamation project?
When McCarthy returns and he continues to struggle like he has done in the first two weeks, O'Connell should have no hesitation putting in Wentz, even if it causes quarterback controversy. The Brian Flores-led defense will continue to make life miserable for an opposing offense while the offense tries to find its way. Do not count out Kevin O'Connell.
Conclusion: The Bears are progressing, but they are still chasing
Even with an impressive win over the Dallas Cowboys, Bears fans are faced with a harsh reality: their division remains too strong. Although the Packers lost to the Browns, you should not expect too many slip-ups from the divisional rivals moving forward.
Read more: Bears bounce back with massive win over old coach Matt Eberflus, Cowboys
The Bears still have road games to play against Baltimore, Philadelphia, and San Francisco, and they have four games left in the NFC North after already falling 0-2 in the division. The Bears have to keep stacking wins to keep many beleaguered fans believing they are heading in the right direction.