Week 17 NFC North Power Rankings and Best Units

The Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings remain tied atop the NFC North power rankings, with the Green Bay Packers set to play at the Vikings on Sunday.

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Jayden Reed (11) catches a touchdown pass against the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 29. / Tork Mason / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Can the Green Bay Packers earn a statement victory on Sunday at the Minnesota Vikings?

The Packers remain No. 3 in our NFC North power rankings. The Detroit Lions and Vikings are tied for No. 1.

If the Vikings can beat the Packers and Lions to close the regular season, they’ll be the No. 1 seed. If the Packers can beat the Vikings, they’ll have a chance to move up from No. 6 to No. 5.

On SI NFC North Power Rankings

As selected by the On SI team publishers: Bill Huber from Green Bay, John Maakaron from Detroit, Gene Chamberlain from Chicago and Joe Nelson from Minnesota.

T-1. Detroit Lions (13-2): The Lions, who rebounded from their loss to the Bills to blast Chicago, are No. 1 in scoring differential. They split the four first-place votes in our NFC North rankings and are No. 3 in our Consensus NFL Power Rankings.

T-1. Minnesota Vikings (13-2): The streaking Vikings received the other two first-place votes. While they’ve won eight in a row, they are only 13th in yardage differential. Eight of their wins have come in one-score games. They are No. 5 in the Consensus NFL Power Rankings.

3. Green Bay Packers (11-4): The Packers are third in scoring differential and fourth in yardage differential. Now, can all that dominance be displayed against an elite team? They are No. 6 in the Consensus Power Rankings.

4. Chicago Bears (4-12): Here’s a dumbfounding stat for you: The Bears have lost 10 consecutive games and yet are plus-8 in turnovers for the season.

Bill Huber’s NFC North Rankings

1. Minnesota Vikings: The Vikings have won eight in a row, including four consecutive home games. They have stars throughout the offense and a defense that sacks the quarterback and takes away the football

2. Detroit Lions: I moved the Lions down to No. 2 last week because of all the injuries. Basically, I viewed it through the lens of current rosters. After Detroit won by 17 at Chicago, I thought about moving the Lions back to No. 1. Maybe the 49ers will give them a tougher game on Monday.

3. Green Bay Packers: You know the deal. Green Bay is 11-0 against the rest of the league but 0-4 against the Lions, Eagles and Vikings. On Sunday, they’ll play at Minnesota. It’s not a must-win game for Green Bay but it would be a statement victory.

4. Chicago Bears: Imagine going from 4-2 to 4-12. The Bears have lost 10 in a row, including all five games since firing coach Matt Eberflus. Last week’s 17-point loss was the closest under interim coach Thomas Brown before the 6-3 verdict against Seattle.

Best team in the NFL: My No. 1 team has lost each of the last two weeks. So, perhaps I should pick the Vikings. But I’ll go with the Kansas City Chiefs, who have won six in a row and just demolished the Steelers in Pittsburgh.

Worst team in the NFL: The New York Giants will host the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday with a chance to become the first team in NFL history to go 0-9 at home. No team has gone winless at home since the St. Louis Rams went 0-8 in 2009.

Around the NFC North

As written by our NFC North team publishers.

Green Bay Packers

at. Minnesota Vikings (3:25 p.m. Sunday)

Player whose job in 2025 could be on the line: Cornerback Eric Stokes. Stokes, a first-round pick in 2021, had a superb rookie season. He was at or near the top of the rookie class in pass breakups, forced-incompletion percentage and completion percentage allowed. He had a miserable first half of the 2022 season, which ended with a foot injury that bled into 2023. Incredibly, in 27 games and 18 starts over the last three seasons, he has not broken up a single pass. Zero. The Packers declined his fifth-year option, meaning he’ll be a free agent this offseason. He’s not just playing for a spot with the Packers; he might be playing for a spot in the NFL, period.

