Three NFC North quarterbacks have set the record for highest paid player in history over the last two years (Stafford '17, Cousins '18, Rodgers '18). But since the greatest ever quarterback, Tom Brady, entered the league in 2000, no other division has been represented fewer times in the Super Bowl than the NFC North. And it was the other quarterback, Mitchell Trubisky, who brought his team to the playoffs this year.
Football is a team sport. Each team's general manager needs to address more needs than just the signal caller. The following outlines the biggest area of concern the division's front offices face heading into the off-season:
Chicago Bears
Estimated cap space: $7.3 million (per OverTheCap.com)
The Bears are a team built to win now. The defense - lead by linebacker Khalil Mack - is the scariest in the league, ranking first in points allowed and third in yards allowed last season, per the NFL. General manager Ryan Pace can trust quarterback Mitchell Trubisky to run the offense after the former second-overall pick had a breakout year in 2018. The backfield - home to Tarik Cohen and Jordan Howard - is one of the most dynamic and difficult to plan for in the league.
So it might be fitting that the Bears off-season worry is special teams. Or more specifically, its kicker.
Kicker Cody Parkey had his struggles throughout the season and was a major discussion in Chicago after his missed kick bumped the Bears out of the playoffs. He put pressure on the team all-season with missed attempts - most notably when he hit four balls off the post in Week 10 - but the problem for Pace is whether he cuts the kicker -- who would come with $5.2 million dead money if released this year.
Pace has been a solid hire since joining the team in 2015, and has faced tougher challenges. From trading for Mack to moving on from quarterback Jay Cutler and wide receiver Alshon Jeffrey, the general manager has done a lot right. But if he can't get a competent kicker, it may be all for nothing.
Detroit Lions
Estimated cap space: $30 million
The Lions have the most questions to answer out of all NFC North teams. On offense the team needs to show major improvements if they want to stay competitive in a tight division, and the team lacks play-makers on defense.
The Lions opted to trade Golden Tate to Philadelphia instead of paying the wide receiver, and struggled down the stretch as a result. They have talent in Marvin Jones and Kenny Golloday, but need to find a way to consistently deliver. And one of those receivers needs to step up to fill the hole left by Tate.
The hire of long-time Seahawks co-ordinator Darrell Bevell to look after the offense isn't too inspiring however. In a league suddenly filled with high-powered offense, Detroit is moving forward with a guy that did best when putting the ball in Marshawn Lynch's hands. Bevell did work well with quarterback Russell Wilson however, so fans will hope if he focuses on Matthew Stafford the rest can fall into place.
Outside of offense, the team must acquire a reliable cornerback to put opposite Darius Slay. The team had eight corners on the roster at one point this season, yet starting across from Slay for the third year was Nevin Lawson. Lawson has 25 passes defended and no interceptions in his five-year Lions career. The 27-year-old leads all Lions in tackles only because he gives up the easiest catches, per Fansided.
The team won't compete for the NFC North crown until it puts a guy opposite Slay to help with the division's elite quarterbacks.
Green Bay Packers
Estimated cap space: $35.3 million
Aaron Rodgers made it clear that he wasn't happy with Green Bay's offense in 2018. So the Packers responded by firing 16-year head coach Mike McCarthy and replaced him with one off the Sean McVay tree: Matt LaFleur.
So the focus becomes whether LaFleur can fix Rodgers himself.
Through frustration or otherwise, Rodgers made mistakes last year. He held on to the ball too long, especially on third down, and repeatedly got sacked. Only so much blame can be put on an O-line that includes David Bakhtiari, Corey Linsley, Bryan Bulaga and Lane Taylor.
Rodgers must improve his chemistry with receivers or his inaccuracy problems will continue too. The star quarterback ranked 26th in completion percentage last year, and evidently did not trust his weapons outside of Davante Adams and Jimmy Graham.
There's a lot of positives in the LaFleur hiring. LaFleur was the first coach - along with McVay - to bring a team from last in scoring to first over just one season (2017 Rams). He also helped improve Jared Goff's QB rating from 63.6 to 100.5 in his one year with the Rams, and was a second-year quarterback's coach of Matt Ryan when the Falcons quarterback won the MVP -- with a 117.1 QB rating. Whether he can bring that success - quickly - to Green Bay is key for the Packers.
Minnesota Vikings
Estimated cap space: $ 6.9 million
The 2018 season didn’t go to plan in Minneapolis. Kirk Cousins wasn't close to living up to the major contract he signed last off-season and came in for a lot criticism when the Vikings missed the post-season -- despite reaching the NFC Championship in 2017.
Cousins will have to make a major step up if the Vikings' fortunes are to improvement, something he understands.
But the onus isn't just on Cousins. Vikings general Rick Spielman needs to address a long-time problem of the team: the offensive line. The unit struggled badly again in 2018, ranking 29th.
In a copy-cat league, Spielman may want to look to the Colts offensive line success to address his team's biggest weakness. The Vikings general manager would even be wise to employ former Colts offensive line coach Dave DeGuglielmo to bolster the line.
The Colts fired DeGuglielmo after the season despite a dramatic turnaround by the O-Line, which ranked third in the league last year. Former first round picks Quenton Nelson and Ryan Kelly certainly helped DeGuglielmo, but the coach's marks were evident too.
The Vikings O-line needs to be a high priority for a team filled with talent across the board otherwise.
Enda Smith
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