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NFC North Roundtable: Multiple players had career years in 2024 with one a major candidate to regress

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Tyler Forness | Last updated Jun 30, 2025 9:31 AM ET

The NFC North is an interesting division right now. They have three teams who made the playoffs in 2024, but none of them ended up winning a playoff game.

With three teams in the playoffs , including teams in the Detroit Lions (15) and Minnesota Vikings (14) who won a staggering amount of games, regression will be likely for multiple players and/or teams this year. Who are the biggest regression candidates? The beat writers are at a near consensus with their choices.

Minnesota Vikings beat writer Tyler Forness: Lions QB Jared Goff

This is going to be a theme throughout this piece, and for good reason. Before I go any further, it's important to note that Goff is distanced far enough from his time with the Los Angeles Rams that it's not a factor when discussing his future. Goff has proven himself to be a very good quarterback in the National Football League.

However, the biggest part of why Goff was able to be so successful with the franchise has been the infrastructure of the offense. Going into 2025, the Lions lost two of their biggest pieces on offense: offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and center Frank Ragnow.

Most will focus on the loss of Johnson, which could be huge, but Ragnow's retirement is potentially catastrophic to the interior. The Lions are now in a spot where they have to replace their center, who was a four-time Pro Bowler and a second-team All Pro the last two seasons (three total). He was special in many ways and will likely be replaced by 2025 second-round pick Tate Ratledge, who wasn't a center at Georgia. Will Ratledge be anywhere close to Ragnow in calling the protections and setting the offensive line up?

The best way to attack Goff is to pressure him straight up the middle. While not the best metric overall, Goff's passer rating dropped a whopping 45.4 points when he was pressured, which is a significant drop off, especially for a pocket passer. Without Ragnow and guard Kevin Zeitler who also left this offseason, a new play caller could immediately tank the production of Goff in 2025.

Average Jared Goff Play

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— Nick (@seahawksnerd75) September 29, 2023

Green Bay Packers beat writer Wendell Ferreira: Lions QB Jared Goff

Throughout the course of his career, Goff has been a poster child for the concept of being as good as the situation around him. Luck or merit, Goff has worked with great people in Sean McVay and Ben Johnson most of the time, which significantly contributed to his bank account outlook. You can make the case that 2016 Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator Rob Boras wasn't ready or equipped to handle rookie Jared Goff, and that's why he was so bad in his first season, but Goff also regressed when the situation got worse around him even with Sean McVay, and later with Anthony Lynn in his first season with the Lions.

Now, the offensive roster is still good. But the Lions lost offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, replacing him with an unproven coach in John Morton, and also two starting interior offensive linemen in Frank Ragnow and Kevin Zeitler. Considering how much worse Goff has become when he's pressured, it's the recipe for some type of regression, even if he's still able to play at a competent level.

Chicago Bears beat writer Kole Noble: Lions QB Jared Goff

I mean, it has to be Jared Goff, and there’s no better answer in the entire NFC conference, much less the division. When in the right situation, Goff has looked great and played as one of the most efficient quarterbacks in football. But, that was with Sean McVay or Ben Johnson, two of the sharpest offensive minds in recent memory.

When he’s not been with McVay or Johnson (which has only been two seasons), Goff was not the same player on the field. So, with Johnson now in Chicago, regression is coming for the 2024 MVP candidate. Overall, the offensive supporting cast is still really strong around Goff, outside of losing Frank Ragnow and Kevin Zeitler. But, in order for Goff to keep his high-level of play consistent in 2025, new offensive coordinator John Morton will need to have his best season ever calling an offense.

Detroit Lions beat writer Mike Payton: Packers RB Josh Jacobs

This is not saying that Jacobs isn’t good, but the Packers did make some improvements in the passing game, and maybe that leads to them throwing the ball a little more and not having to rely on the run game as much. Picking this one was hard because I can’t say any of the NFC North teams got worse this offseason. Another player to mention is Cole Kmet. Not that he was putting up All-World numbers, but with Colston Loveland in that offense now, the ball is going to get spread out more.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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