Before OTAs, the NFL draft, and sometimes even free agency, each team has goals in mind for the upcoming season. Some teams are well aware that they may not be competitive, so their main goal is development. They want the players they consider the future to take a few steps toward improvement and develop team chemistry, so that maybe next year, with a few additions, they can compete. Others, who are ready to compete, always have that first step in mind to achieve their goals. That first step, for most teams, is to win their division. For the Green Bay Packers, Matt LaFleur has often said winning the division is an essential first step of the season as it guarantees a home playoff game in January. But Packers fans have often taken a division championship for granted. 

When Bears GM Ryan Poles was hired in 2022, he famously said the Bears would take the NFC North and never give it back. Of course, Packers fans laughed at this quote and made comments along the lines of "You can win the division, we'll win the Super Bowl." This type of mindset has some roots in the fact that in 2010, the Bears won the NFC North title, but the Packers then defeated the Bears in the NFC Championship game and went on to win Super Bowl XLV. That 2010 division title became a bit tainted for the Bears since they were eventually defeated by their arch-rival in one of the biggest games in their franchise history. That mindset also became the basis of former coach Mike McCarthy saying the Packers don't hang banners for division titles, only Super Bowls. 

For the last 30 years, a division title has practically been a birthright for Packers fans. The team has won it 14 times since 1996. That dwarfs Minnesota's eight division titles, Chicago's six, and Detroit's two in the same timeframe. However, it's been four seasons since the Packers' last division title. That's tied for the longest division title drought the franchise has had in 30 years. The previous four-year drought was between 1997 and 2002. In those four years, the Packers made the playoffs twice and won a playoff game. In the current four-year drought, they've made the playoffs three times, winning one playoff game. They had their shot in the playoffs even without the division title, but just didn't advance. 

Two of arguably the best teams in recent Packers history have been the 2011 and 2021 squads. In 2011, the Packers went 15-1 and were an offensive juggernaut that could barely be stopped. In 2021, the team seemed almost complete all around, going 13-4. Both of these squads were division championship winners. But both of them lost their first playoff game. You could argue that a significant injury to David Bakhtiari derailed the 2021 team, but the 2011 team just wasn't all the way there in some areas and was eventually exposed. Of course, these teams had some asterisks that led to their demise, which can be used to argue, but they were still division championship winners who were heavily favored, but fell apart.

It begs the question, just how truly important is winning the division? 

Much like Matt LaFleur has said, winning the division guarantees you a home playoff game. But the division-winning Packers have been defeated on their home field in that very first home playoff game. The weather you're acclimated to, sleeping in your own bed the night before a game, and having the home crowd behind you is obviously nice.  But in past Packer history, it's also been proven that the underdog mentality can persevere. 

There's the obvious example of 2010 when the on-the-road underdog Packers team defeated three teams on their way to greatness. There's also the 2023 season, where the Jordan Love-led Packers squeaked out a playoff berth with a win in the final game of the regular season, achieving a 9-8 record. They went on to humiliate the second-seeded Dallas Cowboys before they barely lost to the first-seeded San Francisco 49ers. If not for a few plays going against them, they could have made it to the NFC Championship game as the last seed on-the-road underdog yet again.

But you can't always count on pulling off a miracle run. 

The national media loves the story of the long-tortured Detroit Lions finally gaining relevancy. They love the idea of the little brother Chicago Bears finally getting the best of the big brother Packers. And they would undoubtedly love a Vikings run after a horrendous 2025 campaign. But the Packers can't let it happen. Whether it truly matters or not if you win the division in today's NFL or earn a wild card spot, there's the matter of making yourself the team to beat. Making yourself the measuring stick. The Packers have dominated the NFC North for a long time. They have been that measuring stick for the rest of the division. But now, suddenly, people are talking about the Bears or the Lions being that measuring stick. We cannot let it stand. They need to take back control of the NFC North once again and prove that the Green Bay Packers are still the obstacle that stands between every team and greatness.