The Saints have one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL, but the Packers did them a favor by not creating any pressure on Drew Brees. It’s a sound concept to drop eight men in coverage and rush only three down linemen on a third and 15, but if you give Brees 10 seconds to find a receiver, he’s probably going to convert. Green Bay’s defensive game plan last night was passive and conservative, and the result was disastrous. (Of course Aaron Rodgers’ three picks didn’t help matters, either.)

But back to the NFC North – can anyone say with any conviction that the Bears (currently in first) are the best team in the division? The Vikings have played better over the last month, but they could lose most of their defensive line once the league starts handing out suspensions to those players who were caught using performance-enhancing drugs.

Here are the remaining schedules for the Bears, Packers and Vikings:

Bears – at Vikings, vs. Jaguars, vs. Saints, vs. Packers, at Texans
Vikings – vs. Bears, at Lions, at Cardinals, vs. Falcons, vs. Giants
Packers – vs. Panthers, vs. Texans, at Jaguars, at Bears, vs. Lions

Out of those teams, the Packers have the easiest remaining schedule. Carolina hasn’t played well in weeks, the Texans, Jags and Lions are a mess and they just crushed the Bears two weeks ago. That said, they have to figure out a way to get more pressure from their front seven or they stand zero chance at making the postseason.

The Week 16 game between the Packers and Bears might determine the division.