ESPN NFL

A committee of ESPN experts -- including Trent Dilfer, Mel Kiper, Gary Horton, Matt Williamson -- assembled this offseason to create a unique version of our traditional Power Rankings.

Naturally, NFC North teams are featured prominently in what amounts to a three-year projection of Power Rankings for the 2015 season . The Green Bay Packers received the top spot as the team best equipped to compete three years from now, while the Detroit Lions were not far behind at No. 6.

The file requires an Insider subscription to read in full, but I can pass along where our four teams ranked and also a glimpse at the methodology used. Here is how the committee evaluated each team and the degree of impact each category had:

• Roster (32.5 percent of total score): Players under 30 emphasized
• Coaching (20 percent): Capability and stability of current staff
• Quarterback (17.5 percent): Where quarterback play would be in three years
• Draft (15 percent): Based on team's 2012 class and how many picks available in next three years.
• Front office (15 percent): Ability to manage roster and market's attraction to free agents.

Now on to the NFC North rankings with comments from me:

1. Green Bay Packers
Seifert comment: The presence of a 28-year-old MVP quarterback and one of the NFL's top general manager-coach combinations puts the Packers on an ideal long-term path.

6. Detroit Lions
Seifert comment: Quarterback Matthew Stafford had a 5,000-yard season before his 24th birthday. That's a nice start. General manager Martin Mayhew has elevated the team's talent level every season of his tenure and most of the Lions' key players -- Stafford, receiver Calvin Johnson, tight end Brandon Pettigrew, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, safety Louis Delmas and linebacker Stephen Tulloch -- are under 30.

17. Chicago Bears
Seifert comment: Jay Cutler is a legitimate franchise quarterback, but the best players on the Bears' defense are all over 30. That list includes defensive end Julius Peppers, linebackers Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs, and cornerback Charles Tillman.

31. Minnesota Vikings
Seifert comment: Questions about quarterback Christian Ponder's long-term prospects made it difficult for the committee to project future success. There are also concerns about a lack of young impact players on defense. Defensive end Jared Allen is 30 and linebacker Chad Greenway is 29.

We're Black and Blue All Over:

The Detroit Lions had a busy news day Monday. We noted both the charity of quarterback Matthew Stafford and the poor behavior of receiver Titus Young, but that left out plenty of other tidbits.

Running backs Jahvid Best (concussion) and Mikel Leshoure (Achilles) were both on the field, participating in a limited portion of the Lions' opening organized team activity (OTA) of the offseason. So was rookie receiver Ryan Broyles, who is six months removed from major knee surgery.

Middle linebacker Stephen Tulloch, meanwhile, didn't practice because of knee tendinitis and might not be back on the field until training camp. That's a bit of a disconcerting turn of events for a player so critical to the Lions' 2011 improvement, but keep in mind that Tulloch hasn't missed a game in his six-year career.

Continuing around the NFC North:

• Broyles didn't participate in all of the drills Monday but got a personal side session with Stafford and offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, according to Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press.
• Lions defensive tackle Nick Fairley showed off a new physique at Monday's OTA, according to John Niyo of the Detroit News.
• The 2012 season will be "very important" for Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, according to Justin Rogers of Mlive.com.
• Former Chicago Bears running back Garrett Wolfe is headed to the CFL, according to Jeff Dickerson of ESPNChicago.com.
• At some point, writes Mark Potash of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Bears will have to decide whether to give running back Matt Forte a "shut-up-and-play" deal.
• We discussed the possibility of the Bears acquiring tight end Kellen Winslow, but he ultimately was traded to the Seattle Seahawks, notes the Associated Press.
• Kendra Meinert of the Green Bay Press-Gazette has a review of Green Bay Packers receiver Donald Driver's turn Monday night on "Dancing with the Stars."
• The Packers termed it "simply speculation" that team president/CEO Mark Murphy has interest in the Stanford athletic director job, according to Rob Demovsky of the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
• Murphy once had interest in the job, writes Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com, but not now.
• The Minnesota Vikings will soon have discussions with Minnesota State, Mankato, to create a long-term contract on training camp, according to Judd Zulgad of 1500ESPN.com.
• Martiga Lohn of the Associated Press examines the state funding mechanism for the Vikings' new stadium.
• Final passage of the bill by the Minneapolis City Council this week appears inevitable, writes Eric Roper of the Star Tribune.

