Sorry, Pittsburgh Steelers fans, but we’re about to get into a lot to talk about with the hierarchy of the AFC North and it’s best to get this out of the way: Your team isn’t going to maintain this.
The Steelers have one of the weirdest streaks you’ll find in the NFL. They’ve been out-gained nine straight games and somehow are 6-3. It happened again Sunday. The Packers had more yards and the Steelers won 24-19. It’s great for the Steelers to have six wins but this is beyond unsustainable. But good luck to you the rest of the way.
Now we can get to the real question, and it doesn’t include Pittsburgh: How do you rank the race in the AFC North, which is clearly the best division in the NFL this season?
We thought it would be the Baltimore Ravens in the top spot, but then Sunday’s loss to the Cleveland Browns happened. We thought the Cincinnati Bengals were the hottest team that could make a run, but they dropped a game at home to the Houston Texans. It was a reminder that all NFL teams are playing 17 one-game seasons and everything changes constantly.
The big revelation on Sunday was the Browns. They trailed most of the game, then a fluky pick 6 turned the momentum of the game and they won on the final play. Cleveland is 6-3. The Ravens still lead the division at 7-3 but it’s a lot closer now. The Bengals loom at 5-4. And fine, Steelers fans, they’re still around at 6-3.
How can you decipher who ends up on top?
What will make the race even more interesting is the Ravens and Bengals have two of the four toughest schedules remaining, according to Tankathon. The Bengals have the toughest remaining schedule in the NFL. The Ravens are fourth. The Browns are all the way down at 22nd. That’s a huge edge to the Browns.
It’s also important to note the Bengals are 0-2 in the division. Every other AFC North team has two division wins. There’s plenty of time for tiebreakers to be sorted out, if it even comes down to that, but having two fewer wins in division play than any of the…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl-power-rankings-afc-north-is-the-best-division-in-football-but-who-will-win-it-123011669.html
Author : Yahoo Sports
Publish date : 2023-11-14 12:30:11
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