2024 AFC North Division Preview/Predictions

Intro hello there everyone and welcome to the AFC North divisional preview for the upcoming 2024 NFL season I'm Alex and I'll guide you through what I think is going to happen in the toughest division in football yet again Yes you heard me right this is the toughest division in football I think there are there is a very good chance that all four of these teams get a winning record yet again do I think it's going to happen well you're just going to have to stay tuned and find out first on the docket the Pittsburg Pittsburgh Steelers Steelers oh boy oh boy oh boy oh boy what an interesting team you they've been really trying to find their guy since Ben rothberger retired Mike Tomlin still the coach got Kenny picket the last couple of years turn out not to be the guy well now you have Russell Wilson and Justin field both playing at the quarterback position Russell Wilson has been confirmed to be the week one starter it's interesting a lot of people are very not excited with this team uh a lot of people really do not like what this team's doing and where they're going I tend to agree a little bit I'm not a massive fan of the team uh Naji Harris and Jaylen Warren is a good running back tandem I like Jaylen Warren George Pickins is a great receiver but you look at that receiving core and you're like this is where someone like Brandon iuk would have absolutely made an impact because now you got a rookie and Roman Wilson who's being thrust into your third receiver spot which is an inherently a Bad Thing uh you got van Jefferson as well pretty much acting as your wide receiver too so that's little that's going to be it's going to be tough sledding in the receiving game uh Pat fr will most likely be the second receiving option for Wilson and Fields their defense is really good though uh Minka Fitzpatrick TJ watt they got Patrick Queen from Baltimore they stole him from a division rival Cameron hayward's still going um they got a good defense that can help them stay in some games here but I think the success of this team is going to rely on how Russell Wilson and Justin Fields play throughout the season with that receiving core cuz it's not looking wonderful I think the passing offense is going to be the most critical part of this team that needs to succeed and well well well what a surprise this is the year I think this is the year I've been trying to call it for a couple of years I really have I've been thinking it was the last two years this my third year in a row predicting that this is going to be the year the Steelers finish under 500 for the first time in forever for the first time since Mike tolman's been head coach I think this is the year uh I don't love the team I think the defense will help him win a couple games especially against easier competition but uh they're just really isn't too much on this schedule that I think will will work out though I do think they get a game against Baltimore I think that for some reason Pittsburgh is just doesn't matter how good the Ravens are Pittsburgh just finds a way to beat him once at least once every season um for the last half decade it doesn't matter they've been finding a way to to beat him and uh I think it's going to continue but I think that's going to be their biggest win by a landslide they get an absolutely brutal schedule to end the season yeah I think that they're going to have a good start you know six and three six and four excuse me looking at through their first 10 games but look at that division schedule I think it's brutal I think they get a get a win against Cleveland but um man that is tough your two non- division games at the end of the year are Philadelphia on the road and Kansas City it's tough sledding for the Steelers here uh to end the year and I think it's going to come back and haunt them I don't know if they'll be able to salvage a winning season this time around I think that's their ceiling I don't think they do any better than 9 and8 uh but I do not see them going to the postseason I feel that this is finally the year that they finish at the bottom of the AFC North next up let's head on down to the Baltimore Ravens Chesapeake Bay to talk about the Baltimore Ravens and their potential Super Bowl aspirations for this season telling you this has to be the year for Baltimore they've had a couple years now where things haven't gone their way last year being the biggest case of them being the biggest case of it and uh they they need to get it going they need to they need to find a way to get back to the Super Bowl they need to find a way to win the AFC this year and they just got better they just did Lamar Jackson Derrik Henry the big acquisition and that was really all they needed honestly they kind of neutrals out the loss of Patrick Queen but like there's still a phenomenal team top to bottom uh and that that offense is going to be lethal Lamar Jackson the Dual threat nature you got Derrick Henry in the backfield and now you got a couple receivers you got Z flowers but you got to hope that Lamar Jackson can uh perform at uh the top level in the postseason uh and then of course you got one of the best tight ends of Mark Andrews you got Justin matab who just had a career year uh I mean it is there is a lot to look forward to with this Baltimore team um they're one of the few fr