Spend just a few minutes on Mary Ann Bell's blog and you'll feel awful silly, as I did, about getting fired up about one Detroit Lions player sucker-punching another.

Bell is the mother of Faith Falzone, the girl whose family Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford gave a surprise $15,000 gift over the weekend at a fundraiser for Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital. Bell's blog, "My Faith's Journey," describes her heart-wrenching feelings as Faith undergoes medical treatment that included surgery on Monday.

I wanted to bring you some excerpts of her entry on Stafford's gift Saturday evening, especially because it appears not only to have impacted Faith, but also her brother Will. It'll remind you how to decide what's important and what isn't.

[I]n my eyes, stars are made from the inside out, and rest assured Lions fans your quarterback is as much of a star inside as he is on the outside.

At the beginning of the evening a very beautiful young woman sat down at our table, she introduced herself as Kelly. Faith was immediately in love. After the athletes in attendance were introduced Matt Stafford came and sat next to her at the table. Immediately, Will's entire disposition changed. Suddenly, there was life in my son's eyes, and a smile, a really excited happy smile that I had not seen for months.

Right away Matt could tell that my son was a fan, he stuck his hand out and introduced himself. The next hour or so Will asked all kinds of questions, who do you like to throw the ball to the most, did you ever play other sports, at one point they were talking about candy. Matt's girlfriend had Faith just as engaged, they talked about nails, and dresses, she was delightful. Beautiful inside and out.

Part of the Gala included a live auction where there were big ticket items raffled to the highest bidder. I noticed my son pointing out a package that included a trip to Chicago with tickets to a Monday Night football Game to see the Lions and the Bears, a package donated by Mike Tirico. Dhani Jones was the auctioneer and asked Stafford to beef the package up by adding some tickets to the game. He agreed and the bidding began. Will was excited to see who won the package and watched intently to see who was going to see his Lions play in Chicago, suddenly, the Lions own quarterback began bidding on the package, Dhani teased about being able to watch and play at the same time, saying I know you were good last year, but man that is talent. I assumed he was driving the price of the package up, all the money goes to Mott, I thought it was incredibly cool of him. As the bidding continued he wasn't backing off … he was in it, he wanted to win that package, and had I known why, I’m certain, I would have been in tears. Somewhere in the $15k range Matt Stafford was the owner of the MNF package, the crowd laughed, but moments later, that same crowd would be giving the Mott newcomer a standing ovation. As he won the package he turned to Will and said, there you go buddy, you go to Chicago, and take your family. The look on my son's face, I will never forget. His chin began to quiver, he was about to cry. He quickly jumped up and gave Matt a hug, and thanked him over and over again. …

Quarterbacks are probably the most influential player among all team sports in the success or failure of the team. I think they have to see it all … Detroit Fans, your Quarterback, he sees it. He was able to give Will a night he will never forget. He was able to heal some of the hurt, and give Will something to look forward to …

You can follow Bell on Twitter at @maizeyblue, where she is providing updates on Faith's surgery Monday.

Fans of NFC North teams might be aware of the Griese-Hutchinson-Woodson fundraising weekend, which includes a gala and a golf outing to benefit the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital. The headliners include former Minnesota Vikings guard Steve Hutchinson and Green Bay Packers cornerback Charles Woodson, both of whom played at Michigan along with former NFL quarterback Brian Griese.

Based on local reports, it sounds as if another NFC North player made a really nice charitable gesture during the Saturday auction. Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford bid $15,000 for a gift that included six tickets to the Lions' Oct. 22 game against the Chicago Bears on ESPN's "Monday Night Football," according to Angelique S. Chengelis of the Detroit News.

Stafford had already donated the tickets to the event and, along with his girlfriend Kelly Hall, had been sitting with a girl named Faith Falzone, who is scheduled to have surgery this week. Stafford plans to give the tickets to Falzone and her family.

In a text message to the News, Stafford said: "They have been through so much in the past couple years, and to see how much they all supported each other and faith through their tough times was really inspiring. I wanted to give them something they could really be excited about and something I know they deserved."

Hutchinson was particularly moved by Stafford's commitment to being involved in the Michigan community. Stafford is from Texas and played at Georgia.

