NFC 2026/ NFC North 2026

[OldSchool101]

Wanted to broaden and refresh the scope off of the 2025 thread. Each year has many changes and last year is yesterday’s news. The NFC is where we primarily do battle. The Schedule is about to supply us 13 NFC contests. That’s our playground and we need to be King on that hill first.
I always say that each team is either getting better or getting worse. Meaning we might get better but other teams do also. Everything is relative to the teams around us, especially in our Division. Last year, 2025, GB had the Division well within grasp and then went on a total slide, culminating in losing to Chicago.
Until proven otherwise, Chicago is our primary battle. That’s not to say that the Vikings or Lions are laying down, but this is 100% league of what have you done lately.

Personally I believe we were 1 or 2 key injuries from a Division title. The Packers need to get this Division. Jordan has NEVER had a home playoff game. He’s 1-3 ON THE ROAD. Yet he’s also 100% on qualifying for postseason as a starting QB. Imo if both Chicago and GB are healthy? GB is just plain better than Chicago. I just saw an article that laid waste to arguing Chicago gained ground on GB. I’ll see if I can find it and post

Chicago in particular lost ground on NET losses compared to Green Bay. That doesn’t infer they can’t have a player break their 2025 INT leaders 7INT or have others step up. I don’t think they got better though.

The Bears lost much more than the Packers did this offseason

We can actually measure this stuff, you know.

www.acmepackingcompany.com

 

[OldSchool101]

Offense.
TE+
I have little doubt that Kraft or Musgrave will meet or surpass their combined 2025 Production.

QB2 (even)
While we were all impressed with Malik and for good reason, let’s Face it Tyrod is a good quality 2.5:1 ratio TD:INT player that still has very quick feet. Plus he has substantial career experience across multiple systems.
I just don’t see enough difference to score + or - Hopefully we won’t find out.

RB (even)
While Wilson was a good RB2, he was a typical medium high floor, but medium ceiling athlete. According to Ben, he’s confident Marshawn will play. Plus it’s not like GB can’t perfect a trade before deadline etc if needed.
If Marshawn plays? Imo this will flip to a + VERY quickly. Sirmans just said recently that Lloyd our quickest RB in that room. He made no bones about it.

OL +
Imo we will get more complete production from our lineup. Anyone can use injury excuses, but it looks like Monk is turning a Corner and Jager looks impressive for interior. Kinnard is a solid Tackle and a host of other draft picks are vying for a depth spot, including multiple drafted players and in system personnel.
Starters will now have an entire Camp to gel and Banks, Belton and Rhyan will now be in year 2 at those spots. Some ? around Morgan but that’s usual. The guy is now in year 3 and has probably the most to prove, but also the most upside also.

WR (even)
I didn’t learn until this week that Savion was playing injured last year. His Position coach believes he will be more involved and smoother in year 2.
I don’t really see a huge loss because Golden will pick up most of Doubs work. Also between Reed and Watson recall we lost an entire season of snaps in 2025. If they stay on the field we should see a notable improvement. Wicks was a loss but let’s face it. He was never our WR1-2 type here. Wicks was a solid WR depth piece. I think Savion and possibly Moore will get worked in more to cover that workload.

 

[OldSchool101]

DEFENSE

DT (even)
I see Hargrave in a very similar light to Kenny. Matter of fact Hargrave has a getter Sack Ratio and less Missed Tackles. Otherwise very similar Veteran producers. Neither will light the World on fire, but neither will ever be a weakness either. McClellan should be at minimum adequate level as a Rookie. 2022 RD7 J. Ford is back at 333Lb and offers a nice plug at NT.

I do think McClellan is a better player than Wooden, but I also can’t put all the needed faith in a Rookie over Wooden until he’s acclimated.

OLB/Edge (even)
Gary departing does hurt some. Although I think our depth is better prepared to step up. Lukas will be that guy that fills Gary shoes. He’s fully capable imo. We might have a questionable opposite of Lukas until Micah returns, yet I doubt Micah misses more than around 4-6 games. Our depth rotation looks adequate to good. Barryn and now Dani being added should bring some quality to the Pass Rush when allowed. Cox Jr is now added fur deity also. Hard to argue we’re better or worse imo.

Safety (even)
Returning starters is key. Oladapo versus Anderson is probably nothing noteworthy either direction.

CB +
There’s ZERO % question that this group is most improved. At minimum from depth. I think there’s a 50/50 we get an upgrade over Valentine with St Juste or Cisse. We now have 2 reliable depth pieces that might even shine if given a chance. Cisse will take time to grow, but he was an easy Top 40’s type CB and he’s very talented with eventual starter upside.

