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The NFC North had its share of the NFL main stage in Week 12.
The Detroit Lions hosted their annual NFL Thanksgiving Thursday game on national TV -- then creating one of the NFL's top stories a couple days later -- and the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears renewing their storied rivalry in primetime on "Sunday Night Football." The Minnesota Vikings also surfaced on the NFL highlight reel with their last-minute comeback victory on Sunday.
Entering Week 13, here's where they stand in the NFC North.
4. Detroit Lions (4-7)
It was a eventful week for the Lions. On Thursday, Detroit took a 41-25 home loss to the sub-.500 Houston Texans, getting torched by QB Deshaun Watson (318 yards, 4 touchdowns) and put on J.J. Watt's highlight reel.
On Saturday, the Lions fired head coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn. Patricia was in the middle of his third season with the team, having been hired by Quinn, with whom he'd worked with in New England. The pairing couldn't replicate their success from the Patriots.
The Lions, losers of four of their last five games, move forward with offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell in their interim head coaching role. They've got the Bears on the road in Week 13.
3. Chicago Bears (5-6)
With Nick Foles suffering from a hip injury, the Bears went back to former starter / franchise quarterback Mitchell Trubisky for their "Sunday Night Football" game against the Packers.
Trubisky didn't do much to instill confidence in Bears fans (or the franchise) that he can be a legit NFL franchise QB after being benched earlier this season. He completed 26 of 46 passes against the Packers for 242 yards and three touchdowns. He also threw two interceptions and lost a fumble.
The Bears did get a big game from running back David Montgomery, who picked up 103 rushing yards on 11 carries -- averaging 9.4 yards per attempt -- but it wasn't enough to overcome the porous defense and Trubisky's miscues.
Chicago hosts the Lions in Week 13.
2. Minnesota Vikings (5-6)
Kirk Cousins has put up NFL Pro Bowl-type numbers in back-to-back games.
In last week's 31-28 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, Cousins threw for 314 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. In this week's 28-27 win over the Carolina Panthers, Cousins threw for 307 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. He's completed 74.6 percent of his passes during that stretch.
On Sunday, Cousins engineered the game-winning drive for the Vikings, going 75 yards in seven players in just over one minute. He capped it by finding Chad Beebe in the end zone for the game-winning touchdown.
The Vikings host the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-10) in Week 13, a game they should win to bring their record back to the .500 mark against one of the NFL's worst teams.
1. Green Bay Packers (8-3)
The Packers continue to pull away from the rest of the NFC North.
Aaron Rodgers threw four touchdowns and completed 21 of 29 passes in Sunday night's 41-25 win over the Bears. More importantly, A-Rod was able to spread the ball around and not have to rely so much on star receiver Davante Adams.
The running game was also a productive time-share, as Aaron Jones ran for 90 yards on 17 carries, while Jamaal Williams ran for 73 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries.
The Packers currently rank second in the NFL in scoring (31.7 points per game) and fifth in the NFL in offensive yardage (392.9 yards per game).
In Week 13, the Packers host the Philadelphia Eagles.
