Season 4 Episode 4
NFC North & South Preview | Guest: Packers Fan Everett McCord
The Screenplay Podcast — Season 4, NFC North & South Preview
The Screenplay Podcast closed out its division-by-division preview series with the NFC North and NFC South, joined by lifelong Green Bay Packers fan and Andrew Novak's childhood best friend Everett McCord. Hosts Evan Grenus and Andrew Novak then broke down every team in both divisions, covering real-life storylines, win totals, and a full fantasy football position-by-position guide.
Guest Spotlight: Everett McCord on the Packers and the Josh Jacobs Fallout
Everett McCord, born in Milwaukee and a Packers fan since birth, is finally making his first pilgrimage to Lambeau Field this December after two previous trips fell through. He opened by addressing running back Josh Jacobs's placement on the commissioner's exempt list, calling it the right move for the league regardless of the running back room's depth concerns behind unproven backup Marshawn Lloyd. McCord said he wouldn't be surprised if a video connected to the situation surfaces and ends Jacobs's season, comparing the severity to the Ray Rice case.
McCord defended head coach Matt LaFleur's contract extension, pointing to six playoff appearances in seven seasons and a winning record against Sean McVeigh, while acknowledging frustration with LaFleur's past loyalty to underperforming coordinators and a tendency to play conservatively with leads. He argued Jordan Love is a top-ten quarterback who gets underrated for lacking gaudy counting stats, noting a blind-résumé comparison that had Love's touchdown-to-interception ratio and QBR outperforming Brett Favre's and Aaron Rodgers's through a similar number of starts. On the NFC North race, McCord views Detroit as the team to beat given their weapons and schedule, believes Kyler Murray could thrive in Minnesota's system, and — as a self-described biased Packers fan — called the Bears "overrated" coming off an unsustainable turnover margin last season.
NFC North Preview
Minnesota Vikings
Odds: +450 to win the NFC North, 50-1 Super Bowl odds. Win total: 8.5 (Evan predicts the over).
Head coach Kevin O'Connell enters year five with defensive coordinator Brian Flores running one of the league's most aggressive schemes, betting on a $1 million flier on Kyler Murray at quarterback. Both hosts see Minnesota's season riding almost entirely on Murray's play, with Andrew calling him a better talent than past quarterbacks O'Connell has succeeded with. On fantasy, Murray is viewed as a strong value at QB19 given his track record of outperforming his real-life quarterback play in fantasy scoring, and Jordan Addison is viewed as a value at WR42 entering a contract year.
Chicago Bears
Odds: +305 to win the NFC North, 25-1 Super Bowl odds. Win total not specified — Evan predicts 11 wins.
Ben Johnson continues calling plays with Press Taylor promoted to offensive coordinator, but the defense — 29th in the NFL last year — takes a further hit with a big-money free-agent addition out four to six months with a knee injury and longtime starting center Drew Dalman's retirement. Both hosts expect a shootout-heavy offense to carry the team, with Andrew citing better health and comfort for Caleb Williams, Rome Odunze, and second-year tight end Colston Loveland as reasons for optimism. On fantasy, both hosts are high on the receiving trio of Odunze, Luther Burden III, and Loveland profiting from a bad defense forcing shootouts, and DeAndre Swift is viewed as a strong value at RB22 with Kyle Monangai starting the year hurt.
Green Bay Packers
Odds: +240 to win the NFC North, 20-1 Super Bowl odds. Win total: 9.5 (both hosts lean toward the under).
New defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon joins a roster both hosts view as carrying significant injury risk across Micah Parsons, the receiving corps, Tucker Kraft, and an unresolved backfield behind the Josh Jacobs situation, compounded by what both hosts called a bottom-third offensive line. On fantasy, Jaylen Reed is viewed as a value at WR45 after signing a three-year, $50 million deal, and Tucker Kraft is viewed as a strong TE6 pick once healthy, having averaged 16.2 fantasy points per game in his seven healthy outings last year.
Detroit Lions
Odds: +175 to win the NFC North (division favorites), 18-1 Super Bowl odds. Win total: 10.5 (Andrew predicts the over).