"Let's be honest," said Hutchinson, who is now with the Tennessee Titans. "The state of Michigan hasn't gone through the greatest times with the economy and the jobs around here. To have a guy that's from Georgia get drafted by the Lions and be a very integral part of that team turning their franchise around and then to be able to come to a U-M event that he has no affiliation with and donate $15,000 and buy his own tickets that he donated and then give them to a family whose daughter is going to have surgery in the next couple days here ... you couldn't write a better fictional story if you had to."

This is not to single out Stafford as the only charitable player in our division. As we've noted before, Vikings running back Adrian Peterson donated $1 million to the University of Oklahoma last month. Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh has pledged more than $2 million to the University of Nebraska. And Woodson hasgiven $2 million to the Michigan children's hospital that benefited from this weekend's efforts.

But impact comes in all shapes, sizes and denominations. Stafford's gift will no doubt leave an intense impression on one family, giving it something to look forward to and cherish for some time.

We're Black and Blue All Over:

The Minnesota Vikings' training camp at Minnesota State University, Mankato, has grown shorter in recent years because of scheduling conflicts related to the school's fall semester. Those conflicts have been eliminated for 2012, however, opening the door for the Vikings to have a full three-week camp on the campus this summer.

The team has announced it will report July 26 and break camp on Aug. 16.

For those curious, the Vikings have had to break camp early in recent years because the dormitory rooms they use in Gage Hall need to be cleared for incoming students. Those dormitories are being "retired" and won't house students this fall.

Continuing around the NFC North:

• The Vikings are "quietly thrilled" about how little commitment they had to make to sign receiver Jerome Simpson, writes Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com.
• The question of quarterback Christian Ponder's aptitude will hang over the Vikings for some time, writes Patrick Reusse of the Star Tribune.
• The Detroit Lions did not immediately sign German receiver Christian Bollmann after a Wednesday workout, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.
• Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is working to fight childhood obesity, according to the Detroit News.
• Rookie safety Alonzo Lawrence is ready for a fresh start with the Lions, notes Justin Rogers of Mlive.com.
• Chicago Bears receiver Brandon Marshall won't face NFL discipline if New York City police don't charge him after a March incident outside a nightclub, according to Dan Pompei of the Chicago Tribune.
• Writing for the Tribune, former NFL player Matt Bowen had no problems about the uncertainty Bears quarterback Jay Cutler expressed this week with his offensive line. Bowen: "I have no issues with these comments and I really don't see this as Cutler calling out his offensive line. Not even close. This is much more about the quarterback telling his guys they need to play with some accountability as pros."
• Charlie Peprah considers himself one of the Green Bay Packers' starting safeties, writes Weston Hodkiewicz of the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
• Packers coach Mike McCarthy was impressed with safety Jerron McMillian during last weekend's rookie minicamp, McCarthy told Sirius radio via Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com.

We're Black and Blue All Over:

Stadium. Stadium. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Stadium. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Stadium. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Stadium. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Stadium. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Vikings. Stadium. Stadium. Vikings.

There. Got that out of my system.

Let's move on, shall we?

After all, we have ROOKIE MINICAMPS scheduled to begin Friday in Green Bay, Detroit and Chicago, among many other exciting things here in the NFC North. A quick tour around the division:

• The Chicago Bears agreed to terms with two veteran defensive tackles Thursday night, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. They are John McCargo, a former first-round draft pick of the Buffalo Bills, and DeMario Pressley.
• The Bears confirmed those signings Friday morning and added defensive end Cheta Ozougwu to the list as well.
• Bears cornerback Charles Tillman isn't satisfied with making a single Pro Bowl, writes Sean Jensen of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• Quarterback Kellen Moore will be one of the more interesting players to watch at the Detroit Lions' rookie minicamp, notes Anwar S. Richardson of Mlive.com.
• Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford was at the White House on Thursday to speak about financial literacy. David Shepardson of the Detroit News has more.
• Lions left guard Rob Sims put on about 20 pounds this offseason during early workouts, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.
• Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel offers a preview of the Green Bay Packers' rookie minicamp.
• At least three Packers rookies have now agreed to contract terms, including second-round draft pick Jerel Worthy, according to Rob Demovsky of the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
• Packers running back Alex Green is making good progress with his surgically repaired knee, according to Dunne.
• The Minnesota Vikings could play anywhere from one to four years at TCF Bank Stadium while their new stadium is built on the Metrodome site, notes the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
• Tom Powers of the Pioneer Press on the stadium bill: "But regardless of how anyone feels about subsidizing a private business, understand this: Passing the stadium bill was the right decision. Not because the Vikings could have packed up and left town. But because if Minnesota didn't build a stadium now, it would end up building one later and probably at twice the cost. NFL football is like a drug. And most people can't go without it for very long. So in the end, this was the fiscally responsible thing to do."
• Mark Craig of the Star Tribune: "[N]ew stadiums don't turn teams around by themselves."