franchises out there that's just waiting for the postseason to start you know they're going to have fun watching the regular season but really they're they're just waiting for the postseason to start that's when they're really going to get involved um and that's exactly what I think is going to happen uh I think this is the one team in the league that can win 15 games this year this team is phenomenal uh I think they win that first game opening night against Kansas City I think they get the their Revenge as it has been kind of An Occurrence over the last handful of years with these top tier AFC teams against uh against Patrick Mahomes not lar Jackson to beat Mahomes in the regular season but Mahomes gets the best of them in the playoffs I don't know if that's going to happen again but what I can what I do think is going to happen is Baltimore comes out swinging and gets their Revenge week one and Kansas City loses in their opener for the second straight year I think they slip up early against Dallas if not they could go on a they could probably win nine in a row nine 10 in a row I I like they they really could um if they get through that stretch of Dallas Buffalo Cincinnati without taking a loss they very well could lose any one of those three games but you know it's interesting I and frankly they I have them losing that last game against Cleveland because at this point I think they'd be resting their starters at that point um after beating Houston the week prior being 13 and three I think they would just be content with resting starters um so you know I I think that they be in a position to do that they very well could get to 15 wins uh if they find a way to knock off Pittsburgh and beat a team like Dallas but you know it's interesting I think they I think it this shows that this division's tough I feel like the Ravens split with all three of their division oppon opponents and lose just that one game to Dallas and that's it then you have it 13-4 for the Baltimore Ravens but I mean they're just looking and getting ready for the postseason this is going to be interesting I'm going to be really excited to watch this team in the upcoming season next up we're bordering the Ohio Cincinnati Bengals River we're going to Cincinnati to go check out the Cincinnati Bengals and see what they've got cooking for the upcoming NFL season I think that they are the beneficiaries of uh a little bit of an injury problem last year Joe burrow getting hurt about halfway through but their backup still played well and they finished with a 9 and8 record finishing fourth in the division with a winning record I mean that is just impressive and it looks like to me it's going to benefit the team I'll get i'll get to that in just a second but looking at the roster I like this team I I think this is the year to rebound if Joe bur can stay healthy throughout the entire season got Zach Moss replacing Joe Mixon that is a tough that's a tough loss for the Bengals uh losing Ty Tyler Boyd isn't great either but I still I still like the core pieces of this team I still think they're going to be a good franchise and a good team to be paying attention to this this season their defense is not their defense is largely unchanged their front seven is still still great I really like this team to do well I know there are certain people who think that the Bengals will not do well solely for the fact that they think Joe burrow will get hurt that's not you know a terrible prediction but you know I am making these predictions based on uh if everyone plays throughout the entire season and there are no injuries because I think it's kind of fun that way because you start thinking about it you're it becomes you're jumping through too many hoops and you're you're thinking way too hard on it so yeah I think the Bengals are going to be a really good team this year and I think it's a going to be a bit inflated from the fact they're playing a fourth place schedule they're playing teams like the Panthers the Patriots and the Titans instead of the better teams in those respective divisions and I think that they sweep those three games and it's going to be huge for them that they don't have to worry about taking on first second place teams they're going to benefit from playing some weaker competition from the tough end last year but they still were a good team they finished nine and eight um with that being said I think uh three of their five losses come from within the division I think they get swept by Cleveland this year uh I think that it's going to be interesting they get a loss to Kansas City and Baltimore they do get the Ravens in one of the two games this year I I think their schedule is a little favorable this year um I think 12 and5 is their ceiling I don't think you kind of switch around certain games and who they're losing to and whatnot um I think 12 wins is probably the the ceiling for this Bengals team I don't think there's a world where they don't finish with a f an above 500 record if everyone stays healthy um and again that's a big if everyone stays healthy but again I I still do like this Bengals team uh and I like them to play well get a couple really big wins and convincingly convincingly make the Cleveland Browns postseason and finally we travel up north to Cleveland to check out the Browns a team that is kind of in a state of flux right