NFC North draft takeaways: Picks and notes on Bears, Lions, Packers, Vikings

Another year, another draft. The NFC North was *active* this year. Going into Thursday, the Green Bay Packers had 11 picks. Conversely, the Minnesota Vikings had just five. The Chicago Bears had relinquished control of the draft by trading away the first overall pick in advance and the trades didn’t stop there. Then, there were the Detroit Lions, who threw most analysts for a loop early but ultimately reinforced the roster well.

There were 36 total picks among the four franchises, and with the division wide open, the team that ends up having the best draft this year could be the same team that wears the division crown at the end of the season.

Here are a few highlights of each draft class. 

Bears 2023 Draft Class

Round 1 (No. 10) — OT Darnell Wright, Tennessee

Round 2 (No. 53) – DT Gervon Dexter, Florida

Round 2 (No. 56) – CB Tyrique Stevenson, Miami

Round 3 (No .64) – DT Zacch Pickens, South Carolina

Round 4 (No. 115) — RB Roschon Johnson, Texas

Round 4 (No. 133) — WR Tyler Scott, Cincinnati

Round 5 (No. 148) — ILB Noah Sewell, Oregon

Round 5 (No. 165) — CB Terell Smith, Minnesota

Round 7 (No. 218) — DT Travis Bell, Kennesaw State

Round 7 (No. 258) — S Kendall Williamson, Stanford

The Bears are quite simply not messing around with quarterback Justin Fields. They are putting him in the best position possible to determine whether he’s the future in Chicago, as evidenced by the fact they took tackle Darnell Wright out of Tennessee. Wright has played on both sides of the line during his college career, even getting switched last minute prior to not one but two of his collegiate seasons. He told FOX Sports he truly doesn’t have a dominant side or a preference when asked directly. The Bears figure he will likely slot in at right tackle, as left tackle is 2022 fifth-round pick Braxton Jones‘ position to lose. 

Wright even ran into Jones on his first day at Halas Hall on Friday, even though Chicago’s offseason workout schedule is only Monday through Thursday. Jones was in the building anyway working out. With the addition of Wright, the Bears may now have a serviceable offensive line both in pass protection and the run game, giving Fields no excuses not to show out this season.

Chicago spent Day 2 addressing head coach Matt Eberflus’ defense. The Bears had a nearly non-existent pass rush last season and decided to address their needs there from the inside out. They took two defensive tackles within 11 picks of each other, hoping one of them can become the three-technique who can make their Tampa 2 defense hum. Both tackles, Gervon Dexter and Zacch Pickens, come from the SEC and will be added to an interior rotation that includes Justin Jones and Andrew Billings.

Addressing another defensive need, the Bears took Miami cornerback Tyrique Stevenson.

Stevenson was brought in on for a visit by Chicago after having informal meetings at the NFL Combine. He spoke at length with Chicago media about how much respect he has for the integrity of the game and how he was brought in because he plays the game ‘in an old-school way’. Stevenson said he’s an “all-out baller ready to make an impact from day one.”

Lions 2023 Draft Class

Round 1 (No. 12) — RB Jahmyr Gibbs, Alabama

Round 1 (No. 18) — ILB Jack Campbell, Iowa

Round 2 (No. 34) — TE Sam LaPorta, Iowa

Round 2 (No. 45) — DB Brian Branch, Alabama

Round 3 (No. 68) — QB Hendon Hooker, Tennessee

Round 3 (No. 96) — DT Brodric Martin, Western Kentucky

Round 5 (No. 152) — OT Coby Sorsdal, William & Mary

Round 7 (No. 219) — WR Antoine Green, North Carolina

One thing is clear: the Lions don’t care about your draft board. And if you can forget exactly where these players were taken, especially in the first round, Detroit’s draft in totality looks pretty darn good. Gibbs figures to be a factor in both the run and receiving game for Detroit. He’s a playmaker from a fantastic program, which general manager Brad Holmes stressed in his press conference on Thursday evening. Even Campbell seems to fit the bill perfectly in Detroit, classified as a tough, smart player by a former teammate to FOX Sports. At his size (6-foot-5, 250 pounds), he also figures to be part of the pass rush, coming up the middle on occasional blitz packages.

The Lions’ second-round picks conformed more with conventional boards, as they took Iowa TE Sam LaPorta and DB Brian Branch out of Alabama. They replaced T.J. Hockenson, who was traded to the Vikings last season, with another Hawkeye tight end. Branch should be an excellent (and versatile) addition to the Lions’ defense. He’s a safety who can also play slot corner, allowing them to use him in a variety of packages.

