The 2023 season was a breakout year for many NFC North players. The Bears were in playoff contention for most of the year and actually locked up the first-overall pick thanks to them trading back last year. The Vikings were disappointing and were overrun by injuries. Meanwhile, the Packers made it back to the playoffs and the Lions have won their way to the NFC Championship!
Each team had massive breakout performances and would have been worth cashing in to get a no-deposit bonus. The division as a whole drafted quite well in the 2023 NFL Draft and had a number of players play meaningful snaps. Meanwhile, the Packers have found yet another franchise quarterback.
5 NFC North Players Who Broke Out This Season
Sam LaPorta
Quite possibly the biggest break out in the division and top NFC North players this season, rookie Sam LaPorta re-wrote the record books. Usually, itโs incredibly difficult for a rookie tight end to make a legitimate difference with the player having to adjust to the new level of playing. Not LaPorta!
On the year, LaPorta hauled in 86 passes for 889 yards and 10 touchdowns. He was the Lions second-lading receiver after Amon-Ra St. Brown, the First-Team All-Pro receiver. LaPorta made the Pro Bowl and has started off his career on the right foot.ย
Jordan Love
The Green Bay Packers just canโt stop drafting franchise quarterbacks. They went from Brett Favre to Aaron Rodger to Jordan Love just like that. And, better yet, Love did something that Rodgers couldnโt: he led his team to a winning record and playoff berth (and win) in his first season as full-time starting quarterback. And Love looked like the real deal down the stretch, one of the top NFC North players in 2023.
On the year, Love looked like a young quarterback with a few clunkers of games. However, when it mattered most, he stepped up. Love threw for 4,159 yards and 32 touchdowns. Heโs off to a great start in his career as this year was the franchiseโs 12th-best single-season passing mark. That was with usual growing pains and an unreliable receiving corps. Love is going to be a name to watch moving forward and it would not be surprising if, one day, he is hoisting the Lombardi.
Jordan Addison
When the Vikings drafted Biletnikoff Award winner Jordan Addison, it looked like they were just stacking the deck. Paring one of, if not the best receivers in college footbal with one of, if not the best receivers in the NFL is just not fair. As the year went on, Addison had to step up as Justin Jefferson missed seven games due to injuries. And he sure stepped up.
With a pair of 100+-yard receiving days as a rookie, Addison totalled 911 yards and 10 touchdowns off of 70 receptions. He had his biggest day against the NFCโs best San Francisco 49ers team where he led the way with 123 yards and two touchdowns. It may have been a lost season for the Vikings but Addison started off his career with as good of a performance as one could reasonably expect.
Karl Brooks
The most surprising (to some) breakout comes from the sixth round out of Bowling Green State University. Rookie, sixth-round, non-Power-5 defensive tackles rarely make any kind of impact. For that sake, even Power 5 sixth-round defensive tackles rarely make an impact. Donโt tell Karl Brooks.
As an interior defender, Brooksโ impact is greater than what would show up on the stat sheet. On the year, Brooks amassed 20 tackles, six tackles for loss, five quarterback hits, and four sacks. He came up big in the season finale against the Bears to lock up a playoff berth.ย
Penei Sewell
Finally, one of the biggest reasons for the Detroit Lions division title as well as their appearance in the NFC Championship, Penei Sewell has developed into one of the best offensive linemen in the NFL in just a few short seasons. After having to flip sides and fine-tune his craft over the last few years, Sewell has solidified his position on the right side of the line.
Usually, the best tackles reside on the left side as that has been the traditional โblind side.โ Detroit has a solid left tackle in Taylor Decker. Sewell, on the other hand, earned a 90.7 PFF grade which, if anyone is familiar with PFFโs system, is incredibly good. Offensive linemen are not often highly-rated with how incredibly talented the pass rushers are in the league now. On the year, Sewell allowed just 20 total pressures, five quarterback hits, and a single sack. Penei Sewell is everything and more of what the Lions expected from their seventh-overall pick. He turned into one of the top young NFC North players.
