2013 AFC North Predictions
This season’s AFC North is a really interesting division, not least because it contains the much-changed reigning champs. However, it also contains a team with sky-high potential and one looking to regain the form that led them to past glories. This will be one to watch over the next six months.
BALTIMORE RAVENS – 2012: 10-6, NORTH CHAMPIONS, SUPERBOWL CHAMPIONS
The Ravens triumphed in one of the most eventful, dramatic Super Bowls in history last February, but the team that will take to the field come opening weekend will be a very different one to the side that lifted the Lombardi Trophy. Veteran leaders Ray Lewis, Ed Reed and Anquan Boldin have all left for pastures new, and the impact of this has to be huge; to lose three characters like that from the locker room must have left an unimaginable void. But attempting to fill that void will be Joe Flacco; after winning his first Super Bowl, the QB must step up to the plate and become the consistent leader his team needs. However, the veterans leaving could open the door to some younger, hungrier, quicker players on defense especially; a lot of people are touting the Ravens’ D to be better than ever. Baltimore will certainly be an interesting team to watch this year, even if they aren’t as successful.
CINCINNATI BENGALS – 2012: 10-6, LOST IN WILD CARD
These Bengals may just be one of the best Cincinnati teams in quite a few years, and if Andy Dalton can improve on last year’s solid showing, there’s no telling how high the Bengals can climb. Last season showed promise, with AJ Green looking like an all-pro WR and Marvin Lewis’ defense stepping up to make every game competitive. The defensive line is a major strength and the gamble that paid off in Vontaze Burfict has the LB core looking strong too. Adding Tyler Eifert and Giovani Bernard in the Draft has given them two new dynamic weapons to take the load off AJ, but the key is Dalton. If the QB progresses in the way Lewis and Cincy want him to, then the division could well be there for the taking, but if, as many believe, he is a run-of-the-mill signal caller, then the exciting talents in the rest of the team will really have to step up to take the Bengals all the way.
PITTSBURGH STEELERS – 2012: 8-8
Big Ben and the Pittsburgh men are another transformed roster in the NFL, and now they are younger, faster and more explosive than ever. With the likes of Harrison, Wallace and Medenhall leaving Heinz Field, the young guns Jones, Brown, Bell, may well have to instantly become solid starters for the team in order for them to overhaul the two who were at the top last season. But if Roethlisberger stays healthy and the defense plays how a Pittsburgh defense should play, then the Steelers will always have a chance to be successful. Coach Mike Tomlin knows how he wants his teams to play football and rookie RB LeVeon Bell could be the key to that; with his hard running style, he can make the ground game a strength once more for the Steelers, making Big Ben so much more dangerous off play action and on the move. This season should be solid at least in Pittsburgh.
CLEVELAND BROWNS – 2012: 5-11
While last season cannot be considered a failure for the Browns, they still have to be a bit disappointed with the 5-11 return after showing glimpses of a potentially top defense, even more so now with the addition of Paul Kruger, and having a weapon in RB Trent Richardson who can carry the load and take pressure off of the rest of the offense. There are huge question marks over QB Brandon Weeden, who many see as a stop gap until Cleveland can find the right man to lead the offense, hence bringing in Jason Campbell for competition, but he did show flashes of what he could do when connecting for big plays with the oft-troubled but very talented Josh Gordon. Gordon needs to stay focused on football or his team will really feel his absence, as he is by far and away the biggest receiving threat that the Browns have, although the addition of Davone Bess in the slot could be a great pickup for Cleveland.
ROUNDUP AND PREDICTION
The division is balanced very finely between the three ‘big boys’; rookies, young players and canny signings could play a massive part in deciding where this year’s AFC North goes, but I can’t help but feel that this could be the year that there is a landscape shift in this historic division, and the oft-chided Bengals could finally turn the tables on the Ravens and Steelers. I expect two teams to make their way to the playoffs from this division, but it’s a coin toss between the two old rivals to see who misses out. In the end, it could be the reigning champs who miss the experience of three club heroes, and the Steelers who nick the Wild Card spot. This will probably be a very good division with a very high standard of football, we’re going to enjoy watching these teams fight it out.
