Maybe We’re Not So Tough
A couple weeks ago, the NFC North had a great week where every team won… and that might have included the Lions. With the Packers and Bears off to quick starts, and Minnesota doing their thing,it looked as if the NFC North might be the cream of the crop when it comes to the NFL.
This weekend however, ruined any thoughts in that direction.
With the Vikings on a well deserved bye, Green Bay was looking to bounce back after a tough loss to Minnesota to re-establish themselves as a contender, and Chicago had a home game again often thought as overrated, Arizona Cardinals. After watching football for three and a half hours on Sunday, things were looking great for the Vikings, but dismal for the division as a whole.
Banter between Packer fans and Viking fans can be found everywhere. It’s always fun to read the banter back and forth. This week the common rip from Viking fan to Packer fan was, “Nice job against Tampa Bay!”. What I found curious was the response from some Packer fans. “Minnesota hasn’t beaten a single team with a winning record!”
After a brief glance at the schedule, it’s true. Two of Minnesota’s biggest wins were over the Packers who are now a very average 4-4. Another big win at the time was holding off AFC Championship participant of last year, Baltimore Ravens who the Vikes barely fended off in what many thought was a poor performance. Their record had also dropped to 0.500 after another loss to the Bengals.
From hot starts in this division to what it looks like at the halfway point, one has to wonder if this is a below average division with just one bully who isn’t that tough.
