NFL: Predicting the 2024 AFC North

The Pro Football Hall of Fame festivities have begun in Canton, Ohio. That is the unofficial beginning to the upcoming NFL football season. The preseason began this past Thursday night with the Hall of Fame Game, so it was time for us to start the series of predicting each division and their winner from both the NFC and the AFC. We have already done all of the NFC, the AFC West, the AFC South, the AFC East, and we now finish up this series with the AFC North. This division also holds a special place in my heart as I’m from Ohio and live in Northeast Ohio; so the Browns are in my backyard, and the Bengals are just a few hours south of me within state lines. I also think of this as the toughest division in the NFL. Now it’s time for me to shock everyone!

Cleveland Browns – As mentioned in a previous article, the Browns are not my number one team personally, so my prediction has no emotion or fandom tied to it, but without further ado, I’m going against most people and choosing the Browns to finally win their division. For the first time that I can remember, Cleveland is heading into the season with no real drama, and pretty much everyone ready to go. They’ll still need to wait and see on Nick Chubb, but most are confident he’ll be just fine. I think it all comes together for a division title, and a decent playoff run for this team.

Baltimore Ravens – These guys won the division last year and they could easily do it again. As a matter of fact, I wouldn’t be surprised in the least bit if they did again. So many people are choosing these guys to win it, so I decided to go the other direction. Picking the Ravens to finish behind the Browns was my toughest decision in the series, but I’m standing by it. The Ravens will still have a great year and will probably still sneak into the playoffs through the Wild Card in my opinion, and they are always a dangerous out.

Cincinnati Bengals – Another reason this is the toughest division in football is the fact that these guys could ALSO win the division and it wouldn’t be a surprise. Joe Burrow is back and we will see how back he actually is, as it may take them all some time to get back into it, and sometimes that time comes when it is too late in a division like this, and I think that is what’s going to happen. It will be a decent year for the Bengals, but disappointing in the end when you realize what they should have done by the end.

Pittsburgh Steelers – This team seems to be in chaos right now. Which Quarterback are they going to use? Will it be good enough? Will they stay healthy? This is the first time I can remember more question marks for Pittsburgh than for Cleveland which is wild to me! I think this team struggles big time and Coach Mike Tomlin will end in the red for the first time. As good a coach as he is, I don’t think he’ll be able to overcome this roster turnover and the uncertainty, especially in this division. I wouldn’t be surprised if they got swept by both the Browns and the Ravens.