This week in the NFL will feature one of the more exciting weeks in the NFC North. The first-place Chicago Bears face their real test of the season against the Eagles on Black Friday. The Lions and Packers battle for either a chance to take the North back or a loss that could take them out of the race entirely.
Here are my Week 13 bold predictions for the NFC North:
Jordan Love will have a disappointing performance
Every loss the Green Bay Packers have had this season, one common denominator has been that Jordan Love did not play at his best. In a huge Thanksgiving NFC North battle, I think that same trend will continue. Jordan Love does not have his reliable weapon, Tucker Kraft, and he his heading into this matchup banged up. Love was a full participant in practice, but his left shoulder injury will definitely hinder him a bit in this game. I expect him to throw two interceptions versus the Detroit Lions and put up the worst Thanksgiving game of his career.
Lions offense will have themselves a day
The Lions are coming off a game where they went to overtime against the Giants. They did not lose, but still, the result is not what was expected from an NFC contender. The Lions are one of the best teams at responding. The offense, however, looked great against the Giants, and playmakers Jahmyr Gibbs and Amon-Ra St. Brown both went off. I expect both to have big games again, and the Lions look to send a message after Week 1’s disappointing performance. I think the Lions put up 30-plus points in this game.
Lions get the last laugh over the Green Bay Packers
The Lions are currently slotted as the favorite in this matchup. The Packers have been the team that has been proven to be fraudulent in games against contenders, while the Lions have wins against Baltimore and the Bucs this year. The Lions under Dan Campbell tend to show up in big games like this with a heavy amount of significance. The Packers have owned the Lions on Thanksgiving, and Dan Campbell and his team will look to change that notion on Thursday. With Jordan Love being hurt and Josh Jacobs being banged up as well, I think Matt Lafleur will call a conservative game. There might even be a Malik Willis sighting. Dan Campbell, on the other hand, will more than likely go for every 4th down he possibly can. That aggressiveness did not pay off against Philadelphia, but in this game, it will.
Caleb Williams has best quarterback performance in the North
As I said above, I think Jordan Love will have a poor performance and will cost the Packers a win on Thanksgiving Day. While I think the Lions will have a dominant offense on a day, it won’t be at the hands of Jared Goff. Dan Campbell will look to pound the rock and run the ball down the Packers’ throat. He will look to test the notion that you can run at Micah Parsons. The many teams that have taken down the Packers have had good days on the ground. That leaves Caleb Williams. If the Bears are going to beat the Eagles, it will take the Bears’ offense being the better unit. That lies directly on Caleb Williams. Ben Johnson has proven to have success getting guys open and making things as smooth as possible for Caleb. It is games like this that are the games Caleb was drafted for. I think Caleb can put up another 3 passing touchdown game and get close to 300 yards passing. One element that should be used by Caleb is his legs. He showed how dangerous he can be versus the Giants; it should be the same mindset against Philadelphia. I expect him to reach 50 yards rushing. That stat line will be enough to earn Caleb another NFC player of the week and the best quarterback performance in the NFC North.
Bears upset the Eagles
The Eagles are a team that is getting banged up at the wrong time and has issues that go deeper than the product they are putting on the field. The Bears’ offense has been inconsistent this season, but you can argue that Philadelphia’s offense has been just as bad, if not worse. The Eagles are not the same team they were last year, in any area. If there has ever been a better time to go against the Eagles, it is now. The Eagles have three of their starting linemen hurt, and it appears that two of them will more than likely be out in Lane Johnson and Cam Jurgens. While the Bears will get Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon back in this game. The Bears have everything going for them and all the momentum in the world to take down the reigning Super Bowl champs. It will be a close game as it always is, but I like the Bears’ chances to take down the Eagles.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Micah’s NFC North bold predictions for NFL Week 13
Reporting by Micah Huff, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
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