As I've already indicated on Twitter, I won't fill up your timelines or this blog with news of every undrafted rookie who signs with an NFC North team. Roster limits have been expanded to 90, which means we could be talking about 100 or so players signing contracts over the next day or two.

If an interesting or noteworthy player signs, then by all means I'll get to it. We already have one: The Detroit Lions have agreed to terms with Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore, who had a 50-3 starter as a starter and was teammates with Lions receiver Titus Young. But at 6-feet and 197 pounds and an average arm, Moore apparently wasn't deemed draft-worthy by NFL teams.

The Lions are set at starter with Matthew Stafford and at No. 2 with Shaun Hill, but I wouldn't be surprised if Moore makes the final roster as the No. 3 quarterback. The video is a clip of his time at Jon Gruden's QB Camp, one we somehow missed during our pre-draft tour of those sessions.

Asked how he regards the people who don't think he has a chance to play in the NFL, Moore said: "You smile at them, say thank you and remember their name."

We're Black and Blue All Over:

I'm rested (sort of) and ready (definitely!) for Day 2 of the 2012 NFL draft. Before we steamroll into the nitty gritty, let's take a run through local coverage of Day 1 in the NFC North:

• Bears general manager Phil Emery was no doubt happy to pull a draft surprise, writes Melissa Isaacson of ESPNChicago.com.
• New Bears linebacker Shea McClellin is "a natural at the unnatural act of rushing the passer," according to Dan Pompei of the Chicago Tribune.
• Like Isaacson, David Haugh of the Tribune brings up a dreaded comparison to Dan Bazuin: "But, sorry, I recommend healthy skepticism when evaluating [Phil] Emery's first draft pick as Bears GM. You can't hate it yet. But it's very hard to wholeheartedly endorse -- especially considering the pool of potential Bears available."
• Drew Sharp of the Detroit Free Press: "The [Detroit Lions'] selection of Iowa offensive tackle Riley Reiff reflects the team’s unwavering commitment in helping its most valuable asset -- quarterback Matthew Stafford -- shine as brightly as possible."
• Anwar S. Richardson of Mlive.com has a transcript of Reiff's interview with Detroit-area media.
• Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Packers draft pick Nick Perry: "The 6-foot-2, 271-pounder admitted at the Combine that he was more comfortable as a defensive end. With good coaching, the Packers must feel confident they can help him adjust to linebacker."
• Mike Vandermause of the Green Bay Press-Gazette: " No one is ready to call the 271-pound Perry a savior, but his presence is expected to give the defense a major boost."
• The Packers didn't appear too interested in trading up to get a different pass-rusher, according to Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com.
• Hilarious column from Tom Powers of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. A sample: "Vikings general manager Rick Spielman did his best to convince the world that he was flat-out nutty and might not take the player of paramount importance to the franchise. Oh yes, he said, we like Matt Kalil. Kind of. Sort of. But we also like Justin Blackmon and Morris Claiborne. Then he stood on his head and spit nickels. He laid it on thick, all right. And for those a bit taken aback by his free-agent signings, which included a former point guard and several players who missed the 2011 season, there was some consternation. Is this fellow really a basket case? But I had faith. Well, let's say some of us could see through the bad acting."
• Jim Souhan of the Star Tribune: "Minnesota hasn't been home to many general managers who could be called 'slick,' unless you were using the word in a way that might start a fight."
• Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com: "In reality, the Vikings were going to make sure they got Kalil. They weren't doing a deal with anyone except Cleveland or Tampa Bay, which also coveted Richardson at No. 5. They were committed to protecting Christian Ponder's blindside, regardless of whether LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne and/or Oklahoma State receiver Justin Blackmon had marginally better grades or they fabricated the debate entirely to stir up a market."

Never has the NFC North's transition been more visible than on the final day of the 2011 regular season. On a snowy day at Lambeau Field, the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions combined for 103 passing attempts and 1,000 passing yards.

