NFL Media analyst Dave Damashek recently posted his divisional all-star series. It's nice to take a more micro look at the league's talent. Picking all-division teams does just that. This can reveal some of the lesser known players that are deserving of notice. Players that are often lost in the wash of All-NFL or even All-Conference teams. Damashek is a Pittsburgh Steelers fan so he probably knows the AFC North much better than he knows the NFC North. Still, he did a fine job with his All-NFC North team. Especially for a Steelers fan.
Dave Damashek's All-NFC North team:
QB
Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
RB
Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
WR
Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions
Jordy Nelson, Green Bay Packers
Alshon Jeffery, Chicago Bears
TE
Martellus Bennett
T
Brian Bulaga, Green Bay Packers
Riley Reiff, Detroit Lions
G
Josh Sitton, Green Bay Packers
Larry Warford, Detroit Lions
C
John Sullivan, Minnesota Vikings
DE
Ziggy Ansah, Detroit Lions
Mike Daniels, Green Bay Packers
DT
Haloti Ngata, Detroit Lions
Sharrif Floyd, Minnesota Vikings
LB
Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers
Anthony Barr, Minnesota Vikings
MLB
Stephen Tulloch, Detroit Lions
CB
Casey Hayward, Green Bay Packers
Xavier Rhodes, Minnesota Vikings
S
Harrison Smith, Minnesota Vikings
Glover Quinn, Detroit Lions
Ret
Cordarrelle Patterson, Minnesota Vikings
K
Matt Prater, Detroit Lions
P
Sam Martin, Detroit Lions
Looks like it's Lions, Packers, Vikings, and a couple of Bears. 9 Lions. 7 Packers. 7 Vikings. And 2 Bears. Damashek took a pretty good stab at the NFC North. But, Detroit Lions linebacker DeAndre Levy has to be on this team. Even if it's at the expense of Anthony Barr. Levy is one of the best 4-3 outside linebackers in the entire league. Let alone the NFC North. Barr will be a mainstay on this team for years to come but he's only played 12 games in the NFL. Levy should be on the team now. Kyle Long is the best guard in the division. Maybe even the best offensive lineman. He might be moving to tackle so maybe Damashek skipped him for that reason. Stephen Tulloch should be booted from all-star teams of any kind simply for injuring himself while celebrating a routine defensive stop. Finally, not including Vikings defensive end Everson Griffen is a mistake that should not go unpunished.
Picking three receivers might be the right thing to do in today's NFL. It's all about the passing game. Still. I'd prefer to pick two backs over three receivers. Especially in a division that can put Matt Forte or Eddie Lacy in the same backfield with Adrian Peterson.
Damshek did one of these for the remainder of the NFC divisions. Check them out at NFL.com.
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