It’s about the halfway point of the 2026 NFL season — just short, to be specific — and the AFC North has never been tighter this far into the schedule in the division’s 25-year history.
The North’s four teams are separated by just two games.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, who captured the division title a year ago with a last-play win over the Baltimore Ravens in the regular-season finale, lead with a 6-2 mark.
The Cincinnati Bengals, who finished third in 2025, are second and just a half-came back at 5–2.
The Browns are only a half-game behind the Bengals at 5–3, matching their wins total from last season when they ended up in the cellar.
In that spot this time are the Ravens (4-4), who went into the season not just as the favorite in the division, but also one of the favorites in the conference to get to the Super Bowl.
Where do these teams go from here:
*Steelers — They looked impressive and appeared to. be coming together, both offensively and defensively in routing the Browns last Sunday, but you just have to wonder if you can trust quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Sonething just doesn’t seem quite right. You get the feeling that they may be just one Rodgers-head coach Mike McCarthy screaming match away from coming unglued.
*Bengals — Tell me if you’ve seen this before in the Queen City. The Bengals have the best quarterback-wide receiver trio in the league in Joe Burrow, Jamar Chase and Tee Higgins. But they also have a porous offensive line and defense. Still, 5-2 is 5-2, and the Bengals are hoping they can continue to overcome their problems.
*Browns — These guys aren’t just pliving on the edge. Rather, they’ve built a brick house on it and look to be settling in for the long haul. But, like Cincinnati, it doesn’t matter how you win, only that you do win. So, instead of being less than even so–so again, it’s so far, so good overall for head coach Todd Monken’s team
*Ravens — They are always one of the most disappointing teams in the league, and they are living up to that reputation so far this season. They have been really banged up at quarterback all year, and it may get worse before it gets better — if it does, which seems iffy at Best.They can’t blame John Harbaugh anymore, for he has headed off to New York, where he’s doing a great job turning around the Giants. The organization’s top men have to look at themselvesand wonder what they can do to turn this around before it runs totally out of control.
Steve King