By the time the Packers secured a 45-41 victory, Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford had exceeded 5,000 yards passing for the season and Packers backup Matt Flynn had convinced the league he was a starting-caliber quarterback. Where once we could have expected the teams to grind out a classic Black and Blue game, they instead combined for a total of 37 carries. No running back made it to the modest total of 50 yards.

We've spent some time this offseason noting what we could politely call a tilt toward the passing game in both Detroit and Green Bay. We've discussed the Chicago Bears' seeming ambivalence about signing tailback Matt Forte to a long-term extension, and we've pointed out the Minnesota Vikings' uncertainty as tailback Adrian Peterson rehabilitates his shredded knee.

If you looked at this division through a traditional lens, you could consider running back a significant draft need for at least half of the division, if not all of it. But the NFC North's frenzied quarterback acquisitions over the past few years have brought us to a precipice. Are we ready to jump off, once and for all, into the world of Air and Space? Or will our teams step away from that ledge and rebalance their personnel, if not their scheme, to double back on the running game?

As the NFL continues its push toward passing supremacy, it's hard to imagine any NFC North team making anything other than subtle changes. Why take the ball out of the hands Aaron Rodgers, Jay Cutler or Stafford? And why not give Christian Ponder every chance to take the next step in his development?

This offseason, we've heard the Vikings speak often about seeking more playmakers for Ponder. We've watched the Bears sign Michael Bush as insurance against Forte's possible absence, but otherwise the Bears have worked to fortify their passing game with the acquisition of receiver Brandon Marshall and private meetings with many of the draft's top receivers, from Michael Floyd to Stephen Hill to Alshon Jeffery.

The Lions are the case study here, followed closely by the Packers. Injuries to Jahvid Best, Mikel Leshoure, Kevin Smith and the brain tumor of Jerome Harrison left them little choice but to rely on Stafford's arm last season. They finished 2011 with the second-fewest rushing attempts in the NFL, managed 71 rushing first downs (No. 29 in the league), according to ESPN Stats & Information.

Stafford told reporters this week that "everybody on our team would like to be a little more balanced than we were last year." It's reasonable to think they will be if Best and/or Leshoure are available full-time. But a serious commitment to improve would almost certainly require a draft investment. Best (concussion) has not been cleared for football work, Leshoure (Achilles) is coming back from a serious injury for a running back, and Smith has had difficulty staying healthy throughout his career.

How much do the Lions value that balance? We should find out over draft weekend. Again, most of us would look at their roster and toss question marks all over their backfield. But in 2012, how important is it to have an established and traditional No. 1 running back?

"We want to score as many points as we can," coach Jim Schwartz said at the NFL scouting combine. "Whether you do it running or passing, it doesn't matter. I think you want to try to get the ball in playmakers' hands."

In the end, the Lions might be best-served by pursuing a more modest goal: Being in position to capitalize against imbalanced defenses. Dictating a game on the ground might well be an NFC North artifact.

"If teams take the approach of playing the pass first," Schwartz said, "we should be in the position of having running backs who can make them pay for that."

Yes, there is a more than reasonable argument to be made that you don't need an elite running back when you have elite quarterbacks and receivers. A competent running back who doesn't miss the obvious yards might well suffice.

I don't know if the Lions, or the Packers for that matter, will invest a high draft pick in a running back. None of us do. But is it necessary? Probably not, at least not in our new Air and Space division. Soon we'll know how far off the cliff we've fallen.

Breakdown: A 2011 playoff appearance, along with the quarterback-receiver combination of Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson, was enough to earn the Detroit Lions four prime-time games and a total of five nationally televised games.

The Lions will play at the San Francisco 49ers (Sunday night) in Week 2, at the Chicago Bears (Monday night) in Week 7 and at the Green Bay Packers (Sunday night) in Week 14, and will host the Atlanta Falcons (Saturday night) in Week 16. As usual, they'll also play Thanksgiving Day, hosting the Houston Texans in the early time slot (12:30 p.m. ET).

It's the first time in 14 years the Lions have had five nationally televised games and the second time in their history that four of them will come in prime time.

Complaint department: I'm not a huge fan of the Week 5 bye. Generally you would like to see it closer to the middle of the season to maximize injury rehabilitation. But it will give the Lions a chance to regroup for a difficult two-game stretch immediately after the bye. They'll play at the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 6 and then at the Bears.

