If you missed my article yesterday about the AFC West take a look at it here:
This is the one division in football that doesn’t have a team with more than four losses and the one team with four losses is the Cincinnati Bengals. You could make a case for all of the teams in the division to be able to compete for the one seed in the AFC.
Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens sit atop the AFC North with a record of 8-3 thanks to a loss to the Browns last weekend. The Ravens had been on a tear against some of the best teams in the NFL over the past month racking up wins against the Lions and Seahawks by a combined 75-9 score.
They have a couple of tough tests in the second half of the season but they are the biggest threat to the Chiefs and the number one seed. Thankfully, if the Chiefs can continue to win against the AFC they will hold a tiebreaker against the Ravens based on conference record as they currently only have one conference loss to the Ravens three.
A quick look at their remaining schedule: at Chargers, Rams, at Jaguars, at 49ers, Dolphins, and Steelers. Looking at the rest of their schedule they are likely to get wins against the Chargers and Rams. The Jaguars and Steelers would likely be wins but they’ve already lost to the Steelers once and the Jaguars are a hot and cold team. Games against the 49ers and Dolphins will test the Ravens and could cause them to lose a chance at the one seed. At this point, I think the Ravens finish the season around 12-5 which could win them the division but will likely lose them a chance at the one seed.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers are a conundrum when it comes to their record and how they are playing this season. They are one of two teams in the NFL that are three games over .500 at 6-3 with a negative net score which means they have allowed more points than they have scored. Currently, they are 2-0 in the division including a win over the Ravens. I don’t think that they will be able to continue to win games in the AFC’s toughest division.
A quick look at their remaining schedule: at Browns, at Bengals, Cardinals, Patriots, at Colts, Bengals, at Seahawks, at Ravens. The Browns are without Watson for the rest of the year but should be able to stay in the game as the Steelers aren’t great at scoring points. I’m guessing they lose to the Browns, Bengals twice, Ravens, and Seahawks. That would leave wins against the Cardinals, Patriots, and Colts. I’m guessing the Steelers end the season around 9-8. If they find a way to continue winning as they have one thing to watch is they are 4-2 in the conference which could give them a better chance at the one seed if they find a way to win games they probably shouldn’t.
Cleveland Browns
The Browns offense has been bad most of the season but showed up in a big game against the Ravens this past weekend. However, that performance has cost them Deshaun Watson who is out with a shoulder injury the rest of the season. The Browns are a team that is built to win on defense and their defense will have to go to a new level the rest of the season to give them a chance.
A quick look at their remaining schedule: Steelers, at Broncos, at Rams, Jaguars, Bears, at Texans, Jets and at Bengals. With the loss of Watson the Browns will likely lose against the Jaguars, Bengals, and Texans. The Broncos game right now could be up in the air with the turnaround of the Broncos offense. The Steelers game is also up in the air due to the loss of Watson. I’d expect the Browns will win against the Rams, Bears, and Jets. This would leave the Browns around 10-7 on the season if they split the Broncos and Steelers game.
Cincinnati Bengals
Oh, how the mighty have fallen. The Bengals are going back to being a team that starts slow and goes on a run to end the season. Their biggest problem this season is that the Ravens have been playing lights out most of the season and catching them will be difficult. Right now the loss to the Titans could come back to haunt them late in the year and with a loss to the Ravens last night they sit at 5-5. Their biggest hurdle maybe the loss of Joe Burrow as he got hurt and missed most of the game Thursday night.
A quick look at their remaining schedule: Steelers, at Jaguars, Colts, Vikings, at Steelers, at Chiefs, and the Browns. Outside the Chiefs games, the Bengals could be favored to win most of the games left on their schedule if Burrow is healthy. I think they lose to the Chiefs regardless of whether or not Burrow plays. The rest of the games will depend on Burrow, if he’s healthy they could finish around 10-7 or maybe find a way to string a bunch of wins together. If Burrow is out they are likely done for the season and could finish under .500.
What do you think? Do the Ravens catch the Chiefs for the one seed? Do any of the other teams in the North take the top seed from KC?