Week 9 of the NFL season marks the halfway point of the regular season. While there is still a lot of ground to cover, it is never too early to take a look at how the divisions are shaping up in the early part of the season.
The NFC North was expected to be highly competitive in 2025. Detroit is the reigning division winner, but Minnesota was finally going to get J.J. McCarthy under center this year, Green Bay traded for Micah Parsons to improve its defense, and Chicago hired Ben Johnson as its head coach, taking him away from the Lions.
Week 9 saw a huge NFC North matchup between the Lions and the Vikings, while the Packers faced the Carolina Panthers, and the Bears took on the Cincinnati Bengals. Minnesota entered the game 3-4 and was on the road, taking on Detroit. The Vikings were clicking on all cylinders and came away with a huge 27-24 win.
The Bears took on the hot Joe Flacco-led Bengals. Johnson's creativity finally shone through in Chicago with quarterback Caleb Williams catching two passes for 22 yards and a touchdown. The defense tried to give away the game, but Williams pulled off an impressive final drive to seal the 47-42 win.
The Packers played the worst game in the division and looked past the Panthers, who won on a walk-off field goal at windy Lambeau for Green Bay's second loss of the season.
Here is more on what the Vikings' win over the Lions means for the NFC North heading into Week 10.
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NFC North standings
Team Record
Packers 5-2-1
Lions 5-3
Bears 5-3
Vikings 4-4
The Packers took their second loss of the season in Week 9. If the Lions had been able to beat the Vikings, Detroit would have moved into first place in the division. Instead, the Lions lost to the Vikings. With Chicago beating Cincinnati, the Bears and Lions have the same record. The tiebreaker goes to head-to-head between divisional opponents, and Detroit wins that from the Week 2 52-21 win.
Minnesota makes up some ground with its win over Detroit. The Vikings are now just one game behind the Packers, Lions and Bears. For now, the tie is giving Green Bay an advantage in the standings because it helps the Packers avoid any sort of record tiebreaker. It could become a huge factor down the stretch of the season.
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Lions upcoming schedule
Week Opponent
10 at Commanders
11 at Eagles (SNF)
12 vs. Giants
13 vs. Packers
14 vs. Cowboys (TNF)
15 at Rams
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Vikings upcoming schedule
Week Opponent
10 vs. Ravens
11 vs. Bears
12 at Packers
13 at Seahawks
14 vs. Commanders
15 at Cowboys (SNF)
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Packers upcoming schedule
Week Opponent
10 vs. Eagles (MNF)
11 at Giants
12 vs. Vikings
13 at Lions
14 vs. Bears
15 at Broncos
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Bears upcoming schedule
Week Opponent
10 vs. Giants
11 at Vikings
12 vs. Pittsburgh
13 at Eagles (Black Friday)
14 at Packers
15 vs. Browns
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