NFC North Round-Up: Detroit Sneaks Past Chicago, Packers Get a Close Win, Vikings’ Winning Streak Screeches to a Halt
Josh Frey
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With the exception of a Super Bowl rematch between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night, Week 11 of the NFL season is in the books.
Once again, all four NFC North teams were back in action, and we even saw a wild divisional matchup between the Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions on Sunday afternoon. With the dust settling from this weekend’s events, here is a look at how the NFC North teams fared.
Lions Squeak One Out Against the Bears
Things took a wild turn in Detroit early on this weekend. With Justin Fields back on the field the Bears stormed out to an early 10-7 lead in the first half, but the Lions were able to take a 14-10 lead into the half after Amon-Ra St. Brown scored his fifth touchdown of the season.
It was all Bears for most of the second half, though. They rattled off 16 unanswered points and held a 26-14 lead with just over four minutes left to play. However, after a quick strike from Detroit and a three-and-out from Chicago, the Lions were able to capture a game-winning touchdown and sealed the deal with a safety of Fields.
Detroit came within minutes of putting the Vikings in striking distance for the NFC North race, but they managed to pull off a big comeback to improve their record to 8-2. Meanwhile, the Bears fall to 3-8 and remain in the basement of the division.
Packers Win 4th Game of the Season vs. Chargers
There was butter on the ball in Green Bay on Sunday. The Los Angeles Chargers had four or five drops from receivers that crippled their ability to move the ball up and down the field. They converted seven of their 14 third-down attempts, but it likely would have been a lot better if their receivers held onto the ball on a more consistent basis.
Green Bay got a very strong game out of Jordan Love, which allowed them to take the win. Their QB threw for 322 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and some explosive plays from WR Jayden Reed helped them to a 23-20 win over the Chargers.
Vikings Lose a Heartbreaker
Both the Broncos and Vikings went into Sunday night as two of the hottest teams in the NFL. Only one team would be able to keep their winning ways going, though. Ultimately, the Broncos ended up on top after Courtland Sutton caught a dagger TD at the end of the fourth quarter.
Once again, it was turnovers that hindered the Vikings’ ability to win this game. After the first five weeks of the season, Minnesota had done a much better job at holding onto the ball, but three turnovers compared to zero takeaways is never a winning recipe. Luckily, Minnesota still holds the No. 7 seed in the NFC and remains in striking distance to move up the conference in the coming weeks.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.