Early Look At The AFC North

The Baltimore Ravens should have another strong run left behind its core of veteran leaders.  Steve McNair has been in the mix for a full off-season.  Mark Clayton has emerged as a productive pass catcher.  Dementrius Williams is emerging as a downfield target.  Willis McGahee brings more diversity to the backfield as the Ravens are looking for a more versatile ground game.  The Ravens lost a lot of versatility when Adalius Thomas signed with New England, but defense remains the foundation here.  They still have a core of strong difference makers on this side of the ball.  They can still get after the passer and create turnovers.  Terrell Suggs continues to develop into a monster off the edge.  Ray Lewis and Bart Scott make a lot of stops against the run.  Ed Reed plays a big role in the middle of the secondary.  Depth at cornerback is the only concern.  There will be a lot of eyes on whether Samari Rolle can rebound after an off-year. 

The Cincinnati Bengals will score points.  Carson Palmer can beat teams through the air with Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh.  Rudi Johnson leads a powerful run game.  Losing Eric Steinbach will be tough.  That leaves two young players working next to each other in Andrew Whitworth and Eric Ghiaciuc along the offensive line.  Defense remains a concern.  They have a lot of young players who must mature fast.  They have a lot of solid role players along the front four, but lack the ability to disrupt teams and overpower them at the line of scrimmage.  The coaches rave at the potential of Ahmad Brooks and Rashad Jeanty at linebacker, but inexperience is a big factor here.  The same holds true at cornerback.  Jonathan Joseph and Leon Hall eventually should develop into a solid tandem, but need time to develop.  There will be a lot of eyes on Madieu Williams at safety.  He’s a good athlete, but must create more turnovers to lift this defense.  Overall, they will make a playoff push, but could need another season to develop on the defensive side of the ball.  This team also needs a stronger presence of veteran leadership across the board.

There is a lot of mystery surrounding the Pittsburgh Steelers.  There are always questions when you bring in a new coach – especially in this situation.  They lost a few valuable assistants on the offensive staff.  Mike Tomlin is a defensive coach adapting to the Pittsburgh philosophy.  Another question is Ben Roethlisberger at quarterback.  Roethlisberger must take his game to another level and cut down on mistakes.  It all comes down to his approach to the game.  The Steelers have a few solid targets to build around in the passing game.  Hines Ward remains productive.  Santonio Holmes has the ability to play a big role downfield and they must maximize Heath Miller’s tools in the passing game.  They do have questions along the offensive line and lose some stability without Jeff Hartings in the pivot.  They must get better play from the tackle positions.  I think they will miss Russ Grimm coaching this unit.  Pittsburgh will remain a strong club defensively, which will keep them in playoff contention.  They might lack a top pass rusher off the edge, but have a strong group within the front seven.  Troy Polamalu is a strong presence in the secondary, but they need to create more turnovers.  Bryant McFadden has the ability to make plays at cornerback.  And they are intrigued with the upside of Anthony Smith at free safety. 

The Cleveland Browns are starting to build a young core on both sides of the ball, but they need to be patient and let this group grow together for a few years.  Jamal Lewis and the upgrades along the front line bring more stability on the offensive side of the ball, but inexperience at the quarterback position will cause growing pains.  Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow are nice targets to build around in the passing game, although scouts question the makeup of both players.  Kamerion Wimberly will be a beast off the perimeter.  Andra Davis heads up a group of solid linebackers inside.  Sean Jones became a solid performer at safety last season.   Rookie Eric Wright will be a factor at cornerback quickly.  He has the speed and playmaking ability to speed up the rebuilding project on defense.

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