2024 NFC North Position Rankings: Wide Receivers

Don’t look now, but there’s an arms race brewing in the NFC North. In addition to a bunch of young quarterbacks, the Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, and Detroit Lions are accumulating explosive receivers.

But which team has the best wide receivers in the NFC North? Let’s examine the depth charts.

Note: For this position group, I’ll only include the three starters listed on ESPN.

Detroit Lions: Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Kalif Raymond

Last month, the Lions made St. Brown the then-highest paid wide receiver in the league, extending him for four years and $120 million. I thought this was a significant overpay, but it’s the going rate for the league’s top receivers these days, and St. Brown is certainly among the league’s best.

Williams has been a major disappointment early in his career. After the Lions traded up 20 spots to select him in the 2022 NFL Draft, injuries and a gambling suspension have led him to play just 16 games and record a pedestrian 25 receptions for 395 yards. He needs a hot start to 2024 if he doesn’t want to lose his starting spot.

Raymond has played for four teams in seven years and has hit 600 yards in a season just once.

Minnesota Vikings: Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, Brandon Powell

There’s not much to say about Jefferson except that he’s arguably on a Hall of Fame career path before he even turns 25 years old. Addison is entering his second year after an explosive rookie season, which saw him total 911 yards and 10 touchdowns despite atrocious quarterback play after Kirk Cousins went on season-ending IR.

For just the first time in his NFL career, Powell will be on the same team for two years in a row. In 2023, he put up a career-high 324 yards.

Green Bay Packers: Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed

This motley crew of young receivers far exceeded expectations in 2023. Despite almost no NFL experience, the trio racked up 1,889 yards and 21 touchdowns. Will one of these young pass-catchers break out this year to be the clear WR1 in Green Bay? Will any of them falter and slip down the depth chart?

We’ll have to wait and see.

Chicago Bears: DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, Rome Odunze

On paper, this is the best collection of receivers in Chicago’s 105-year history as an NFL franchise. Moore set career highs in almost every stat in 2023, Allen racked up over 1,200 yards despite missing four games, and Odunze was one of the highest-graded rookies in the 2024 NFL Draft, with ESPN’s Matt Miller ranking him third overall on his big board.

Quarterback Caleb Williams will start his NFL journey with one of the most talented wide receiver rooms any team has ever assembled for a rookie quarterback.

Bears wide receivers are tops in the NFC North

Justin Jefferson is the best receiver in the division, make no mistake about that, but when evaluating the top three receivers for each team, it’s clear that the Chicago Bears stand head and shoulders above the rest. They might even have the best receiving trio in the entire NFL. It’s that good.

The Vikings are the obvious second choice. Jefferson is a stud, and Addison is a high-end WR2, but Powell holds them out of first place. Detroit is in third place. Despite shelling out top money for St. Brown, the duo of Williams and Raymond don’t inspire any confidence.

The Packers are in last place. Yes, 2023 was a great year for this group and their quarterback, Jordan Love, but it feels like the bottom could fall out at any moment in 2024. Green Bay’s offense must prove that last season wasn’t a fluke.