Odds to Win the NFC North 2013: Packers the Team to Beat

Despite all the hoopla regarding NFC North teams improving during the offseason, Green Bay still had odds to win the NFC North 2013 at -160.  For those of you who believe either Detroit, Chicago or Minnesota can get the job done, we have some great betting value for you at AceSportsbook.com.

The Bears pay $400 on a $100 bet, Detroit pays $550, Minnesota pays $600.

John Rehor of AthlonSports.com writes of the Packers: 
The Packers offense expects to be explosive again in 2013. QB Aaron Rodgers, arguably the best player in the league, leads a high-powered passing attack with WRs Randall Cobb, Jordy Nelson, James Jones, and TE Jermichael Finley all capable of producing at a high level. The much maligned running game should also receive a boost with the additions two RBs added in April’s draft — bruising Eddie Lacy, and shifty Johnathan Franklin — to go along with incumbents DuJuan Harris, James Starks, and Alex Green. The Packers offense should be even better in 2013 than it has been in the past few years — and that is a scary thought.

The biggest question mark remains the defense. After being shredded by the 49ers in the divisional round of the playoffs last season, Dom Capers’ squad enters 2013 with something to prove.  Clay Matthews and company will receive some help with the addition of first-round pick Datone Jones, and the continued maturation of up and comers such as Casey Hayward and Nick Perry. K Mason Crosby is hoping for redemption following a 2012 campaign he would like to forget. He will be pushed hard by his competition Giorgio Tavecchio during training camp to earn the kicking duties.

An 11-5 record should be enough to get the Packers into the playoffs, perhaps even win the NFC North for a third consecutive season. But if the defense plays the same as it did against San Francisco, which ended their 2012 season, it will be a quick playoff exit for the fourth time in five seasons under head coach Mike McCarthy.

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Taylor Jones of Fox Sports predicts a much tighter scenario within the NFC North, making the Bears payout odds especially favorable:

In almost any season, a 10-6 record will get you in the postseason, but for the Bears, it meant finishing the 2012 season third in the division and a game out of the playoffs. From top to bottom, the NFC North could be the most competitive division in all of football and once again the best three teams could be separated by just one game. There's no reason to think that the Bears can’t be on the playoff side of that equation this year though.

- Mary Montgomery, Gambling911.com