Football is already underway, albeit in the preseason. Even though it is relatively meaningless action, it should have you fired up for the real thing – which kicks off on September 5 with Thursday Night Football between the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens. Here at Pickswise we are building up to the new season and you can check out our NFL futures guide, which has our Super Bowl winner picks, MVP best bets, player award predictions and much more.
For now, we are breaking down every division with in-depth team analysis and best bets. Let’s dive into the NFC North, where the rising Detroit Lions are favored while the underdog Minnesota Vikings are already dealing with rough injury news (rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy is out for the year). Here are the NFL odds and our expert NFL picks for the division.
NFC North Odds
Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook and available at time of publishing.
- Detroit Lions +135
- Green Bay Packers +230
- Chicago Bears +275
- Minnesota Vikings +950
Detroit Lions (+135)
Perhaps no franchise in football is on the rise quite like the Lions. Head coach Dan Campbell went 3-13-1 in his first season as head coach (2021), but the rebuilding process did not take long. Detroit proceeded to compile records of 9-8 (missed the playoffs) and 12-5 (won the NFC North, lost to the San Francisco 49ers in the conference championship game). Campbell’s crew could be even better in 2024. Jahmyr Gibbs, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams are only getting better, so the Jared Goff-led offense may be even more dangerous than it was this past year. The same can be said of the other side of the ball, as Aidan Hutchinson is entering his third season and Marcus Davenport has been brought in to add more of a pass-rushing presence. There is not a lot to dislike about this team – and it’s a team that should be in line for a second consecutive division crown.
Detroit Lions best bet: Lions to win the NFC North (+135)
Green Bay Packers (+230)
The Packers performed well for the most part last season, compiling a 9-8 record before walloping the Dallas Cowboys in the wild-card round (ended up losing to the 49ers in the divisional round). Still, it should not be overlooked that Green Bay was 6-8 heading into Week 16 and then took advantage of a weak schedule that included the Carolina Panthers, Vikings and Bears. The Packers certainly don’t have to apologize for stealing a wild-card spot; the bottom line is that the sample size of success under quarterback Jordan Love is small. He was stellar in his first year as a starter. Now the question is: can he repeat it? Running back Aaron Jones is gone and offensive tackle David Bakhtiari remains a free agent, so the offense could look a little different in 2024. More evidence of the mediocrity of this team in 2023 is that it finished #17 in total defense and had an even turnover differential. In all likelihood GB will once again be solid but unspectacular.
Green Bay Packers best bet: Packers Under 9.5 wins (+115)
Chicago Bears (+275)
Much to the chagrin of the other teams in this division and perhaps even in the entire NFC, Chicago is no longer a pushover. The Bears have their quarterback of the future – and the present – in Caleb Williams and he has a whole lot of weapons around him (at least compared to former QB Justin Fields). Williams’ stable includes Kennan Allen, DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, Cole Kmet and D’Andre Swift. If the #1 overall pick is as good as advertised, this offense could go from zero to 60 in a hot minute. The Bears acquired defensive end Montez Sweat in the middle of last season, so that side of the ball is also looking pretty good. You never know exactly what you are going to get from a rookie quarterback and it may take a while for entirely new puzzle pieces to gel, but the Bears are coming. Will they put it all together immediately, or will it take until something like 2025 or 2026?
Chicago Bears best bet: Bears Over 2.5 division wins (-165)
Minnesota Vikings (+950)
The Vikings started their relative rebuilding process by declining to re-sign veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins (now with the Atlanta Falcons). Unfortunately for them, the process may take longer than expected. First-round draft pick J.J. McCarthy would have been in the mix to replace Cousins right away, but the former Michigan signal-caller is suddenly out for the year because of a torn meniscus. That means Sam Darnold is the undisputed starter in Minnesota. Needless to say, that does not inspire a whole lot of confidence. Justin Jefferson can make any quarterback look good, but the ceiling is only so high when Darnold is running the show. It’s also worth noting that tight end T.J. Hockenson won’t even be close to ready for the start of the regular season. Defensively, Minnesota lost edge rusher Danielle Hunter in free agency to the Houston Texans. This team could be really bad.
Minnesota Vikings best bet: Vikings to go 0-2 against the Lions (-150)
NFC North division predictions
- Detroit Lions
- Chicago Bears
- Green Bay Packers
- Minnesota Vikings
NFC North Best Bet: Detroit Lions to win the division (+135)
It appears to be a 3-team race in the NFC North, with only Minnesota being left out of the party. Even though Chicago and Green Bay are pretty good on paper, Detroit should arguably be a bigger favorite than +135. As such, there is intriguing value on the Lions. They were 7 games over .500 in 2023 and should be improving. With a plethora of talent on both offense and defense, Detroit is a legitimate Super Bowl contender. At the very least it should be en route to another division triumph.
