Through six weeks of the 2026 NFL season, there’s no denying it: the NFC North is looking like the best division in all of football. Seriously, check this out: only the NFC and AFC North have all four teams with winning records. And when you compare the NFC North to the rest of the NFC? Forget about it. The other 12 teams in the NFC *combined* only have three winning records. That’s wild! This division is stacked, but here’s the kicker: each of these impressive teams is carrying a pretty massive flaw that could absolutely torpedo their championship hopes.
Detroit’s Sack Machine Can’t Save This Secondary
Let’s kick things off with the Detroit Lions, because their situation feels almost criminally clear. Offensively, these guys are an absolute wagon, clocking in at No. 2 in scoring with a potent attack that mixes a decent running game with super efficient passing. And honestly, their pass rush has been straight up phenomenal, leading the entire NFL in sacks and ranking sixth in pressures with 90, even without playing a sixth game yet! They’re getting after the QB. So what’s the problem?
Their pass defense has been flat-out abysmal through five games, and it’s all on that secondary. The defensive line is doing its job, but the defensive backs just aren’t complementing their play. We’re talking coverage busts and getting absolutely cooked in one-on-one situations. The numbers don’t lie: through six weeks, the Lions are 29th in EPA per pass, 29th in passer rating allowed, 22nd in yards per attempt allowed, and a dreadful 30th in dropback success rate. How can you be a sack leader and still be that bad against the pass? It’s a fatal flaw, plain and simple, and it could cost them big.
Green Bay’s Defensive Turnaround Can’t Mask a Ground Game Disaster
Remember earlier in the year when the Green Bay Packers looked like they couldn’t do *anything* right? Bottom quarter of the league across the board in all four phases. Rough stuff. But man, have they turned it around, especially on defense. They went from one of the worst defenses in the NFL to stifling two seriously potent offenses, the Bears and Cowboys, to a combined 20 points over the last three games. That’s a legit turnaround.
Just look at these splits for their defense:
* **Weeks 1-3:** 30.3 PPG allowed (tied 29th), 0.092 EPA per play allowed (25th), 46.5 percent success rate allowed (23rd)
* **Weeks 4-6:** 11.3 PPG allowed (first!), -0.150 EPA per play allowed (13th), 42.3 percent success rate allowed (13th)
That’s a huge shift in performance. But even with that defensive resurgence, there’s one giant red flag: they are still getting absolutely hammered on the ground. They’ve allowed a 42.6 percent rushing success rate in those last three games, ranking 27th. But even that isn’t their biggest issue. The real Achilles’ heel for Green Bay is their offensive line and non-existent run game. They’ve struggled with pass protection all season, logging the eighth-highest pressure rate allowed (40.2 percent) and the shortest time-to-pressure (2.36 seconds) in the NFL. Jordan Love’s been doing a good job avoiding sacks, but the O-line’s struggles are hitting hardest in the run game. They are dead last in rushing yards per game (59.8), dead last in rush yards per carry (2.9), dead last in rush EPA (-0.299), and 31st in rushing success rate (32.5 percent). Ouch.
The NFC North is without a doubt a force, boasting incredible talent and winning records across the board. But as we get deeper into the season, those glaring flaws for Detroit and Green Bay aren’t just minor bumps. They’re massive potholes that could derail everything these teams are fighting for. Can they patch them up, or are these fatal flaws destined to sink their championship dreams? It’s going to be wild to watch.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pride of Detroit.
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