LB (even)
I’ll be honest. It’s never good to lose a Starter like Quay. No he’s not flashy, but he’s a HIGH floor athlete. That said, Zaire is just 1yr removed from an All Pro-Pro Bowl designation. He’s not ideal for a cover LB, but he’s not much different than what we had in Quay.
Last 4 seasons?
Zaire PD =23
Quay PD =17

Zaire TFL =30
Quay TFL =29

Zaire Sacks =10
Quay Sacks =9
So Neither are strong in dropping back into coverage. Both are solid Downhill players who are quick to diagnosing the Ball. There’s a need for that. Plus Edgerrin just gives that room a level of stability. I just can’t justify a + or - in an unchanged world there.

 

[milani]

Wanted to broaden and refresh the scope off of the 2025 thread. Each year has many changes and last year is yesterday’s news. The NFC is where we primarily do battle. The Schedule is about to supply us 13 NFC contests. That’s our playground and we need to be King on that hill first.
I always say that each team is either getting better or getting worse. Meaning we might get better but other teams do also. Everything is relative to the teams around us, especially in our Division. Last year, 2025, GB had the Division well within grasp and then went on a total slide, culminating in losing to Chicago.
Until proven otherwise, Chicago is our primary battle. That’s not to say that the Vikings or Lions are laying down, but this is 100% league of what have you done lately.

Personally I believe we were 1 or 2 key injuries from a Division title. The Packers need to get this Division. Jordan has NEVER had a home playoff game. He’s 1-3 ON THE ROAD. Yet he’s also 100% on qualifying for postseason as a starting QB. Imo if both Chicago and GB are healthy? GB is just plain better than Chicago. I just saw an article that laid waste to arguing Chicago gained ground on GB. I’ll see if I can find it and post

Chicago in particular lost ground on NET losses compared to Green Bay. That doesn’t infer they can’t have a player break their 2025 INT leaders 7INT or have others step up. I don’t think they got better though.

The Bears lost much more than the Packers did this offseason

We can actually measure this stuff, you know.

www.acmepackingcompany.com

I see the Bears strong with their young corps of receivers and TE. And Caleb gets better every year. He could prove to be an MVP candidate in 2026 with good coaching. Their defense plays hard but they have to reduce the yellow flags.
The Lions should be better. They do not have the first place schedule. Their coach is a good motivator.
The Packers and Vikings have the biggest adjustments to make. It will depend on the coaching staffs to facilitate the process. The division was neck and neck last season but not as strong as the NFC West.

 

[OldSchool101]

I see the Bears strong with their young corps of receivers and TE. And Caleb gets better every year. He could prove to be an MVP candidate in 2026 with good coaching. Their defense plays hard but they have to reduce the yellow flags.
The Lions should be better. They do not have the first place schedule. Their coach is a good motivator.
The Packers and Vikings have the biggest adjustments to make. It will depend on the coaching staffs to facilitate the process. The division was neck and neck last season but not as strong as the NFC West.

Yes. Much will ride on Gannon’s ability to adapt to a new personnel grouping.

One thing I don’t think Gannon can complain about is the talent level on Defense. Now that GB invested in Free Agency with Hargrave and again in RD3 with McClellan in the middle? I feel much better about the group as starters AND depth.

When Micah gets back he’s got his Premier Pass Rusher. I also believe GB has some good depth pieces behind Lukas and Micah. Micah took Lukas under his wing and obviously sees the potential there, he’s made that known publicly. It’s time for Van Ness to step up and shine.

We've got a room of good inside LB’s with McDuffie, Edgerrin and Franklin. Plus our Safety Room looks legit.

Last year our depth at CB was our glaring weakness. One could argue no CB1, but neither were terrible either.
I think Cisse is a boundary version of Bullard inside. There’s Cisse was the #6 CB selected just after Terrell and Ponds. Imo if Ponds was available? we’d still take Cisse. Cisse is physical and plays with attitude and instincts. I love his interview with Richard Sherman. He is an impressive student of the game and just has this swagger about him. In some ways like J’aire had. Valentine better step up his game because there’s 2 guys I see as his equal in real time and both have better upside imo. St Juste and Cisse are going to push that room hard. It’s very possible that Valentine is our CB3-4 by end of this year.

 

[gopkrs]

Vikings just signed Juan Jennings 1 year 8 million. He's really good.

 

[OldSchool101]

Vikings just signed Juan Jennings 1 year 8 million. He's really good.

