Four NFC North teams chasing history… and a funny coincidence

This NFL season, one division is looking to make history. It also tries to repeat itself.

Since the NFL regrouped divisions from six to eight in 2002, no entire division has ever qualified for the postseason. Until the league expanded its playoff format to seven teams per conference in 2021, this was impossible.

But with the newest format, there's a world where a whole flock can go to the postseason. And this year the NFC North could do it.

Enter Week 8the Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears are all in playoff positions. Detroit is the top seed in the NFC, while the other three hold wild card spots in the order listed above.

If this remains the case, the NFC North would be the first division in NFL history to put all of its members in the playoffs. But it wouldn't be the first time a division sent four of its teams.

In 1994, when the league had 30 teams, most divisions had five teams, and six clubs from each conference made the postseason, the NFC Central turned the trick. Amazingly, this year it was the same four teams that currently hold the position. The 10-6 Vikings won the Central and secured third place, while the other three 9-7 teams qualified as wild cards. The No. 4 seed Packers defeated the Lions on wild card weekend, while the No. 6 seed Bears pulled off an upset in Minnesota. The only NFC Central team to miss the playoffs was the 6-10 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (yes kids, the Bucs were in the Central).

In the end, neither made it to the NFC title game, as the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers defeated the Packers and Bears, respectively, in the divisional round.

However, this is not the only time this department has done this. Three years later, in 1997, the NFC Central again fielded four teams. This time it was the Packers who won the division, while the Vikings, Lions and Buccaneers made the playoffs. Green Bay ended up in the Super Bowl and surprisingly lost to John Elway's Denver Broncos.

Finally, the only other division where four teams have ever qualified? The 1998 AFC East. That season, the New York Jets received a bye as division champions, while the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots received wild card slots. New York reached the AFC title game but lost to Denver, who ultimately won the Super Bowl for the second straight year.

When the reborn Cleveland Browns became the NFL's 31st team in 1999, the league stuck with its six divisions. But when the Houston Texans joined the league in 2002, the NFL expanded to eight divisions with four teams each. Since there were only six playoff slots per conference at the time and each division winner had to qualify for the postseason, it was mathematically impossible for four teams in a division to qualify.

Now a division must fill all three wild card spots in its conference, which the NFC North is surprisingly on track to do.

But will it? The chances are slim that there will be four of them.

There are 10 games left on the schedule pitting two NFC North teams against one another, although the Bears have yet to play any of them. Of course, barring an unlikely tie, that means the group will suffer five losses while other playoff contenders like the Philadelphia Eagles, Seattle Seahawks, Atlanta Falcons, Buccaneers and 49ers can make up ground.

Accordingly The athleteThe NFL playoff projection modelThe Lions have the best odds within the division at 92%. The Vikings are close behind at 87%, while the Packers are at a solid 70%. However, the Bears are only at 39% and rank eighth in NFC percentage.

Expect the NFC North to get stronger in Week 8. On Thursday night, Minnesota scored 3.5 points against the Los Angeles Rams. Detroit is an 11-point favorite over the Tennessee Titans. In Jacksonville, Green Bay is a 4.5-point favorite over the Jaguars, while the Bears are a three-point favorite against the Washington Commanders, who may be without rookie sensation Jayden Daniels due to a rib injury.

There is more than half a season ahead of us. A lot can happen. The NFC North needs to continue playing great football together. It will also take some luck from outside the division for certain results to turn out right. However, playing in the NFC West and AFC South divisions won't hurt, as only one of the eight teams has more than one game over .500.

But through seven weeks, the NFC North finds itself in a historic position — albeit a position its participants have found themselves in before.