Position group performing the best: The Packers are fourth in the NFL in rushing and second in the NFL in sack percentage allowed. They’ve scored 30-plus points in five consecutive games, the longest streak in the league and the team’s longest since 1963. Josh Jacobs is really good and Jordan Love’s athleticism helps, but the offensive line is the group that’s making it go. The Packers don’t have a single first-round pick on their starting line, but they know how to draft and develop linemen better than any team in the league.

Minnesota Vikings

vs. Green Bay Packers (3:25 p.m. Sunday)

Player whose job in 2025 could be on the line: Sam Darnold. It's crazy to think that a guy who is putting up top-five QB numbers and coming through in the clutch time and time again is fighting for his job, but that's what happens when you sign a one-year, prove-it contract and your team uses the No. 10 pick in the draft on a quarterback, J.J. McCarthy. Great quarterbacks are usually worth paying for, but if Darnold is a product of great coaching and an outstanding supporting cast, then it shouldn't surprise anyone if the Vikings hand the keys to McCarthy in 2025 and use about $70 million in cap space to make the supporting cast even stronger while the Super Bowl window is wide open with a QB on a rookie contract. 

Position group performing the best: This one comes down to rush defense and wide receivers, and we're going to give the wide receivers the edge because of how dominant Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison have been over the last month. In five games since Nov. 24, Jefferson has 33 receptions for 475 yards and five touchdowns. Addison has 32 catches for 447 yards and five touchdowns. That's a five-game sample size where the duo is averaging a combined 13 receptions for 184 yards and two touchdowns per game.

Detroit Lions

at San Francisco 49ers (7:15 p.m. Monday)

Player whose job in 2025 could be on the line: Craig Reynolds has an opportunity to get more carries with the injury to David Montgomery. The veteran has earned the support of the coaching staff with his understanding of the offense, but rookie Sione Vaki could usurp him as the third running back behind Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs. Vaki played defensive back in college but has a dynamic skill-set with his athleticism and ability to contribute as a receiver. As a result, these final weeks of the regular season are pivotal for Reynolds to remind the front office of his abilities out of the backfield. 

Position group performing the best: One of the biggest concerns about the Lions’ roster heading into the season was their depth at wide receiver. Amon-Ra St. Brown was an All-Pro, but the Lions had plenty of unproven options behind him. This year, Jameson Williams has unlocked his potential and is 110 yards away from 1,000, while Tim Patrick has emerged as a nice No. 3 option at receiver. With tight end Sam LaPorta chipping in plenty, Detroit has plenty to be pleased with from its group of pass catchers. 

Chicago Bears

Lost 6-3 to the the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night

Player whose job in 2025 could be on the line: Coleman Shelton. The starting center signed a one-year contract for $3.5 million as a free agent and was brought in to compete for the position with Ryan Bates, who was acquired in a trade. Instead, Bates suffered a few injuries and never really competed for the center spot after being injured in training camp. Shelton, meanwhile, is graded the 11th-best center in the league by Pro Football Focus. His run blocking and pass blocking have been solid, although in a few games much bigger rushers coming in the A-gap or blitzers gave him trouble with protection. Shelton is undersized by NFL standards, listed at 285 pounds, and it's questionable whether the Bears would want to go on with a player that size next year. He must keep making them realize the performance he's given has been better than solid.

Position group performing the best: Easily the wide receivers ... finally. It took way too long but all three top receivers and Caleb Williams seem to be in better sync than through the first 12 weeks. D.J. Moore has been dependable since early in the season, but the work with Keenan Allen and Rome Odunze is showing up in games, just in time for Allen to hit the free agent market. It's fantasy football to think the Bears would extend Allen after his one-year deal ends, at 33 years old, with receivers making what they make. It's probably less likely Allen would even want to remain in Chicago after the way everything turned out. 

Latest Green Bay Packers News 

Kind of a big game this week.@JacobWestendorf breaks down the #Packers-Vikings matchups. ⬇️https://t.co/Wx8Xfbvg8b

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) December 26, 2024

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