Yes he is. Especially with Jefferson and Addison ahead of him. MN has a great array of weapons. Much will be determined by QB play. Kyler is a good, high floor QB who produces but lacks that Elite game changer feel imo.

Then they’ve got McCarthy who really suffered with a 57.6% completion and threw 11 INT to 10 TD’s. So they don’t really have a solid long term plan unless they give up on their #1 overall. They kinda need to see what JJ can do but at what cost?

The MN Defense has been solid. Yet if GB had a QB do what JJ has done?
Our fan base would run him out of town on a rail. It’s a real dilemma they’d almost be better just letting Kyler play he’s a pretty good QB and let JJ learn for 1 more season.

 

[OldSchool101]

As far as Chicago I think losing Dalman to retirement and then their LT, Trapilo in our Wild Card to an Achilles is a significant blow. It’s not to say Bradbury or Garrett can’t play Center but it’s likely both going to match Dalman’s play is unlikely.

Then we know well that changes at LT can be risky. Although I think GB has the upper hand. imo Jordan Morgan has a better chance of grading out improved over Rasheed Walker Vs. someone improving over Trapilo in Chicago. It’s very possible that Chicago OL takes a step backwards in Pass or Run sets. It also forced Chicago to spend #57 at Center when they could’ve upgraded their Roster there. Both their Centers are likely capable, neither are likely going to match or improve Dalman’s ability imo. Result? Lost #57 overall.

The Safety Room in Chicago was overhauled. Coby Bryant is a good solid Safety somewhere in that Evan Williams impact. Then Chicago spent their #25 overall fixing their losses with Thieneman. Again not that I think he’s not good, but they once again used a Rookie to try to patch a Seasoned Starters role. Long term that’s fine but most players take a minute to transition.

RD3 in Chicago was a head scratcher. Not because Sam Roush is bad.But once again the theme was dis of make them that much better. Are you going to Sit Loveland or Cole Kmet. That’s a really good TE pair. Unless you use a high % of 13 Personnel? The bigger benefit is really depth. So Chicago spent 1-2-3 for a chance at maintaining Status quo or as depth.

RD3 Zavion Thomas isn’t a bad WR for #89, but is that your response to losing DJ Moore? Or id he your equivalent to Luther Burden Rookie impact if Burden is WR1? The theme is these were really primarily replacing lost talent imo, except for a 3rd TE being covered up in 2026.

Is Malik Muhammad TODAYS answer at #124 overall? Or is he possible more feared towards future need at CB. He’s a great pick but likely not a high impact 2025 upgrade either.

Jorden Van Den Berg is a great prospect to gamble on late in the draft. I really liked that selection.. probably the most for value. He’s a Day 3 Boom or Bust. Plus Chicago doesn’t really have much past Sweat, so he can earn time if he shows up early in Pass Rush. He could actually be their best immediate upgrade IF they hit gold.

 

[milani]

Yes he is. Especially with Jefferson and Addison ahead of him. MN has a great array of weapons. Much will be determined by QB play. Kyler is a good, high floor QB who produces but lacks that Elite game changer feel imo.

Then they’ve got McCarthy who really suffered with a 57.6% completion and threw 11 INT to 10 TD’s. So they don’t really have a solid long term plan unless they give up on their #1 overall. They kinda need to see what JJ can do but at what cost?

The MN Defense has been solid. Yet if GB had a QB do what JJ has done?
Our fan base would run him out of town on a rail. It’s a real dilemma they’d almost be better just letting Kyler play he’s a pretty good QB and let JJ learn for 1 more season.

I always say to let the Vikings be Vikings.

 

[CarryTheG14]

I massively disagree on DT being even. Hargrave is much better than Wooden. McClellan is a rookie, but as a depth piece he's probably better than what we had last year there.

I moderately disagree with EDGE.

If this was 2-3 years ago, losing Gary would be a massive loss. Losing the 2026-2027 Gary, not so much. I think LVN will be much better. And I think the young guys will be better ( sorrell, DDS and Cox).


I slightly disagree with WR. I understand the depth is worse and losing a good player in Doubs isnt the best; but Im projecting big things from Golden. Also hopefully having Reed and Watson healthy will be an extreme boost.

I'll post about the other teams later.

 

[OldSchool101]

I massively disagree on DT being even. Hargrave is much better than Wooden. McClellan is a rookie, but as a depth piece he's probably better than what we had last year there.

So far McClellan and Jager have impressed the most early on. Might’ve hit gold either way those 2. Especially if Rhyan can slide to RG and Jager plays Center. I think Jager is an average starting Center or better.
Just a hunch but he’s built perfectly inside and he has quick feet. He can also match a bull rush