WCG’s 2024 NFC North player rankings: Nos. 31-40
WCG’s 2024 NFC North player rankings: Nos. 31-40
The 2024 NFL season is a few months away, and the anticipation for the start of the season is at an extremely high level.
Specific to Windy City Gridiron’s own Bears niche, a new quarterback and several new contributors on offense give Chicago a massive boost to what already appeared to be an ascending roster. Within the NFL as a whole, the storyline will be to see who can prevent the Chiefs from being the first three-peat organization in the Super Bowl era.
As the NFL Network has done their player consensus Top 100 ranking each year, Windy City Gridiron’s staff has put together a roundtable over the last few seasons of the best players in the NFC North. With 9 contributors pitching in for this year’s roundtable, there was a strong diversity of opinions that provided for some entertaining rankings.
Before we get started, let’s set up the ground rules. Each WCG participant was asked to send their top 32 players in the NFC North. A player’s ranking determined how many points they would receive (32 points for first, 31 points for second, etc.), and the total points were added up to create the rankings.
Note: Tiebreakers will be broken by whichever player appeared on more ballots. If that total is the same, then the tiebreaker will go to whichever player received the highest ranking on an individual ballot. If that scenario also does not result in a clear winner, ballot organizer Jacob Infante will break the tie.
No. 40: Bears CB Kyler Gordon
Best: No. 22 (Zimmerman)
Last year: N/A
Perhaps somewhat quietly, Gordon has established himself as one of the better nickel cornerbacks in the NFL. With 5 interceptions and 12 pass deflections through his first two seasons with the Bears, he’s a sturdy hand in coverage who has a bright future heading into his third year in the pros.
No. 39: Lions LB Jack Campbell
Best: No. 19 (Sunderbruch)
Last year: N/A
Campbell finished up his rookie year with the Lions notching 95 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss and 2.0 sacks en route to finishing eighth in the Defensive Rookie of the Year voting. With some additional pieces added around him on Detroit’s defense, it will be interesting to see how the size-speed marvel from Iowa will fare in Year 2.
No. 38: Bears S Kevin Byard
Best: No. 17 (Duerrwaechter)
Last year: N/A
After 8 years with the Titans, Byard found himself traded to the Eagles midway through last season and ended up a cap casualty. While the two-time Pro Bowler’s interception numbers dipped in 2023, the Bears will gladly take his high coverage IQ and his impressive capabilities against the run.
No. 37: Bears OT Darnell Wright
Best: No. 26 (Sunderbruch)
Last year: No. 46
Wright lived up to his top-10 draft pick status as arguably the top offensive tackle performer from the 2023 draft class. There were bumps along the way, but the future looks incredibly bright for the Tennessee product.
No. 36: Bears LB Tremaine Edmunds
Best: No. 15 (Duerrwaechter)
Last year: No. 16
Although Edmunds wasn’t as consistent in 2023 as many were hoping he would be upon signing with the Bears, he still made his fair share of big plays. He had a career-high 4 interceptions, which tied for the league lead for linebackers. He also finished with 113 tackles, marking the sixth-straight year he’s met the century mark. Edmunds is a physical freak who could bounce back with a full offseason in Chicago’s system.
No. 35: Lions RB David Montgomery
Best: No. 23 (Droste)
Last year: No. 45
Montgomery was a rock-solid starter for the Bears in the four seasons he spent there, but from an efficiency perspective, he had his best year in 2023 with the Lions. He averaged a career-high 4.6 yards per carry and had a personal-best 13 rushing touchdowns, in addition to topping the 1,000-yard mark for the second time in his career.
No. 34: Vikings EDGE Jonathan Greenard
Best: No. 26 (Infante and Wiltfong)
Last year: N/A
Greenard broke out at just the right time, finishing with a career-high 12.5 sacks for the Texans in the last year of his rookie contract. That total saw him place 11th in the NFL, and he also tied for 17th with 22 quarterback hits. Still just 27 years old and with a new contract from the Vikings to his name, he and Dallas Turner could form a dangerous duo off the edge in Minnesota for some time.
No. 33: Bears RB D’Andre Swift
Best: No. 13 (Duerrwaechter)
Last year: N/A
Swift capitalized on a career year by signing a nice contract with the Bears in free agency. He ran for 1,049 yards with 5 touchdowns on the ground, adding 39 receptions, 214 receiving yards and a touchdown, as well. The first-time Pro Bowler joins a Chicago team that has ran the ball well the last few years, so another 1,000-yard season could be in the works if he stays healthy.
No. 32: Vikings WR Jordan Addison
Best: No. 25 (Salo and Doll)
Last year: N/A
Addison had a strong rookie year for the Vikings, tallying 70 receptions for 911 yards and 10 touchdowns. They needed him to step up when Justin Jefferson got hurt, and he did so in a major way. He produced regardless of who was at quarterback last year, so a QB battle shouldn’t stop him from putting up good numbers in 2024.
No. 31: Lions DL D.J. Reader
Best: No. 20 (Infante)
Last year: N/A
The Lions made a major addition to their defense in the form of Reader, an elite run-stuffer who draws plenty of attention on passing downs. His impact goes beyond the stat sheet — he’s coming off back-to-back seasons with over 80.0 PFF grades — and after dominating with the Bengals for four years, it will be interesting to see what he can do in Detroit.