NFC North QB Rankings, Week 8: Jared Goff quickly making an MVP case

As the 2026 season has gone along, I'm not sure there is a division that has better overall quarterback play than the NFC North.

Just imagine if the Minnesota Vikings had JJ McCarthy right now...

All kidding aside, this has truly been a great race to the top all year long in the NFC North QB Power Rankings, which have been fluctuating (as you might expect) week after week.

There is a lot to unpack after the week that was in Week 7, and plenty to look forward to in Week 8 as the Green Bay Packers take on the Carolina Panthers on Thursday Night Football. Let's get into this week's brand-new rankings.

NFC North QB Rankings, Week 8: Jordan Love loses top spot to Jared Goff (for now)

After a couple of promising games in a row, Kyler Murray has firmly established himself here at the bottom of our divisional QB rankings with his performance in Week 7 against the Indianapolis Colts.

Murray completed just 14 of 24 pass attempts for 150 yards and a touchdown, no interceptions (which is key), and another 39 rushing yards with zero fumbles. You'll take mistake-free play at the quarterback position, but as good as the Vikings' defense is, will 15 or 16 points cut it against the Detroit Lions this weekend?

I mean, that defense might be able to get it done.

In all honesty, though, you can't bank on that type of ineffectiveness offensively on a week-to-week basis. Not in the NFL. Even though the Vikings have been winning in some truly "old-school Big Ten" types of ways, you need more out of the quarterback position than 3-of-11 on third downs.

There's still some acclimating being done by Murray, and the results are what they are for the Vikings, but he's firmly the worst QB in the division thus far.

We might only be about one more game away from Caleb Williams taking some ground here in the NFC North QB rankings. He's playing that well.

While a lot of folks wanted to try to diminish the game he played against Atlanta, where he was more of a distributor and point guard, you really can't deny the type of performance we saw from him against the New England Patriots.

Especially on a short week.

Williams had his second consecutive 300-yard passing game, and while his sample is smaller than the top two QBs in the division this season, it's closing in on being a more impressive body of work from just the eye test.

For all of the criticism Williams heard about his average depth of target against Atlanta, people were singing a different tune after he was slinging the ball all around the yard against New England.

Williams is capable of putting up some dud performances, but he's also one of the best playmakers at the quarterback position in the NFL right now. There are reasons why he was the #1 overall pick other than just the reputation he built during a Heisman season at USC. He's got special talent, and he's a gamer.

For now, Jordan Love is dropping a spot in the rankings.

For now...

What we see from Love that is better than any other QB in the NFC -- maybe the NFL -- is the spectacular. What we're not seeing consistently enough this season is the boring.

Case in point:

Nobody is concerned about the Packers making big plays. Those are almost a given on a weekly basis at this point. The concern after a game like we saw in Detroit on Sunday is whether this offense is going to be dependent on those big plays.

The last thing the Packers want is for Love to feel like he has to do too much every single week in order to help this team win. The offensive line needs to be better. The running game needs to get going. The drops have to slow down. Missed kicks are a factor.

It's all part of the bigger equation for the Packers, but this is the pressure that comes along with being an MVP candidate, or at least having those types of expectations.

It would simply be inaccurate to not have Jared Goff at the top of this list, as much as it may sting Packers fandom right now.

Goff is playing out of his mind so far in 2026.

He's thrown for 1,788 yards, 14 touchdowns, 0 interceptions, and has a passer rating of 112. No quarterback in the NFL has been better against the blitz than Goff (EPA).

He's the only quarterback in NFL history with 200-plus passing yards, one passing TD, and no interceptions in each of his team's first six games.

Goff is simply locked in right now unlike any other QB in the division, or even the NFL. He's got the best body of work of any quarterback in the league in 2026.

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