Bracketing the schedule: The Lions play four of their first six games on the road, a stretch that includes the aforementioned bye. My first-blush reaction is that the Lions should be happy to be 3-3 at that point after traveling to San Francisco, Tennessee, Philadelphia and Chicago. But the payoff comes at the end of the season. A team in the playoff chase couldn't ask for anything more than to play its final two games at home. The Lions will do just that, hosting the Falcons in Week 16 and the Bears in Week 17 in a game that better be as much fun as it looks like from here.

Lions Regular-Season Schedule (All times ET)
Week 1: Sunday, Sept. 9, St. Louis, 1:00 PM
Week 2: Sunday, Sept. 16, at San Francisco, 8:20 PM
Week 3: Sunday, Sept. 23, at Tennessee, 1:00 PM
Week 4: Sunday, Sept. 30, Minnesota, 1:00 PM
Week 5: BYE
Week 6: Sunday, Oct. 14, at Philadelphia, 1:00 PM
Week 7: Monday, Oct. 22, at Chicago, 8:30 PM
Week 8: Sunday, Oct. 28, Seattle, 1:00 PM
Week 9: Sunday, Nov. 4, at Jacksonville, 1:00 PM
Week 10: Sunday, Nov. 11, at Minnesota, 1:00 PM
Week 11: Sunday, Nov. 18, Green Bay, 1:00 PM
Week 12: Thursday, Nov. 22, Houston, 12:30 PM
Week 13: Sunday, Dec. 2, Indianapolis, 1:00 PM
Week 14: Sunday, Dec. 9, at Green Bay, 8:20 PM
Week 15: Sunday, Dec. 16, at Arizona, 4:05 PM
Week 16: Saturday, Dec. 22, Atlanta, 8:30 PM
Week 17: Sunday, Dec. 30, Chicago, 1:00 PM

We're Black and Blue All Over:

It's been a while since we had a late Monday night gathering here on the blog, but I thought the news of what appears to be the end of the Minnesota Vikings' 2012 stadium bill was worth it. To summarize, I think it's time for the Vikings to play their final card in this high-stakes game: They must at least demonstrate a willingness to entertain offers to relocate. Otherwise, Minnesota politicians won't feel the urgency to act on their stadium issue.

Tuesday will be busy as well. We'll blog throughout the day, have our usual 2 p.m. ET chat and then be in place at 7 p.m. ET when the NFL announces its 2012 schedule. We'll have team-by-team analysis posted as quickly as my chubby fingers can type it out.

For now, let's take a spin around the NFC North:

• One of the chief authors of the Vikings' stadium bill said "somebody would have to pull a rabbit out of the hat" to keep the bill alive, according to Mike Kaszuba of the Star Tribune.
• Vikings spokesman Lester Bagley, via Doug Belden of the St. Paul Pioneer Press: "We've done everything we've been asked. [The question for the state is:] "What else would you expect us to do?"
• The Vikings have allocated significant resources to the tight end position, notes Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com.
• Detroit Lions defensive tackle Sammie Hill has not signed his restricted free agent tender but did sign an injury waiver so he could work out at the team facility Monday, according to Tim Twentyman of the Lions' web site.
• Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford knows it's not practical to expect to throw for 5,000 yards every season, writes Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press.
• Stafford on his healthy offseason, via Chris McCosky of the Detroit News: "It's obviously nice not to have to put myself back together again. I am just trying to maintain and get stronger. I am happy to be feeling good and hit the ground running."
• The Chicago Bears have reinstated running back Harvey Unga to their roster, notes Sean Jensen of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• Michael C. Wright of ESPNChicago.com looks at tight end possibilities in the draft for the Bears.
• Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com updates the "Dancing With the Stars" performance of Green Bay Packers receiver Donald Driver.
• The Packers need another defensive lineman, writes Rob Demovsky of the Green Bay Press-Gazette.

For those of you who keep track of such things, let it be known that ESPN analyst Trent Dilfer has made an about-face on the future of Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler.

It was only a year ago when Dilfer said that poor mechanics would limit Cutler's career until he committed to fixing them. "He could be an elite player in this league, but he won't be until he dedicates himself to dealing with the basic things that will bring out and maximize his potential," Dilfer said. "They tend to show up, the laziness with his mechanics, the flaws show up, late in games, red zones, critical downs, tight games."

In this recent "QBs on the Clock" video, Dilfer named Cutler as an NFL quarterback most likely to step into elite status.

"I think Jay Cutler is going to blow up this year," Dilfer said. "I saw so much last year. I think once I saw it in person, being at 'Monday Night Football.' Watching his demeanor. The body language changed. The toughness. The talent has always been there. I saw him pay more attention to detail."

Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. chose Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, pointing out: "I've loved him since high school."

I realize you are split on the value of outside analysis, but I think we can agree we found out how good Cutler can be last season. Dilfer might have said it with more flamboyance, but especially after the acquisition of receiver Brandon Marshall, I expect many outside analysts to hop on the Cutler bandwagon in the coming months.

My trip to the NFL owners meetings last month included a chance encounter with an NFL executive. We discussed the state of what has become a highly competitive and interesting division from a league perspective, given the Green Bay Packers' recent success, the Detroit Lions' explosive offense and the Chicago Bears' flurry of offseason improvements.

And then we got to the Minnesota Vikings.

"Big year for Leslie Frazier," the executive said. "Big year."

That perspective caught me by surprise, given that Frazier has spent exactly one full season as the Vikings' permanent head coach. But Frazier is also entering what reportedly is the final fully guaranteed year of his contract, and the long-term approach the Vikings have taken toward building their roster provides a substantial challenge to a coach with limited job security.

That's a nice way of saying Frazier probably needs to do a lot better in 2012 than the 3-13 record he produced last year, but with a roster that won't be constructed to support a quick turnaround. It's an unfortunate collection of circumstances that Frazier is only partially to blame for, but when viewed in the big picture, you can understand why the executive sees 2012 as a pressure point for his career.

(My friend Judd Zulgad of 1500ESPN.com made a similar point last week.)

When the Vikings promoted Rick Spielman to general manager in January, Frazier said the move "should help me tremendously." Generally speaking, working for a good general manager is a healthy situation for any coach.

But since that point, the Vikings have dismantled their offensive line by releasing both starting guards and making plans to shift left tackle Charlie Johnson inside. They've given young quarterback Christian Ponder one more established playmaker, tight end John Carlson, but otherwise left their offensive skill positions untouched in free agency. They've bid farewell to their nose tackle and middle linebacker, tapping longtime backups as the likely successor in each role, and left untouched two safety positions that ended 2011 in shambles.

Spielman has made no secret of his intention: To get younger, to find blue-chip players in the draft and to supplement with complementary players in free agency. That's a sound philosophy for building long-term success, but it sure doesn't work in favor of a coach whose career record is now 6-16.

Take a look at the chart. A little more than half of the NFL's coaches (18 of 32) have reached a third full season in their jobs. Only four of them made it without the benefit of at least one non-losing season in their first two. And the only two who didn't demonstrate progress were the Washington Redskins' Mike Shanahan and the Seattle Seahawks' Pete Carroll, both of whom carried enough celebrity status -- and not to mention huge financial investments -- to be all but assured of a third season from the moment they arrived.

But consider the Vikings' placement in the NFC North, which put three teams among the top 10 in ESPN.com's most recent Power Rankings. Remember that they will be starting Ponder, who is in the midst of his first NFL offseason. Ponder will play behind a rebuilt offensive line, with a set of receivers who will either be underwhelming or inexperienced or both.

In a best-case scenario, tailback Adrian Peterson (knee) will resume football activities shortly before the season begins. And in a division that includes star quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers, Matthew Stafford and Jay Cutler, it's worth noting the Vikings' historically poor pass defense hasn't been enhanced this offseason with a single defensive back who could be considered a starter. (Perhaps that sentence will need editing after the draft.)

Does that seem like a collection of circumstances favorable to a coach demonstrating significant progress in 2012? Not particularly, no.

To be clear, I don't think the Vikings are in an inappropriate spot as a franchise. This has been coming since the moment they failed to reach the Super Bowl in 2009. It's just poor timing for Frazier.

The best time to make these kinds of difficult decisions is in the first year of a coach's tenure. You take the resulting lumps when your job is most secure, and then presumably demonstrate steady progress thereafter. The Vikings lost 13 of 16 games last season in a misguided attempt to push an aging roster toward one final playoff berth. It was a lost year in every way, and only now do they face the proverbial bottoming-out. I don't want to say Leslie Frazier is set up to fail, but the deck seems stacked against him.

The Detroit Lions have accomplished the difficult, complicated and expensive task of retaining the core of the team that lifted them to their first playoff appearance in a decade. The final domino to fall was middle linebacker Stephen Tulloch, who agreed to a five-year contract hours before his potential replacement was scheduled to visit the team's practice facility.

Tulloch's deal means that 21 of the Lions' 22 offensive and defensive starters from last season are now under contract. The exception is cornerback Eric Wright, whom the Lions wisely chose not to pursue once the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offered him a pricey five-year contract worth $37.5 million.

Otherwise, however, the Lions systematically took care of business over the past month, navigating a tight salary cap situation by using most every tool at their disposal. At times, it required premium cash outlays that not every NFL team would commit to.

In summary, the Lions:

• Restructured the contracts of quarterback Matthew Stafford, receiver Nate Burleson and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, freeing up some $16 million in cap space.
• Used the franchise tag to prevent the departure of defensive end Cliff Avril, a move that in essence guarantees Avril a one-year deal worth $10.6 million.
• Issued a second-round tender to linebacker DeAndre Levy, essentially giving him a one-year deal worth $1.927 million.
• Took a $1.6 million cap credit as their share of an NFL discipline that took cap space away from the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys.
• Freed up about $9 million more in cap space by extending the contract of receiver Calvin Johnson. For the moment, at least, Johnson is the NFL's highest-paid player with an eight-year deal worth a total of $132 million, of which $60 million is guaranteed.
• Re-signed left tackle Jeff Backus to a two-year deal worth $10 million.

Although it took the longest, Tulloch's agreement was no less important than any of those we just ran through. Tulloch made a substantive impact on the Lions' defense as both a leader and a sure tackler. He proved exceptionally durable, playing on all but 19 of their defensive snaps in 2011, and provided a true fixture that allowed Levy to play a more a natural role on the outside.

Negotiations stalled to the point where the Lions scheduled free agent David Hawthorne for a visit. (Funny how the timing often works.) In the end, however, the Lions have managed to keep together their best team in a generation, and now they can look for ways to supplement it through secondary free agency and the draft.

I dropped off Twitter for a few minutes Monday morning while focusing on our Pulitzer-worthy breakdown of Donald Driver's turn on "Dancing With the Stars." When I jumped back on, I had 103 new tweets. About half of them were asking whether an NFC North team would try to acquire Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow after the Broncos officially sign veteran Peyton Manning.

It's not unusual to get instant questions about newly-available players, but the relative certainty of the NFC North's quarterback depth makes us an unlikely Tebow destination, to say the least. Our only locale with even the hint of a question mark, at least for 2012, is the Packers. Here is how each team's depth chart shakes out for now:

• Chicago Bears: Jay Cutler, Jason Campbell, Josh McCown, Nathan Enderle
• Detroit Lions: Matthew Stafford, Shaun Hill
• Green Bay Packers: Aaron Rodgers, Graham Harrell
• Minnesota Vikings: Christian Ponder, Joe Webb, Sage Rosenfels

I would understand if Packers fans aren't totally sold on Harrell as Matt Flynn's replacement. I'm not sure the Packers are themselves, at least not until they get him through a full offseason in their modified quarterback school. I wouldn't be surprised if they drafted a quarterback and/or picked through what's left of the free-agent market later this spring.

But would it make sense to even consider Tebow in that vein? From what I could tell from our Machiavellian readership base, the only people who want the Packers to pursue Tebow are Bears, Lions and Vikings fans. Tweeted @ScottD408: "can we make the Packers take Tebow?"

Longtime readers will remember that we discussed a Packers-Tebow union before the 2010 draft, sparked mostly by some awfully nice comments from coach Mike McCarthy and general manager Ted Thompson. (That’s where the otherwise incendiary photo illustration in this post came from.)

For what it's worth, McCarthy said in February 2010 that "I would definitely love to coach him." McCarthy added: "I think the guy's a winner, just the way he plays the game. I know a lot's being said about his mechanics. Just the way he approaches the game of football, I think he'll do everything he needs to do to improve. But you look for football players. And his record in college, I think, speaks for itself. But I'd love the opportunity to work with a Tim Tebow."

McCarthy and Tom Clements, once the Packers' quarterbacks coach and now their offensive coordinator, are considered two of the best quarterback tutors in the NFL. As we discussed in 2010, if you're a Tebow fan, you would hope he lands in a place like Green Bay, where he would have a well-honed structure to straighten out his game.

But the Packers aren't a public-service organization. They would only acquire Tebow if they thought he was their best option to back up Rodgers. I'm not sure if many of us could say that at the moment.