50 Yard Blog

NFL Season Preview: AFC North

The start of the season is under a month away when the Denver Broncos play the Atlanta Falcons in the hall of fame game August 2nd. It will be the first time football has been played in 6 months and will whip up excitement before yet another adrenalin fuelled season.

AFC North

The North is perhaps the most interesting division in the entire NFL with 3 teams with expectations of the AFC Championship (sorry Bengal fans but your not one of them). Even though I believe they are highly overrated, I do believe the Browns are the top team in the division (for the first time since 1989….ouch). Baker seems to have matured since joining the NFL which is great for everyone (except the Bengals fans…nothing is good for them in todays NFL) because he is simply so talented. Chubb broke out mid-season of last year and with OBJ, Landry, Njoku and Callaway, this offense will be lethal. The issue is the tackle position. The interior of the o-line will hold up fine but with TJ Watt and the attacking Ravens scheme, there is now doubt that tackle needs to be improved. The Browns defence is brilliant lead by an-all star talent D-line and strong CB’s. Their line-backers are good not great and safety’s a bit thin after trading Peppers but I expect them to be good. They have a lot of talent but the Browns feel like a team destined to underachieve with a rookie coach and impatient owner.

The Steelers will push the Browns all the way. I would pick a 7-1 record at Heinz field with Big Ben still at the helm. Boswell will only be better or replaced with the camp leg of Matt McCrane. This is a team that will undergo addition by subtraction on offense. Brown and Bell gone, means that if James Washington can step up, this team will be almost as talented without imploding. The issue is the defence (just like every year of this decade). Devin Bush is in a position unlike other rookies. He could be the most important piece of the Steelers this year, he could hold the defence together if he explodes like TJ Watt did in his rookie year.

Hollywood and Lamar. If they work Baltimore will be off to the playoffs. Sadly that is a bigger if than Vince Wilfork’s playing weight. Baltimore are young, exciting and unpredictable. They need leaders on defence without Weddle and Suggs but they have speed, speed and more speed. They could be anything. They will probably end up around 9-7. Nothing more than a wild-card in the regular season but I wouldn’t want to play them in the playoffs.

To round out the division, there is the bumbling Bengals. Cincinnati have a below average QB (Dalton is passed his prime), an average tight end and below average line-backers. They have William Jackson, Jessie Bates, Geno Atkins, Joe Mixon, and others. A.J Green should be traded. There are many teams desperate for a WR to push them over the playoff wall and Tyler Boyd is solid. At least their O-line was saved when they picked Jonah Williams in the first round and won’t have to rely on Bobby Hart ….. oh, wait, Williams is out for the season (this is awful though, no player should be forced to miss a season through injury, especially a rookie). Dalton might as well count to 2 and fall on the floor this year or he might end up like Alex Smith (hope not though). This team will be picking top 3 next year and will be the destination of either Tua or Herbert.

AFC East

The AFC east is one of the most straightforward divisions in the NFL. The Patriots will be their usual force, utilizing power-football with the bevy of backs. Sony Michel will be their lead back with rookie Damien Harris in for change of pace or in case of injury. James White will have his usual pass-catching role. However, it’s not their running game or Mr Brady that will be most impressive but instead, their defence led by Gilmore and Devin McCourty that will be shutting down opposing offenses. In division, however, it won’t have a lot to contend with.

The Bills are the Pats’ nearest rival. Josh Allen now has receivers in Cole Beasley and John Brown. Beasley and Smokey may not be world beaters but with a second year QB who was impressive in spurts last year, this unit could surprise people. The Bills defence has always been stingy. They won’t make the playoffs but I expect a few title contenders to fall.

Allen’s fellow second year QB has a new weapon. Le’veon Bell will be looking to be the catalyst for Darnold to spring into action. At the moment, Darnold is looking more Jared Goff (first year) than Patrick Mahomes’ first year of playing. For the 3rd overall pick, that is not a healthy return. I do believe that Bell will help but the difference is not going to be massive. The part of the team that could explode will be the defence. I expect Jets to be high on the lists of sacks. Brady, Allen and Fitzpatrick (and Rosen) to be lying on their back quite a few times this season. Gregg Williams was a great addition to this coaching staff and his aggressive style is just what they need. Jets games this year will either be low scoring or they will get blown out, don’t expect close games with both teams scoring 24+.

The bottom of the division is definitely the Dolphins. The only purpose to this season is their yearly win against the Patriots and to see if Rosen will ever be a star (don’t be surprised that if Rosen doesn’t improve, he gets cut but ends up with the Pats in a year or two. Belichick reportedly liked him coming out of UCLA). He was rated 49.1 by PFF which ranks 37th out of the qualifying QBs. I have always defended Rosen due to the turnstile of the o-line he played with last year. Sadly for Rosen, the Dolphin’s o-line was ranks last by PFF when calling deep set passing plays. However, if he beats out Fitzmagic and looks even slightly competent then he would certainly get my vote for a long-term starter. Especially as they will be picking top 5 in the draft this coming year. With it looking like a year of great QB,s with Herbert and Tua; the Dolphins could trade down and still get a top prospect, just like the Colts did in 2018 to land Quentin nelson.