2024 NFC North Position Rankings: Secondary

In the modern, pass-first offenses of the NFL, a strong secondary has become as important as any position group in the sport. If you don’t have the cornerbacks and safeties that can make plays on the ball, your defense will be shredded by any playoff-caliber passing attack.

This is especially true in the NFC North, which features four quarterbacks drafted in the first round (two of whom were drafted first overall). Will the Chicago Bears be able to slow down these quarterbacks? Let’s see how their secondary compares to the rest of the division.

Detroit Lions

If the Lions had a weakness last year, it was their secondary. They addressed that in a big way when they traded up to draft Terrion Arnold out of Alabama at 24th overall. Arnold was arguably the best cornerback in the 2024 NFL draft and was widely expected to go in the 11-15 range. How such a talented corner fell almost to the end of the first round will be a mystery for as long as Arnold plays.

I’m very excited about CB Terrion Arnold in Detroit. 6’0′ and 189 lbs with 4.5 speed and a 37′ vertical. Arnold excels in man coverage and is tremendous on the perimeter in run support.

He plays physical and loves contact and competition from the opposition. His aggressiveness… pic.twitter.com/QGM8lsYK0v

— Russell Brown (@RussNFLDraft) May 2, 2024

Detroit also traded for cornerback Carlton Davis III from Tampa Bay. While he’s never played a full season, Davis has been productive throughout his career, recording 73 pass breakups and nine interceptions in six seasons.

Rounding out Detroit’s secondary are their safeties: returning starters Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch. Joseph has been solid in two years, already pulling in eight interceptions, while Branch has already flashed elite potential in his rookie season.

Minnesota Vikings

Cornerbacks Byron Murphy Jr. and Akayleb Evans return to start for Minnesota again in 2024. Neither one has been particularly good in the NFL, though Murphy did record a career-high 13 pass deflections last season, while Evans has only played two seasons. The Vikings are going to want both to show tremendous growth in 2024 if they want to have a prayer of covering the NFC North’s elite receivers.

Regarding the safeties, long-time Viking Harrison Smith returns for his 13th season. Despite his age, he’s missed just four games in the last four years and still grades out well with Pro Football Focus. Camryn Bynum, entering his fourth NFL season, had a career year in 2023, racking up an incredible 137 tackles and pulling in a pair of interceptions. If he can prove that last year’s progress wasn’t a fluke, he could be well on his way to a contract extension.

Green Bay Packers

Two-time Pro Bowler Jaire Alexander returns for his 7th season as the clear CB1 for the Packers and one of the league’s better coverage corners. After him, the picture gets murky. Eric Stokes, a first-rounder from 2021, has been fine when healthy. However, he’s played in just 12 games over the last two seasons and the Packers already declined his fifth-year option.

Packers to decline CB Eric Stokes’ fifth-year option. https://t.co/mIMFjkBxqZ

— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) May 2, 2024

Green Bay’s safety room was completely overhauled this offseason. They signed Xavier McKinney from the New York Giants to a four-year, $67 million contract and drafted Georgia’s Javon Bullard with the 58th overall pick. Bullard was a highly graded safety prospect coming into the draft, and McKinney was by far the best young safety available in free agency.

Chicago Bears

Signing Pro Bowl cornerback Jaylon Johnson to a contract extension was Priority #1 for Ryan Poles this offseason, and he got it done early in March. Johnson deserves every penny of that four-year, $76 million deal and then some, it was actually something of a hometown discount, considering Johnson had once said he wanted to be the highest-paid cornerback in the league.

Tyrique Stevenson started his NFL career with a rough patch in 2023. Still, the former Miami Hurricane drastically improved as the season went on and ended with four interceptions, the most by any rookie.

The safety room saw a shakeup this offseason with the release of longtime Bear and former All-Pro Eddie Jackson. The Bears signed former Titan and Eagle Kevin Byard III to replace him. He’ll provide a reliable veteran presence as third-year safety Jaquan Brisker continues to grow and adjust to the NFL.

Bears’ secondary narrowly beats reloaded Lions and Packers

This one was tough to call, as I had to get out a pen and paper to draw myself a visual aid. In the end, I give the Chicago Bears the nod over the Packers. Between the safeties and the CB1 positions, it’s a draw between the two teams. However, Tyrique Stevenson, as Chicago’s CB2, is the final push over the finish line for me, as I like him a lot more than Eric Stokes.

The Lions were also in play for best in the division, but I had to leave them in third place for now. I love Terrion Arnold and have compared him to Jaylon Johnson, but as a rookie, he has to prove it on the field first. The rest of the secondary is looking solid.

And that leaves us with the Vikings in last place. As much as I love their safeties, that’s how little I care for their cornerbacks. They will need their defensive front to get a ton of pressure on quarterbacks or they will get picked apart easily.