In what seems like the longest offseason in recent history, and rightfully so given the Packers absence from the playoffs last January, real NFL football kicks off in just a little over 24 hours.  In the NFC North, hopes are high as the teams head into their week one matchups and the battle for the division crown will begin to take shape come Sunday.

Chicago Bears

The Bears travel to Lambeau Field to take on the Packers in a week one Sunday Night Football matchup.  Being scheduled as a big-time rivalry game as the Packers look to open their 100^th season of existence as a franchise, little did the NFL know of the drama that would ensue in the weeks leading up to this game to make the spectacle even larger.

The news breaking over Labor Day weekend that the Bears had won the trade sweepstakes for Khalil Mack’s services has only added to the point that General Manager Ryan Pace was leaving no stone unturned to assemble to the best football team possible.  Mack’s signing was added to multiple high profile free agent signings this past offseason and the Bears faithful are primed for the matchup against the Packers.

The Bears will come into Lambeau with a stout defense and a new offensive scheme that has some definite playmakers.  But the success of the team will ultimately fall on second-year quarterback Mitch Trubisky’s shoulders.  Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense will be able to put up points on any offense and the Bears may need a heroic effort from their young signal caller to pull off the upset on the road in week one.

The Chicago media has been doing their part to add fuel to the fire of the rivalry.  In recent headlines, the Chicago Tribune has called out Rodgers in tweets as “Danica Patrick’s boyfriend” and the noted tweet “Wisconsin man gets a pay raise” after Rodgers signed his record-breaking deal.  Rodgers was quick to strike back when asked about the tweets, calling them “comical” and resorting to the fact that the Packers have dominated the Bears in recent history with Favre and himself under center.  

Rodgers couldn’t be more correct in that assessment.  In the NFL’s most storied rivalry, the Bears held as big as a 24 game lead in the all-time series as recently as 1992.  As of last season, where the Packers won both matchups, the Packers took the all-time series lead in wins for the first time in 84 years.  The Packers now hold the series edge at 96-94-6.

Minnesota Vikings

Week one finds the Vikings playing host to the San Francisco 49ers in a Sunday, 12 pm CST matchup.  In what could have been a homecoming for new 49ers running back Jerick McKinnon, the 49ers are now left reeling at the position after McKinnon tore his ACL during a practice this past Saturday.

The 49ers seem to be the darling pick for many to surprise and make a playoff run in 2018 after the stellar play from quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo at the end of last season.  But the injury to their starting running back and a lack of playmakers in the offense make them hard to buy into at this point in time.

Aside from their total flop in the NFC Championship game last January, the Vikings will look to continue where they left off last season and make another run at an NFC North championship and success in the playoffs.  The Vikings and new quarterback Kirk Cousins were awfully hard to gauge in the preseason with inconsistent play and this week one matchup against the 49ers should give the teams around the division a better idea of what they will face in the Vikings for the remainder of the season.

The Vikings biggest splashes in free agency were the signing of Cousins and bringing aboard defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson.  They were also late players into the preseason with the signing of safety George Iloka and the trade for center Brett Jones.  After final roster cuts were done, the Vikings parted ways with their longest-tenured member of the team in defensive end Brian Robison.  Entering the regular season with a stout defense and the offensive playmakers around Cousins to be successful, the biggest question for the Vikings is if their offensive line will be able to stand up to the tests that face them week in and week out.

Detroit Lions

In the traditional Monday night doubleheader to open the season, the Lions will host the New York Jets in the first game of the evening.  For the Lions, the Jets could be just what the doctor ordered to get their season off to a positive start.  The Jets will travel to Detroit with one of the weakest rosters in the NFL and will be starting rookie quarterback Sam Darnold in his first regular-season NFL game. 

After a pretty ho-hum offseason, it seems that the Lions could once again be a team that is either on a feast or a famine in 2018.  Where other teams in the division were making big splashes, Detroit made some minor waves in the shallow end of the pool with the hiring of Matt Patricia at head coach, a mediocre at best free agency period highlighted by the signing of LeGarrette Blount and an okay draft class.  But, the Lions offense still has weapons with Matthew Stafford under center.

With new head coach Matt Patricia taking over at the helm for the Lions, the squad saw their fair share of struggles in the preseason.  These factors make the Lions a very difficult team to gauge as the league head into the regular season.  After week one, Detroit’s schedule gets difficult with impending matchups against the 49ers, Patriots, Cowboys and Packers in the coming weeks.  While fans probably shouldn’t gauge the Lions based on their performance against the Jets, the team can’t look past their week one opponent and get upset.