The NFC North is set up in an incredibly intriguing way with the arrival of Caleb Williams to join the likes of Jordan Love and Jared Goff in leading their teams in the race for the division.

Among our NFC North best bets, we examine whether the Lions could repeat as champions, what we may see from both Love and Williams this season, and what 2024 might hold for the Vikings.

What Are Our Top Picks for All Four NFC North Teams?

Chicago Bears

Pick: Caleb Williams to lead rookies in passing yards (+100 at DraftKings)

This market is priced differently depending on the book you use, but anything under -140 has my attention. Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix are the other two rookies most likely to assume control of their respective offenses from the jump, making this something of a three-man race.

Drake Maye has the potential to make a splash, but if we are talking a 4-6 game head start, I have a hard time thinking they factor into this wager.

Forget the advanced analysis for a minute — how many reliable NFL pass catchers does Williams have access to?

We can’t include a rookie in the answer, but I’d say that he has more proven commodities (four) than Daniels and Nix together (two?). Williams owns an athletic profile, but no one is going to argue that a higher percentage of his offensive output will come on the ground than Daniels, opening us up for cheap passing yards instead of designed QB runs.

Even if you think this is tight down the stretch — I don’t think it finishes that way. Rookies tend to improve with time, so the fact that Williams closes his season with seven of eight games against below-average pass defenses from a season ago in terms of yards per attempt gives me confidence that he can push down the gas in December to win us this bet.