By STEVE KING
People in and around the AFC North have said for years that it’s one of the toughest divisions in the NFL.
But is it true?
In a word, yes. At least that’s according to the people at what I think is the NFL website around, sportsillustrated.com.
The site, in a recent story by staffer Conor Orr, ranked the league’s eight divisions, and the AFC North came in second place behind the NFC West, made jup, of course, by the Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals.
The rest of the divisions behind those two were, in order, the AFC South, NFC South, AFC East, NFC North, AFC South and NFC East.
Here’s what Orr had to say about the AFC North.
“This division may have four premier quarterbacks, though you’ll have to contort your imagination a little bit. Ben Roethlisberger is coming back on rusty wheels behind quite possibly the least dependable (on paper) version of an offensive line that he’s had in Pittsburgh. While returning Juju Smith-Schuster alongside Chase Claypool yields promise, especially with Najee Harris in the backfield, there is some uncertainty as to how it’ll all tie together. The promotion of Matt Canada to offensive coordinator is promising, and Kevin Colbert has been able to hit on offensive linemen in mid rounds prior to this year. From 2009 on, players like A.Q. Shipley (seventh round), Marcus Gilbert (second round), Kelvin Beachum (seventh round), Chukwuma Okorafor (third round) have been hits either for the Steelers or another franchise. Pittsburgh added Kendrick Green and Dan Moore this season and they should be able to compete for starting jobs.
The division has two of the top eight teams in terms of Vegas Super Bowl odds, with the Browns at No. 8 and the Ravens at No. 6. We’ve been collectively burned by the Browns’ hype train in the past, but this is far different than bending your ethical code to snatch a running back on the cheap and trading for Odell Beckham. This is a thorough, foundational rebuild with top players at key positions. The addition of Jadeveon Clowney, Greg Newsome and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah in recent weeks have solidified a defense that is both fluid from a matchup perspective and deep at critical positions.
Baltimore, like Cleveland, had a great draft and may have found the antidote for their vertical game woes with Rashod Bateman. The Ravens aren’t going anywhere and could evolve beyond their 2020 stagnancy to become a more multi-faceted offense. With Lamar Jackson, they are a few upgrades away from being un-defendable.
Cincinnati will no doubt be better, even if they took the cart before the horse in the draft and whiffed on a chance to truly solidify their offensive line. Joe Burrow was incredibly promising before going down with a knee injury last year and the addition of Ja’Marr Chase should bolster an offense that relied on A.J. Green for 30% of its targeted air yards last year, despite the fact that Green was having a hard time getting open.
So, what do you think?
