Explore the heated NFC North race as the Lions, Vikings, and Packers battle for supremacy while the Bears tag along.

The Bills and Chiefs have clinched their divisions, the Lions and Eagles have clinched playoff berths, and 10 more playoff spots are up for grabs.

A 14-13 game with five minutes to play in the third quarter quickly spiraled into a 42-21 Vikings win. Cousins’ replacement in Minnesota, Sam Darnold, threw five touchdown passes in the win. Darnold completed 16 of his 18 pass attempts after the half for 250 yards and three scores.

And yet there are the mounting defensive injuries, the potential double-edged sword borne of HC Dan Campbell's fearless decision making, to say nothing of the fact that Minnesota (11-2) just will not go away – regardless of how overshadowed the Vikings tend to be.

In four divisions of the eight NFL divisions, nine wins would get you the No. 1 spot right now. In six divisions, 10 wins would put you as the leader. Yet the NFC North, nine wins only gets you third place and 10 wins puts you at No.

The NFC North is the best division in football this year. It’s one of the best divisions in football history.

With Packers and Vikings winning, the "Black and Blue" division is pushing its dominance to levels not seen since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger.

The NFC North is a collective of juggernauts, with three different teams entering Week 14 with at least nine wins, all of them on track to reach the playoffs. On Thursday night, two of them will square off in a prime-time showdown that could shake up the entire divisional race,

The injury-ravaged Detroit Lions – with a league-high 18 players on injured reserve – disposed of the Green Bay Packers Thursday night, notching their franchise-best 11th straight win of the

The Lions earned a big win against the Packers, but more work is to be done for Detroit to clinch the NFC North.

This game’s results could resonate in voters’ minds when ballots are due two weeks after it ends. So while Allen and Campbell are justifiable favorites for their respective awards, the races could easily change course.

The Lions, Vikings and Packers are all within two games of each other atop their division. Here's how the NFC North tiebreakers could play out: