Pack set to reclaim North
But Vikings in division spotlight with new stadium, injury to Bridgewater
DAVE CAMPBELL
Minnesota has a gleaming new stadium. The Vikings are division champions for the first time in six years. Now they’re reeling from the loss of quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, likely for the entire season.
The headlines around the division sure have a purple shade.
There’s still plenty of green, or rather Green Bay, left to repaint the NFC North horizon.
Aaron Rodgers and the proud Packers have wide receiver Jordy Nelson back from the right ACL injury that kept him from playing in 2015, aiming for repossession of the title.
Rodgers came back leaner after some dietary changes, recharged for another run at a Super Bowl trophy he’s touched once -- fiveplus years ago.
“My 12th season, all with the same team, it’s exciting,” said Rodgers, who will turn 33 on Dec. 2. “It actually gets a little sweeter I think every single year.”
Dethroning the Vikings would sure be delicious. Fittingly, the Packers will be Minnesota’s opponent on Sept. 18 for their regular-season opener at U.S. Bank Stadium in front of a crowd of 66,000 and a Sunday night national TV audience.
Bridgewater, who suffered a significant injury to his left knee in practice on Tuesday, will probably be relegated to inspirational pregame speaker for that one.
“We’re not looking for excuses. We’re going to go out and fight like we always do,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said after Bridgewater was hurt. “Everybody can count us out if they want, but I think that would be the wrong thing to do.”
Keeping up with Minnesota and Green Bay will be a challenge for Detroit and Chicago, with the Lions trying to avoid replicating that 1-7 start in 2015 and the Bears burdened by a five-year absence from the playoffs.
Here’s a quick glance around the NFC North as this Great Lakes states quartet gets ready for the regular season:
The Vikings have moved back inside after a two-year stint at the University of Minnesota while their $1.1 billion, ship-shaped, seethrough venue was being built. The gawking will go on all season, with the translucent, space-age roof and the ground-to-ceiling glass on the front side giving the enclosed stadium an outdoor feel.
The controlled climate ought to help a passing game that has lagged near the bottom of the league, but losing Bridgewater sure won’t. Fifteen-year veteran Shaun Hill will step in for now, aided by the additions this season of left guard Alex Boone and wide receiver Laquon Treadwell.
To take back the division title they’ve won eight times in 14 years, the Packers need some improvement on defence. Linebacker Clay Matthews has moved back outside to his natural position, after a solid performance playing inside to fill in. That has put the spotlight once again on the men in the middle, a position that has often been in flux during the past decade under coach Mike McCarthy.
Jake Ryan and Sam Barrington are the expected starters for now. Ryan cracked the starting lineup down the stretch as a rookie fourthround draft pick, and Barrington has been working his way back from a foot injury that cost him most of the season. The Packers ranked 21st and 23rd in yards rushing allowed in the NFL the past two years.
Alshon Jeffery was the only player who topped 500 yards receiving for the Bears last season, and calf, hamstring, groin and shoulder problems limited him to nine games. The seventh pick in the 2015 draft, Kevin White, missed his rookie season because of a stress fracture in his left shin. That left Jay Cutler without much to work with in the passing game.
With stalwart running back Matt Forte and talented tight end Martellus Bennett gone, there’ll be even more onus on Jeffery and White to not only stay healthy but produce like a top-flight tandem. Jeremy Langford will be the featured runner, now that Forte has joined the New York Jets. GETTING GROUNDED Detroit’s replacement of Calvin Johnson, following the star wide receiver’s surprise retirement at age 30, will be under scrutiny all fall. Newcomers Marvin Jones, Anquan Boldin and Andre Roberts, who have 25 seasons of experience in the league between them, are getting settled with quarterback Matthew Stafford to supplement Golden Tate.
Running back Ameer Abdullah, along with third-down standout Theo Riddick, is really the one to watch, though. The Lions ranked last in the league in rushing yards last season when Abdullah was a rookie. Offensive co-ordinator Jim Bob Cooter, under whom Stafford thrived after a midseason change, has been tasked with establishing better balance.
PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH: Packers, Vikings, Lions, Bears.