All-NFC North Team: Linebackers

Alex Anzalone left off All-NFC North team.

Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery (5) tries to break a tackle by Green Bay Packers linebacker Quay Walker (7). / Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

A strong linebacking corps can be the key to any good team

As the Detroit Lions have enjoyed their success in recent years as the result of a successful rebuild, the defense's success has been keyed by the men in the middle. In particular, veteran Alex Anzalone has had back-to-back 100-plus tackle seasons.

As the leader of the Lions' defense, Anzalone has been allowed to flourish from the linebacker spot. Heading into the 2024 season, linebackers coach Kelvin Sheppard explained that he expects Anzalone to have an All-Pro caliber season.

However, Anzalone was not voted first-team All-NFC North during a recent vote conducted by publishers across the division.

Here's a look at the three first-team choices and what they bring to their respective teams in 2024.

First team: Quay Walker

The top two linebackers in the 2022 NFL Draft class were Walker (No. 22 pick) and the Jaguars’ Devin Lloyd (No. 27 pick). Lloyd is first in the draft class with 242 tackles and Walker is second with 239. However, Walker has Lloyd beat in sacks (4-0) and tackles for losses (12-2).

Walker, however, always leaves you wanting just a little more. He went from seven passes defensed and three forced fumbles as a rookie to three passes defensed and zero forced fumbles last year and gave up far too many completions. He had one interception and dropped a couple others. Since so much analysis is stats-driven, the narrative might be different had he made those plays.

This will be a huge season for Walker. From a team perspective, the schematic change has Walker moving to middle linebacker, where he’ll be expected to lead the defense by word and deed. From a personal perspective, the team will have to decide on the fifth-year option at the end of the season.

Still, Walker is 24 and has two years of seasoning. Combined with a still-elite combination of size and athleticism, the arrow is pointing up. If he has a big-time season, the defense will put the team in the Super Bowl hunt. — Bill Huber, Packers On SI.

All-NFC North Team: Quarterbacks

All-NFC North Team: Running Backs

All-NFC North Team: Wide Receivers

All-NFC North Team: Tight Ends

All-NFC North Team: Offensive Line

All-NFC North Team: Defensive Line

First team: T.J. Edwards

When the Bears signed Edwards, there was great discourse about which of the two key linebacker positions he’d play in a Tampa-2 style 4-3 scheme. Coach Matt Eberflus decided it was the weakside and it quickly became apparent the fit was right.

Edwards came within eight tackles of Roquan Smith’s single-season team record and his three interceptions were one more than he made in his four years with the Eagles combined. With eight tackles for loss, Edwards showed he is the attacking linebacker the weakside position must be in this one-gap approach at the line of scrimmage. He even made career highs of 2 ½ sacks and eight quarterback hits as he returned successfully to his hometown.

Edwards is definitely not a linebacker blessed with tremendous speed but at 6-foot-1, 242 pounds he can be a load to handle when charging downhill through a gap and is capable of more than the two forced fumbles and one recovery he had last season.

Shaq Leonard had eight forced fumbles, four interceptions and three recovered fumbles in his last year as Eberflus’ weakside in Indianapolis. Anything for Edwards even approaching those numbers would be a tremendous success. — Gene Chamberlain, Bears On SI.

First team: Ivan Pace Jr.

Pace has a long way to go before he enters the same realm as Vikings greats who went undrafted, a la John Randle and Adam Thielen, but if his rookie season was any indication of things to come, the middle of Minnesota's defense is in good hands.

Pace, who is expected to wear the green dot and command the defense as a second-year linebacker in 2024, burst onto the scene in 2023 and finished as Pro Football Focus' 17th-ranked qualified linebacker. He was especially good as a pass rusher, ranking 12th among all linebackers in PFF's pass rush grades. 

No rookie linebacker had more pressures (15), sacks (3) and quarterback hurries (6). The only rookie linebacker with more QB hits than Pace (6) was Detroit's Jack Campbell (7). Ironically, Campbell, at Iowa, was the No. 2 PFF linebacker in the nation behind Pace in 2022. 

Pace should be even better in his second season in defensive coordinator Brian Flores' scheme. And after starting only 11 of 17 games as a rookie, Pace will be an unquestioned starter every week, which should yield bigger numbers and more praise from his peers. — Joe Nelson, Vikings On SI.