Dust off your Robert Porcher and Dorsey Levens jerseys. For my money, the NFC Central-turned-North hasn’t been loaded in nearly three decades. Both the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions are fresh off seasons in which they were a breath away from thinking Super Bowl. No. 1 pick Caleb Williams has a realistic chance to cure the Chicago Bears’ century-plus-long quarterback problem. Even the Minnesota Vikings have good reason to be hopeful.
Here on the podcast, we’ll devote individual episodes to previewing each division up to Week 1.
As always, I am joined by former NFL scout Jim Monos. He’s been around Donovan McNabb and Drew Brees for long stretches of time and sees the potential for several years of epic QB duels in the North.
Live at the site now is a column on the well-oiled machine Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes have built in Detroit. Subscribers can read here.
Video and audio of the “Go Long Show” is accessible here at GoLongTD.com, as well as everywhere you get your podcasts, including Apple, Spotify and YouTube.
Our 2024 NFL Season Preview features are rolling out, icymi:
Go Long is your independent home for longform journalism in pro football.
New here? It’s a great time to subscribe.
Related:
The Detroit Lions have what everybody wants
Good morning, readers! Our 2024 NFL Season Preview series is underway, icymi: David Long Jr., and the beast within
NFC North is the ultimate QB Case Study
The 2023 season began and concluded with the same demoralizing thud. For the Chicago Bears, these weren’t mere L’s on the board. These were sad reminders of the chasm between the state of their franchise and the Green Bay Packers. Right when it appeared they’d catch their nemesis to the north, right when Aaron Rodgers — the old man screaming “I own you!” — was finally gone, here was Jordan Love doing exactly what Rodgers did before him since ‘08. And what Brett Favre did before Rodgers since 1992.
You're up Caleb Williams, Part I: All falls apart
The most ballyhooed draft pick in the history of the Chicago Bears is wasting no time ushering in his own signature celebration. Whenever cameras are near, Caleb Williams curls his five fingers inward for a “bear claw.” Sometimes, he adds a scowling snarl for effect. Other times, his expression is emotionless. But he’s bringing the claw everywhere — the private jet with wide receiver Rome Odunze, a Chicago Cubs game, a Chicago Sky game, Halas Hall — and it’s either insane nobody in the Bears’ 105-year existence has made this a trend before or it’s Gen Z cringe fit for the 14-year-olds on TikTok. Either way, the claw is here to stay and everyone should get used to a quarterback who’s unlike any No. 1 pick before him.
And for Jordan Love's next act...
He’ll become a rich man very soon. Jordan Love played his way into the upper tier of quarterback contracts late last season. Still, this was a small sample size. And opposing defensive coordinators are bound to offer a counterpunch. The same bet these Green Bay Packers placed on Love the night of April 23, 2020 applies in June 2024. This is a player wort…
Share this post