Week 5 wasn’t a strong week for the NFC North division. For the second time this season, only one team came away with a victory while the others were left with losses.
The Minnesota Vikings stand alone in first place with a record of 4-1, while the Green Bay Packers drop to second at 3-2. The Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions bring up the lower half of the division at 2-3 and 1-4, respectively.
The standings are clear for this week, but will the power rankings look the same? Here are our NFC North power rankings after Week 5.
1
Minnesota Vikings (4-1)
- Last week’s ranking: No. 1
- Week 5 result: 29-22 win vs. Chicago Bears
The Vikings failed to play a complete game on Sunday, but still managed to get a win against the Bears. They put on a clinic in the first half as Kirk Cousins completed his first 17 passes of the game, a franchise record. Thanks to accurate passing and key rushing touchdowns, Minnesota was on their way to a laugher of a win at 21-3 late in the first half. But the Bears came back and made things interesting by scoring 19 unanswered points. If the Vikings can harness all of their talent and play complete games, they could be a dark horse in the NFC. For now, however, they will settle for division leaders. They have a matchup with the reeling Miami Dolphins this week.
2
Green Bay Packers (3-2)
- Last week’s ranking: No. 2
- Week 5 result: 27-22 Loss vs. New York Giants
The Packers remain in the second spot of the power rankings, but the gap between them and the Vikings is widening fast. Green Bay faced the New York Giants in London and held an early lead of 20-10 at halftime. The Packers went scoreless in the second half until the Giants gifted them a safety late in the game when the damage was already done. New York stormed back with long and sustained drives that went for scores in the second half. The Packers turtled and couldn’t overcome Big Blue to drop to 2-3. Green Bay isn’t panicking yet, but now face a resurgent New York Jets squad that could drop them to 3-3.
3
Chicago Bears (2-3)
- Last week’s ranking: No. 4
- Week 5 result: 29-22 loss at Minnesota Vikings
Like the Vikings, the Bears need to learn how to play a complete game. Unlike the Vikings, they don’t have the pieces to respond to adversity. The Bears were down bad in the first half, looking like the games from the Marc Trestman era nearly 10 years ago. But key halftime adjustments allowed Justin Fields and the offense to operate more comfortably and respond to a large deficit. It wasn’t enough to snag a win, however, as a key turnover sealed the game for the second week in a row. The Bears are improving, but still have a ways to go to catch Green Bay in the power rankings. They have a quick turnaround this week when they welcome the Washington Commanders on Thursday Night Football.
4
Detroit Lions (1-4)
- Last week’s ranking: No. 3
- Week 5 result: 29-0 loss at New England Patriots
The Lions entered their Week 5 matchup with the New England Patriots with statistically the top offense in the league. That wasn’t the case when they left the matchup. Detroit was shut out against the Patriots and “hit rock bottom” according to head coach Dan Campbell. The Lions offense couldn’t get anything going and were turned away six different times on fourth down conversions. It was an easy team win for the Patriots and backup quarterback Bailey Zappe, one that has the Lions wondering where they can go from here. Fortunately for them, they have a bye week to regroup and try to salvage the season before it completely gets away from them.