Taking quarterback Hendon Hooker in the third round was another surprise after the Lions addressed obvious needs in the second. Hooker is on track to be able to participate in training camp, according to a doctor’s note on Wednesday, when the QB was able to start dropping back and throw for the first time. Regardless, the Lions still have Jared Goff, which will allow Hooker to sit for at least one year. At worst, Detroit now has a viable backup. At best, they now have their quarterback of the future.

Packers 2023 Draft Class:

Round 1 (No. 13) — Edge Lukas Van Ness, Iowa

Round 2 (No. 42) — TE Luke Musgrave, Oregon State

Round 2 (No. 50) — WR Jayden Reed, Michigan State

Round 3 (No. 78) — TE Tucker Kraft, South Dakota State

Round 4 (No. 116) — Edge Colby Wooden, Auburn

Round 5 (No. 149) — QB Sean Clifford, Penn State

Round 6 (No. 179) — DT Karl Brooks, Bowling Green

Round 6 (No. 207) — K Anders Carlson, Auburn

Round 7 (No. 232) — CB Carrington Valentine, Kentucky

Round 7 (No. 235) — RB Lew Nichols III, Central Michigan

Round 7 (No. 242) — S Anthony Johnson Jr., Iowa State

Round 7 (No. 256) — WR Grant DuBose, Charlotte

Green Bay has a serious aversion to taking pass-catchers in the first round. They haven’t done so since 2002 when they selected Javon Walker. Head coach Matt LaFleur talked about wanting a veteran receiver to add to an otherwise young room back at NFL owner’s meetings and true to form, the Packers selected edge rusher Lukas Van Ness out of Iowa with the 13th overall pick. From what general manager Brian Gutekunst said after making the pick, it seems they envision Van Ness as an interior player along the defensive front, adding to a rotation with Kenny Clark and Devonte Wyatt. Van Ness will likely have to put on a bit of weight between now and the start of the season, but it could lead to some creativity along the Packers defensive line this coming year.

While the first round presumably didn’t irritate Aaron Rodgers as some would have liked, Green Bay spent all of Day 2 adding to quarterback Jordan Love’s pass-catching arsenal. They took not one but two tight ends, along with wide receiver Jayden Reed out of Michigan State.

The Packers decided to add depth behind Love as well on Day 3, selecting quarterback Sean Clifford out of Penn State. While some insiders were surprised, this was an effort to add a quality backup when all Green Bay had on the roster previously was Danny Etling. Besides, Green Bay has always evaluated quarterbacks differently than most. Clearly the traits they look for are different from those of the masses. 

Clifford outlasted Will Levis for the Nittany Lions, leading the second-round pick to transfer to Kentucky. Clifford passed for 2,822 yards last season, scoring 24 touchdowns against seven interceptions and in five seasons at Penn State, he amassed over 10,000 passing yards and scored 86 total touchdowns.

Vikings 2023 Draft Class

Round 1 (No. 23) — WR Jordan Addison, USC

Round 3 (No. 102) — CB Mekhi Blackmon, USC

Round 4 (No. 134) — CB Jay Ward, LSU

Round 5 (No. 141) — DT Jaquelin Roy, LSU

Round 5 (No. 164) — QB Jaren Hall, BYU

Round 7 (No. 222) — RB DeWayne McBride, UAB

The Vikings went into the 2023 draft with just five selections but flipped picks around, trading down and in one case, trading up (for Jaquelin Roy). They were always going to need to get creative with only one pick in the top 100 (they traded down in round 3 to knock themselves out of a second top 100 selection). Despite that, they ended the draft with six total picks in this year’s draft class.

Their first pick, Jordan Addison out of USC, is a perfect complement to the other wideouts currently on the roster. Addison will join Offensive Player of the Year Justin Jefferson and Jalen Raegor, as well as tight end T.J. Hockenson, as quarterback Kirk Cousins‘ receiving weapons.

“I think that he is a natural wide receiver,” said Cousins on a Bleacher Report livestream. “A guy who can attack the football with great hands, adjust to the ball well, run great routes, that’s pretty exciting to be able to get that kind of polish right away.

“We targeted Justin a lot last year, and for good reason… but this should help take some pressure off of him.”

Taking an LSU defensive back seemed like an inevitability, not just because the team lost Patrick Peterson to free agency and needed to replenish their quote of ‘Tigahs’ but because former LSU coach Daronte Jones is back on the Vikings staff. Jones coaches Jay Ward, specifically, and the pair are happy to be reunited in Minnesota. Adofo-Mensah said that evaluators in their front office all had differing opinions on Ward’s best position, which speaks to Ward’s versatility and therefore hit fit into new defensive coordinator Brian Flores’ system.

Carmen Vitali covers the NFC North for FOX Sports. Carmen had previous stops with The Draft Network and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. She spent six seasons with the Bucs, including 2020, which added the title of Super Bowl Champion (and boat-parade participant) to her résumé. You can follow Carmen on Twitter at @CarmieV.

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