now they're kind of it's hard to kind of see what this team's going to play like this year but one thing is for certain it's not going to be the same like it was at the end of last season no more Joe flacko Deshawn Watson is back in the the saddle and you could argue that people in Cleveland are not happy that their starting quarterback is back instead of a backup not something you say or hear about all the time that you'd rather have the backup the emergency backup and then the starter but you know what do I know I think a big thing that the Cleveland Browns are going to want this year is Nick chub to stay healthy I think he's going I think he's still going to miss the early portion of this season but uh he he needs to be able to stay in for more than a game and a quarter um that injury was brutal last season but that's that shows the resiliency of this Cleveland team they overcame those things and made the postseason uh so they they did a good job what what they had this year Amari Cooper still there they picked up Jerry Judy which could be a good second option but that defense at front seven is looking good mil Garrett still back a oneman wrecking crew right there himself you got J back for another year who had a great season last year and I like uh Denzel Ward Greg Nome and that's secondary I think that defense is pretty good but there's one weakness to this Cleveland team in my opinion and that's the division that they play in in the schedule that they're getting uh I think they also suffer from a bit of an inconsistency problem this year uh you know losing to Washington or New Orleans I think those are going to be tough losses to take um but I I think they're going to be one of the more inconsistent teams this season uh I think you know like they finish strong to end the season they beat Cincinnati twice they beat Miami um you know I I think they beat Dallas week one I think they're going to have a couple big wins this season but uh I also think they're going to have a couple lows um I I it's it's a hard team to get a read on I have him winning eight games this year I don't think they can go too much lower I think about seven six seven wins here is their floor uh with their ceiling being 11 I think that's a fair assessment there um I and they could play really well this season and it all really depends on how consistent DeShaun Watson is cuz the team just seemed to play better when Joe flacko was in uh than as a opposed to when Deshawn Watson was playing quarterback so uh I think that it's going to really ride on DeShawn Watson this season if he can get back to his Houston form then this team can go places uh if he plays the way he has during his tenure in Cleveland I think it's more just a mediocre season not great not bad but that could also be a death sentence for a franchise like this right now but who knows we'll see they very well could prove me wrong one of the harder teams to call and predict this season but I have eight wins for the Cleveland Final Standings Browns and so let's take a look at the final division standings I have the Baltimore Ravens winning the AFC North this season and I have them taking the number one seed in the conference by in large part to beating Kansas City in that week one game I think Cincinnati is gonna be a really good team I think they get the top wild card in the AFC I think Pittsburgh and Cleveland could end up with winning records each themselves but I think with how the schedule works out and I feel like there's a little bit more inconsistency there than there was a year ago I think both those teams will finish just under the 500 Mark but not a bad decision and a bad division excuse me by any means uh I like this division a lot this division is going to be tough um I think what separates it from the rest of the other divisions I think Cleveland is a winning record team in most of the in I most the other divisions in this conference Pittsburgh may also have a winning record as well just from the whole Mike Tomlin thing especially if they played in a different division but I think this is the year that the Steelers finally break that streak go under 500 for the first time under Mike Tomlin and partially due to um some of the new changes but also more more partly to the fact they got a tough schedule to end the season and I feel like they're going to just struggle but there you have my final division dings for the AFC North this season so who wins the AFC North this season is it Baltimore again does Cincinnati come up and steal the division crown or do we see something more surprising are there more than two playoff caliber teams in this division does the entire division start and finish over 500 again let me know in the comments below what you think and what your predictions for this division are please drop a like on this video if you liked it and subscribe if you really liked it to check out more of my NFL content you can see a playlist of all my previous division previews to get yourself ready for the upcoming NFL season that starts this week I cannot tell you I am so excited to see what happens in the NFL this year I don't know if I've ever been more excited for an NFL season in my lifetime I don't know why this season just really capturing me I guess uh we'll just have to wait and see thanks guys for watching and I will see you guys later bye