Credit: Cleveland Sports Talk
Predicting the 2025-26 AFC North Turnout
Published: Tuesday, July 22, 2025
by Ryan Nelke
The AFC North is potentially the strongest division in all of football (aside for you Cleveland). Nevertheless, outside of the Browns, the Ravens, Steelers, and Bengals are all competing to win the North and make a deep push come playoff time.
The Ravens won the division for the second straight year in 2024, and will look to three-peat this season, but the Bengals will look to put forth the same offensive effort and hope for the defense to be at least serviceable, while Aaron Rodgers has taken the reins in the Steel City, so without further adieu, it is time for my predictions for the 2025-26 AFC North.
The Baltimore Ravens
Baltimore in many ways is similar to Buffalo in how both teams enjoy plenty of regular season success, but once the playoffs roll around, they fail to rise to the occasion. Nonetheless, it only takes one big outing to change the perception surrounding their franchise quarterback’s ability to excel in January, and he will certainly have the motivation to get back to that moment this year.
Offensively, the one-two punch of Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry should remain one of the most dominant forces all season, and that was on display last year, with Jackson accounting for 45 TDs and Henry posting 18 TDs. To ensure the offense’s continued success, the Ravens locked up LT Ronnie Stanley on a three-year, $60 million deal.
Defensively, Baltimore brought in CB Jaire Alexander, setting up what appears to be a very deadly secondary. Overall, the Ravens early season schedule is not so appeasing, featuring contests against Buffalo, Detroit, Kansas City, Houston, and Los Angeles, but I have no fears that this squad will struggle in the regular season, as I have them winning the North at 13-4.
The Pittsburgh Steelers
With Rodgers now at the head of the Pittsburgh offense, it raises the question if he is the answer to the QB problems this franchise has had ever since Ben Roethlisberger fell out of his prime. There is no concern about the defense, as that is what this team has prided itself on throughout its history and kept them competitive.
TJ Watt is finally back after agreeing to a record-breaking deal making him the highest-paid non-QB, and the other new name in town is Jalen Ramsey, after acquiring him from Miami. The only problem is they had to ship off Minkah Fitzpatrick to bring in his talents.
With Mike Tomlin still at the helm, the floor for this team is 9-8. The ceiling? That is what everyone is wondering, and I believe if Rodgers can provide solid play which he still capable off, alongside his new shiny toy in DK Metcalf, this team has the ability to make some noise in the playoffs, but for now, I have them finishing 11-6 with the top Wild Card spot.
The Cincinnati Bengals
If only the Bengals defense was just average last year, this team would have dominated as Joe Burrow played at an MVP-level, throwing for 4918 yards and 43 TDs. Despite that effort, it still was not enough for Cincinnati to get to the playoffs, as they finished at 9-8.
Going into the 2025 season, the defense is once again a concern and the Bengals have not done anything to help themselves, as Trey Hendrickson has not reported to training camp amid his desire for a new contract. Moreover, Cincinnati’s first round pick DE Shemar Stewart has still not joined the team due to a dispute over his rookie contract.
With all of this in mind, Burrow and the Bengals upcoming season could very well be wasted if they do not figure out the issues they have on the defensive side of the ball. However, I am taking the positive-minded route in assuming Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins will continue overpowering defenses, and get them to the second Wild Card spot with an 11-6 record.
The Cleveland Browns
There has been something to look forward to so far for the three teams above, but when it comes to Cleveland, the outlook is very bleak. The QB room is one of the worst in football, consisting of Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel, and Shedeur Sanders, and outside of Myles Garrett, there are very few notable names on this team.
It also does not help that the Browns early season schedule is the equivalent of walking through a war zone, as they play the Bengals, Ravens, Packers, Lions, Vikings, Steelers, and Dolphins in order the first seven weeks of the year.
There are not many teams this year that lack something to get excited about or have hope for, but the Browns (as well as the Saints) are one of those teams that I believe are already looking forward to the 2026 draft, and for those reasons, I have Cleveland finishing with a 3-14 record.
Projected AFC North Standings
1) Ravens (13-4)
2) Steelers (11-6), 1st Wild Card
3) Bengals (11-6), 2nd Wild Card
4) Browns (3-14)
The AFC North has three contenders vying to play on the second Sunday of February, so find out how it all pans out when the NFL season kicks off on September 4th…
Ryan Nelke can be reached at nelkerya@shu.edu.
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