Green Bay Packers Are New NFC North Favorites Over Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears After Week 1

It only took one week for the Green Bay Packers to take their usual place as the betting favorites in the NFC North. The Chicago Bears entered the 2019 NFL season with the best odds to finish in first place, but that is no longer the case after Week 1.

Green Bay leads the way at both FanDuel Sportsbook and DraftKings Sportsbook, where they have +155 odd and +160 odds, respectively, to win the division. The Minnesota Vikings are second with +180 NFC North odds.

Chicago is third in the division with +225 odds at DraftKings and +250 odds at FanDuel. The Detroit Lions are a distant fourth with +1400 odds at DraftKings and +1200 odds at FanDuel.

The Packers and Vikings have a very early share of first place with 1-0 records. The Lions are in sole possession of third place, playing in the only tie on the Week 1 schedule. The Bears sit at the bottom of the division as the only NFC North team with a loss.

Green Bay defeated Chicago at Soldier Field 10-3 Thursday night in the NFL’s Kickoff Game. Aaron Rodgers and the new Packers’ offense had trouble moving the ball against the Bears’ vaunted defense, but it was Green Bay’s defense that was most impressive, allowing no touchdowns.

Failing to surround an all-time great quarterback with a complete team has prevented the Packers from getting back to the Super Bowl since 2011. If Green Bay has one of the league’s top defenses, they might very well become the Super Bowl favorites in the conference.

The Vikings didn’t ask their quarterback to do much in Week 1. Kirk Cousins only had to attempt 10 passes in Minnesota’s 28-12 win over the Atlanta Falcons Sunday afternoon.

Cousins has been much maligned for his inability to defeat winning teams. He’ll go head-to-head with Rodgers in a pivotal NFC North matchup in Week 2 when the Vikings visit the Packers.

According to OddsShark, Green Bay is an early three-point favorite against Minnesota at Lambeau Field.

For most of their opener, it looked like the Lions were going to start the season with a victory. Detroit blew a 24-6 lead in the fourth quarter on the road against the Arizona Cardinals. Rookie quarterback Kyler Murray completed 15 of his 19 passes in regulation to force overtime, where the contest ended in a 27-27 tie.

The Bears will visit the Denver Broncos in Week 2. Chicago is hoping to get a bounce-back performance from Mitchell Trubisky, who completed 26 of 45 passes for just 228 yards and an interception in the team’s Week 1 loss.