Division
NFC North
NFC
NFC North: facts drawn from the play-by-play.
Green Bay has won the NFC North 12 times — more than the other three franchises combined.
RareNFC North / NFC Central titles, 1999–2025
| Team | Titles | Most recent | Best record |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green Bay | 12 | 2021 | 15–1 (2011) |
| Minnesota | 7 | 2022 | 13–3 (2017) |
| Chicago | 6 | 2025 | 13–3 (2001, 2006) |
| Detroit | 2 | 2024 | 15–2 (2024) |
Division titles by team (1999–2025)
| Team | Division titles |
|---|---|
| GB | 12 |
| MIN | 7 |
| CHI | 6 |
| DET | 2 |
Across 27 seasons (1999–2025), the Packers have claimed 12 of 27 division titles — 44% of all available, more than Detroit, Chicago, and Minnesota's totals combined (15). The Aaron Rodgers era alone (2008–2022) produced 9 of those 12 titles in 15 years. Detroit's 2 came in the last two seasons (2023, 2024); before 2023 they had never won the NFC North in the division's 21-year existence.
The Lions went from 0–16 in 2008 to 564 points and 15–2 in 2024 — the highest-scoring season in NFC North history.
TrendDetroit Lions wins by season
| Season | W–L | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 0–16 | 268 | 517 |
| 2014 | 11–5 | 321 | 282 |
| 2020 | 5–11 | 377 | 519 |
| 2021 | 3–13 | 325 | 467 |
| 2022 | 9–8 | 453 | 427 |
| 2023 | 12–5 | 461 | 395 |
| 2024 | 15–2 | 564 | 342 |
| 2025 | 9–8 | 481 | 413 |
Detroit Lions points scored by year
| Season | Points scored |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 268 |
| 2014 | 321 |
| 2020 | 377 |
| 2021 | 325 |
| 2022 | 453 |
| 2023 | 461 |
| 2024 | 564 |
| 2025 | 481 |
From the only 0–16 team in the database era (2008) through 5 straight losing seasons (2017–2021), Detroit's 2024 campaign was a complete inversion: 15–2 with 564 points scored — the highest total ever posted by any NFC North team in the database. The next-highest are Green Bay's 560 in 2011 (Rodgers' MVP year) and 509 in 2020 (Rodgers' second MVP). Detroit's 2025 fall to 9–8 — still scoring 481 — was the league's harshest regression: same offense, defense slipped, missed the playoffs.
2024 NFC North: three teams won 11+ games — something only four divisions have ever done.
Anomaly2024 NFC North final standings
| Team | W–L | PF | PA | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit | 15–2 | 564 | 342 | +13.1 |
| Minnesota | 14–3 | 432 | 332 | +5.9 |
| Green Bay | 11–6 | 460 | 338 | +7.2 |
| Chicago | 5–12 | 310 | 370 | −3.5 |
In 27 seasons of database, only four divisions have produced three teams with 11+ wins: 1999 AFC South, 2020 AFC North, 2024 NFC North, and 2025 NFC West. Detroit (15–2), Minnesota (14–3), and Green Bay (11–6) all reached double-digit wins — sending three teams to the NFC's seven-team playoff field while Chicago slumped to 5–12.
The wild part: Minnesota went 14–3 and didn't win the division. Their only losses were to Detroit (twice) and Rams; against the rest of the league they were 14–1. In any other year that wins the division comfortably; in 2024 it was a wild card.
Detroit went 6–0 in the division in 2024 — only the third sweep in NFC North history.
SplitAll-time intra-division records (since 2002)
| Team | W | L | T | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green Bay | 105 | 55 | 2 | .651 |
| Minnesota | 86 | 74 | 2 | .537 |
| Chicago | 69 | 93 | 0 | .426 |
| Detroit | 62 | 100 | 0 | .383 |
All-time intra-division play has been a clear pecking order: Green Bay 105–55–2, Minnesota above water, and the Bears and Lions both well under .500. The Packers own the Bears 39–15 head-to-head and the Lions 36–18.
The sweep is what makes 2024 historic. Detroit went 6–0 in the division — only the third NFC North 6–0 sweep on record (Green Bay did it in 2011 and 2019). Last 3 years intra-division (2023–2025) the order has reshuffled: DET 12–6, MIN 10–8, GB 9–9, CHI 5–13 — the Lions are now leading the rivalries that defined the division for two decades.
The Lions ended a 21-year NFC North title drought in 2023 — and a 32-year playoff-win drought.
MilestoneDetroit Lions playoff appearances, 1999–2025
| Season | Round | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | WC | at WAS | 13–27 | L |
| 2011 | WC | at NO | 28–45 | L |
| 2014 | WC | at DAL | 20–24 | L |
| 2016 | WC | at SEA | 6–26 | L |
| 2023 | WC | vs LAR | 24–23 | W |
| 2023 | DIV | vs TB | 31–23 | W |
| 2023 | CON | at SF | 31–34 | L |
| 2024 | DIV | vs WAS | 31–45 | L |
From the day the NFC North formed in 2002 through 2022 — 21 seasons — the Lions never finished first. They finally won the division in 2023 (12–5) and again in 2024 (15–2).
More striking: their 2023 wild-card win over the Rams was Detroit's first playoff victory since the 1991 season — a 32-year drought, the longest by any NFL franchise at the time. They followed it with a divisional-round win over Tampa Bay before falling to San Francisco in the NFC Championship. The 2024 squad earned the NFC's #1 seed but bowed out at home to Washington.
QB stability tells the story: Rodgers/Love at GB, Cousins-then-churn at MIN, Caleb Williams ending the Bears' QB cycle.
ComparisonPrimary starting QB by team, 2018–2025 (passing yards)
| Year | GB | MIN | CHI | DET |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Rodgers 4,442 | Cousins 4,298 | Trubisky 3,526 | Stafford 3,777 |
| 2019 | Rodgers 4,002 | Cousins 3,845 | Trubisky 3,138 | Stafford 2,499 |
| 2020 | Rodgers 4,299 | Cousins 4,265 | Trubisky/Foles | Stafford 4,084 |
| 2021 | Rodgers 4,115 | Cousins 4,221 | Fields/Dalton | Goff 3,245 |
| 2022 | Rodgers 3,695 | Cousins 4,547 | Fields 2,242 | Goff 4,438 |
| 2023 | Love 4,159 | Cousins/Mullens/Dobbs | Fields 2,562 | Goff 4,575 |
| 2024 | Love 3,389 | Darnold 4,319 | Williams 3,541 | Goff 4,629 |
| 2025 | Love 3,381 | McCarthy/Wentz | Williams 3,942 | Goff 4,564 |
Green Bay has had effectively two QBs in 18 years: Aaron Rodgers (2008–2022, 9 division titles) and Jordan Love (2023–present). One handoff, no churn.
Minnesota rode Kirk Cousins for 5 seasons (4,200+ yards three times), then lost him to Atlanta and went through a 3-QB carousel in 2023, signed Sam Darnold for a one-year miracle (4,319 yds, 35 TDs in 2024), then split 2025 between J.J. McCarthy and Carson Wentz — a different starter every year for three straight.
Chicago is the cautionary tale: from Trubisky to Foles to Fields to Dalton back to Fields, then drafted Caleb Williams #1 overall in 2024. His 3,942 yards / 27 TDs / 7 INTs in 2025 (winning the division at 11–6) is the first definitive Bears QB step-up in the database era. Detroit has had Stafford-then-Goff: Jared Goff has thrown 4,400+ yards in three of four seasons since arriving in 2021 — the most stable QB tenure in the division behind Rodgers.
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