Could huge Lions loss flip NFC North to the Chicago Bears?

The reasons Ragnow gave were health-related issues, though, and at this point all anyone can do is take him at his word.

It's no stretch to wonder if this means the Lions not only are no longer lock favorites to win the division, but if the Bears really do have a chance at taking the North.

1. Lions Losses

Detroit lost both coordinators and a giant cross-section of its coaching staff, in addition to Ragnow now deciding he's done.

Detroit's greatest strength without doubt had been the offensive line. Now it's probably going to be the defensive line because they've removed the heart of the offensive line and the guy who made all of their line calls to alter the blocking scheme.

They'd be replacing him with veteran Graham Glasgow, who is a guard by trade and has played 2,611 of 7,914 career offensive plays at center. So he's not totally unfamiliar with the position, but the Aurora, Ill. native (Marmion Academy) really has been a starting center for half of a season or more in 2018 and 2022.

The Lions no longer have Kevin Zeitler, will still be trying to incorporate Chris Mahogany into the starting lineup after he had only one start as a rookie and likely will have rookie Tate Ratledge starting at guard. Suddenly, that's an awfully inexperienced Lions line and they don't have Ben Johnson now as offensive coordinator.

Throw in the loss of defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn and other assistant and the time when anyone could pencil in Detroit automatically as NFC North favorite is past.

2. Vikings shift

The Vikings have altered their line look on offense and defense, which is always a concern. The biggest concern is the greatest one. They have a new starting quarterback. They did last year and won 14 games. Then again, it's a little different replacing their starting quarterback with a player who hasn't taken an NFL regular-season snap. J.J. McCarthy had a year to watch. What was it worth?

Then there is the Ben Johnson effect. Brian Flores' defense has lost all four times to Johnson's Lions offense and given up 30 points or more each time. Will there be carryover to Johnson's Bears offense?

3. Packers rut

Was Jordan Love the QB who stepped forth in 2023 or the up-and-down passer from 2024?

He won't have Christian Watson at receiver (ACL tear) but will have rookie receiver Matthew Golden. The bigger question for the Packers is does Johnson actually have the secret to beating Matt LaFleur, like he joked about. The Lions, with Johnson as offensive coordinator, did beat Green Bay five out of six times.

They also won the same number of games in the NFC North that the Bears won under Matt Eberflus and Thomas Brown—one.

4. Rise of the Bears

This was promised last year after the Bears won five out of their final nine in 2023, but it never materialized.

Now, though, Caleb Williams has a year of NFL experience, more offensive firepower, a rebuilt offensive line and he's backed by a defense that added help.

Of course, there is Johnson's effect and it's difficult to gauge since he has never been a head coach.

It's suggested by those outside of Chicago that Dan Campbell was really the mastermind behind that Lions offense.

What do the Lions say? On his podcast, last month, Amon-Ra St. Brown was paying homage to the former Lions OC.

"I love Ben," St. Brown said. "I tell everyone, like, that he's one of the more favorite coaches that I ever played for, been round.

"His worth ethic was crazy. Smart, innovative play calling."

St. Brown described the very situation Johnson did with his offense when he first came to Chicago and said he had learned from former Bears offensive coordinator John Shoop about disguising plays.

"Like, he would change," St. Brown said. "He'll make all the plays kind of look the same and then switch it up where it will look same formation with a different play.

"So it made it so hard on defenses because they never knew what was coming. We'd have the same stem and so many different routes out of it."

Then there are the trick plays. St. Brown said they practiced executing those well enough so they usually won't blow up in their faces.

"It is a trick play but it's like a sound play," St. Brown said.

The hook and ladder was one of those.

"Someone would catch an-in route, like, the change of momentum is crazy for the defense," he said. "No one is expecting you to toss it back to someone else.

"So that play is like it's a trick play but it's low key, a sound play. It had a meaning to it. It's not like he was just calling a trick play to call it."

The Bears will benefit, no doubt about it, says St. Brown.

"He's like a genius when it comes to creating plays," St. Brown said.

Of course, while every other team has new challenges to overcome in personnel and scheme, the Bears have an entirely new offense, new defense and personnel changes to account for in a year when the NFC North looks like it will be anything but boring.