We take a look at the best players at each position in the
NFC North
By
September
6, 2023
The 2023 NFL season is rapidly approaching, which
means it is once again time for us to unveil our preseason All-Division teams.
We've done this exercise for the past several years, and the point is to
preview which players at each position, in each division, we expect to put
forth the best performance this coming season.
We began last week with the AFC, starting with the AFC East,
continuing to the AFC North and AFC South, and
finally finishing up with the AFC West. This
week, it's on to the NFC. We began Tuesday with the NFC East,
continue today with the NFC North, and will work our way through the remainder
of the conference over the next couple days.
Without further ado ...
Offensive skill positions
QB: Kirk Cousins (MIN)
RB: Aaron Jones (GB)
WR: Justin Jefferson (MIN), Amon-Ra St. Brown (DET), D.J. Moore (CHI)
TE: T.J. Hockenson (MIN)
FLEX: Christian Watson (GB)
Choosing the quarterback for this division was tough. Do you
want consistency (Cousins, Jared Goff), explosiveness (Justin Fields), or the unknown (Jordan Love)? In the end we went with Cousins,
who consistently throws for 4,000-plus yards and around 30 touchdowns. If
the Lions had given Goff a premier outside
receiver to complement Amon-Ra St. Brown, that might have tipped the scales in
his direction.
There's been a lot of turnover at running back in this
division. Dalvin Cook is gone, supplanted by Alexander Mattison. Jamaal Williams and D'Andre Swift are out of Detroit,
replaced by David Montgomery (who used to be in
Chicago) and Jahmyr Gibbs. Khalil Herbert is the lead back for
the Bears, likely sharing time with some
combination of D'Onta Foreman and Roschon Johnson. But Jones is still here, and
he is coming off a wildly productive season during which he averaged 5.3 yards
per carry and set a career high in receptions (59). He'll turn 29 years old in
December so this pick is a little shaky, but his talent is still there and he's
yet to show signs of a drop-off.
Jefferson is the current belt holder as the best receiver in
football. Not much more needs to be said. The Sun God is a target vacuum who
should continue seeing a ton of looks from Goff in Ben Johnson's offense, and could reach
something like 120 receptions if he stays healthy. Moore might not have the
same effect on Fields that, say, Stefon Diggs did on Josh Allen or A.J. Brown did on Jalen Hurts, but he's such an enormous upgrade
over what Fields had last year that he can't help but bring his QB along with
him. Watson's ridiculous speed and explosiveness was on display throughout last
season. Now, he needs to be more consistent. As the clear-cut top option for
Love, we're betting he shows out. And Hockenson emerged as a true No. 2 threat alongside
Jefferson last season, and with Jordan Addison and K.J. Osborn also there, it's difficult to
devote extra attention to everyone.
Offensive
line
OT: Christian Darrisaw (MIN), Penei Sewell (DET)
G: Elgton Jenkins (GB), Jonah Jackson (DET)
C: Frank Ragnow (DET)
Darrisaw ranked in the top 10 of Pro Football Focus'
pass-blocking grades last season, and showed massive improvement year over year
as both a pass and run blocker. He's only in his third season and should still
be getting better. It was hard to leave David Bakhtiari off this list, but Sewell
is such a rare athlete for his position that I can't help but bet on his
untapped upside. He's already really good and he could be a consistent All-Pro
type of player if he puts it all together.
Jenkins took a slight step backward last season as he had to
play multiple positions due to injuries, but locked back in at guard he should
be able to recapture his prior form. And while Jackson also took a slight step
back, he's headed into his physical prime as part of a unit that should be able
to jell into one of the league's best. Playing alongside Ragnow doesn't hurt.
Defensive
front
EDGE: Rashan Gary (GB), Danielle Hunter (MIN)
IDL: Kenny Clark (GB), Devonte Wyatt (GB)
LB: Tremaine Edmunds (CHI), De'Vondre Campbell (GB)
FLEX: Aidan Hutchinson (DET)
Gary is coming off a torn ACL but should be ready to go to start
the year, and in just half a season had collected 6 sacks, 7 tackles for loss,
and 12 quarterback hits a year ago. The year before, he totaled a career-best
9.5 sacks and and ranked third in the NFL with 81 total pressures, according to
TruMedia. A breakout could be coming soon. And Hunter got his raise to stay in
Minnesota, and last year showed he still has the double-digit sack upside he'd
consistently reached in the earlier portion of his career. He turns 29 in
October but has plenty left in the tank. Hutchinson collected 9.5 sacks, nine
tackles for loss, and 15 QB hits as a rookie. His pressure rate wasn't as high
as you'd like it to be for a player of his pedigree, but he showed he can hold
his own and should get better as he gets more used to the league.
Outside of Clark, who is a consistent force in the middle of
Green Bay's defense but has just not had much help in there over the past few
years, the interior defensive line talent in this division is pretty lacking.
So, we're betting on Wyatt breaking out in his second NFL season
after not making much of an impact in Year 1. Edmunds is still incredibly young
for a player of his experience level, and his athleticism on the second level
of the defense is rare. Last year was the best of his career and Matt Eberflus
identified him as a guy the Bears needed to sign. A former linebacker coach, he
can potentially help Edmunds get to the next level. Campbell didn't come all
that close to hitting the All-Pro level he achieved in 2021, but he was still a
solid player for Green Bay and should continue to be one for the next few
years, even as he hits his 30s.
Defensive
backfield
CB: Jaire Alexander (GB), Jaylon Johnson (CHI), Cameron Sutton (DET)
SAF: Harrison Smith (MIN), Jaquan Brisker (CHI)
Alexander picked off five passes and got his hands on eight more
last season, and he nearly matched his elite performance from 2020 by yielding
a passer rating of only 66.2 on throws in his direction. (It was 54.3 a few
years ago.) He's in his prime and has the prototypical size-strength-speed
combination to remain an elite corner. Johnson is a pretty underrated player
because he's been on an awful Bears defense, but he's never allowed more than
59% of passes thrown in his direction to be completed and last year he ranked
right on the CB1 borderline in coverage snaps per reception (12.2), per PFF.
Sutton is a really solid player who should help a Detroit secondary that
desperately needs it.
Smith is getting up there in age now and showed a slight sign of
drop-off last season, but other elite safeties have been able to maintain a
high level of play into their mid-30s and his versatility makes him a strong
bet to contribute at a high level. Brisker played really well as a full-season
starter in his first NFL action a year ago, racking up
tackles, collecting four sacks, and holding his own in coverage. With more
talent in front of him and on the outside (draft pick Tyrique Stevenson seems like a locked-in
starter), he should be freer to roam around and make even more plays in Year 2.
Specialists
K: Cairo Santos (CHI)
P: Jack Fox (DET)
RET: Keisean Nixon (GB)
Santos has made 84.5% of his career kicks and has been over
86.7% during each of his three seasons in Chicago. He also made four kicks of
50-plus yards a year ago. Fox owns a career punting average of 49.0 yards and
has reduced his touchback rate in each NFL season. Nixon led the NFL in
kick return yardage last year and was named a first-team All-Pro. He might have
a bit more responsibility as a corner this year but he should still be a major
factor in the return game.