10 NFL teams poised to be better in 2016
By John Buhler
. NFC. North. Green Bay Packers. 3. player. 49
Of all the teams on this list, the Green Bay Packers are the only one certain to make the NFL Playoffs. Green Bay has arguably the best player in the game in starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers. After a confusing and frustrating season for Packers standards in 2015, Green Bay is poised to not only win the NFC North, but vie for a fifth Lombardi Trophy.
Rodgers will be one of three starting quarterbacks in the mix to win league MVP with reigning MVP Cam Newton of the Carolina Panthers and Luck of the Colts presumably on the rebound. The Packers will have back Rodgers’ favorite receiving target in Pro Bowl wideout Jordy Nelson. This will help Rodgers stretch the field vertically and take some of the burden off clearly No. 2 receiver Randall Cobb.
Running back Eddie Lacy seems to have done what Packers head coach Mike McCarthy said and lost some serious weight. Of all the former Alabama Crimson Tide running backs of the Nick Saban era in Tuscaloosa, there is something different about Lacy, as in he will be the one that won’t rapidly decay in the NFL after being overworked by Saban in the SEC. A strong year from Lacy in the backfield makes Green Bay especially dangerous this season.
One can easily argue that the Packers will be one of the four best teams in the NFC along with Carolina, the Arizona Cardinals, and the Seattle Seahawks. Last year was disappointing and perhaps the botched onside kick in the 2014 NFC Championship Game still stings.
If Rodgers gets better play from his offensive line than he did last year, Green Bay will win at the very least one playoff game this winter. Their path to the 2016 NFC Championship is realistic and so are the Packers’ 2016 Super Bowl aspirations. They’ll top the Minnesota Vikings for the division crown this season.
Next: 2. Jacksonville Jaguars.