New offensive coordinator Drew Petzing arrives from Arizona, where he helped Trey McBride to back-to-back top-two fantasy tight end finishes, while the defense deals with major injury concerns at safety and a possible long-term issue for standout Kerby Joseph. Both hosts trust Penei Sewell's move to left tackle and a favorable early schedule to keep Detroit afloat while the defense sorts itself out. On fantasy, Jahmyr Gibbs is viewed as a potential record-breaking workload with Isaiah Pacheco on IR, Jared Goff is viewed as a perennially undervalued QB16 with top-ten upside, and Sam LaPorta is viewed as a bounce-back TE5 pick in a contract year under a tight-end-friendly offensive coordinator.
NFC South Preview
Carolina Panthers
Odds: Win total: 7.5. Andrew (a Panthers fan) predicts 3-14; Evan predicts 7-10.
Despite a strong offseason haul on defense in Jalen Phillips, Devin Lloyd, and tackle Rasheed Walker, both starting offensive tackles, top run-stopping defensive end Derrick Brown, third-round receiver Nick Scorton, and both running backs (Chuba Hubbard, Jonathan Brooks) have all suffered significant injuries this preseason. Andrew, a Carolina fan, called it the most complete collapse of a promising offseason he's seen and said he's largely written off the season. On fantasy, Tetairoa McMillan is viewed as a safe WR10-16 floor-and-ceiling play, and Jonathan Brooks is viewed as a worthwhile dart-throw if he can stay on the field given a lack of big-play options elsewhere in the offense.
New Orleans Saints
Odds: +255 to win the NFC South, 90-1 Super Bowl odds. Win total: 7.5 (Evan predicts the over, going 9-8).
Head coach Kellen Moore returns with new offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier and defensive coordinator Brandon Staley entering year two, running what was the fastest-paced offense in the NFL last season behind the league's seventh-ranked offensive line. Both hosts are notably bullish on New Orleans, with Evan citing second-year quarterback Tyler Shough's rookie-contract value as a foundation to build around. On fantasy, Shough is viewed as a strong late-round QB value after averaging 18.5 points per game over his final eight starts last year, and Juwan Johnson is viewed as a strong dart-throw tight end while Chris Olave works back from injury.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Odds: +164 to win the NFC South, 50-1 Super Bowl odds. Win total: 8.5 — Evan predicts the under (7-10); Andrew predicts 12-5, one of the hosts' biggest disagreements of the season.
Head coach Todd Bowles enters with new offensive coordinator Zach Robinson (from Sean McVay's coaching tree) and notably no formally designated defensive coordinator, after a roster that dealt with season-long injuries across its offensive line and skill positions still finished 8-9 last year. Andrew argued a healthy roster plus Robinson's system could push Tampa Bay into the 12-14 win range, while Evan pointed to a brutal midseason stretch (at Bears, at Lions, Chargers, Ravens) as reason to expect a second-half collapse. On fantasy, Emeka Egbuka is viewed as a prime breakout candidate at WR18 stepping into Mike Evans's vacated target share, and the Bucky Irving / Kenneth Gainwell backfield is viewed as a strong value with Gainwell projected as a top-25 running back even in a timeshare.
Atlanta Falcons
Odds: +400 to win the NFC South, 130-1 Super Bowl odds. Win total: 7.5 — Evan predicts 2-15; Andrew agrees the total is too high.
New offensive coordinator Tommy Rees joins head coach Kevin Stefanski's staff around an unresolved Tua Tagovailoa / Michael Penix Jr. quarterback competition, with both hosts skeptical of the depth chart and pointing to a brutal midseason schedule stretch as reason for a possible top-of-the-draft finish. On fantasy, Bijan Robinson remains a locked-in top-two overall running back regardless of the quarterback situation, while Drake London is viewed as overvalued at WR8 given his history of wide season-to-season swings tied to erratic quarterback play.
Screenplay Podcast Survivor Pool
The Screenplay Podcast is running its Survivor Pool again this season: $0 entry fee, $250 cash to the winner, hosted on Sleeper. Pick one team each week — win and advance, lose and you're out, with no revives. Sign up through the link on the show's Instagram page or website.
Listen to the Full Episode
New episodes of The Screenplay Podcast drop every Wednesday at 8 a.m. wherever you stream podcasts, hosted by Evan Grenus and PGA Tour winner Andrew Novak, running from now through the Super Bowl. Next week's episode is Predictions Week, covering playoffs and Super Bowl picks with returning guest Jason Schulruf (@ickjason), the show's resident Chicago Bears fan.