Steelers, Bengals or Ravens, who wins the AFC North Crown?
https://afcnorthnews.blogspot.com/2012/08/steelers-bengals-or-ravens-who-wins-afc.html
"It is fair to say that the Bengals surprised numerous Analysts and fans last season, being picked by many to place 32nd in numerous power rankings and yet they finished the season as they did--making the playoffs. Using the individual performances of the teams of the AFC North last season as a benchmark which team, if any, do you feel will perform at an unexpected level, a rise or a fall or will it remain status quo?"
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I certainly expect there to be changes in the AFC North this year. However, I expect glacial speed changes not any sudden drastic ones - so it will remain more status quo than anything else.
The "big" change will be the number of teams from the AFC North that make the playoffs this year. While the AFC North is still the clear cut best division in the AFC - I can't see the division landing both Wild Card spots again. The Wild Card spots have a lot to do with facing an easy schedule - and the AFC North will face a much tougher slate this year. Last year they lucked into facing both the AFC South and NFC West in the same year on the rotation. This year it switches to the much tougher duo of the AFC West and NFC East. Combined 7 of the 8 teams went at least 7-9 last season from those two divisions.
With that said I think the AFC North only lands one of the Wild Card spots this year instead of both of them. I don't expect the division winner to go 12-4 again this year. Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati all have a legit shot at capturing the divisional crown in 2012. Each team has its positives and negatives. Whichever team emerges will probably capture the division title with a record of 11-5. One team should snag a Wild Card spot at 10-6. Finally the other team should just miss the playoffs with a record of 9-7.
The trendy pick amongst the populous to miss the playoffs among those three teams is the Bengals. That is based on a long-standing position of doubt that constantly surrounds the Bengals that I tackled during our last Off-Sides debate. At this point I think you could pick the odd team out from out of a hat. In the end it will likely come down to the team that remains the healthiest winning the division with the team that suffers the most crucial injuries being the odd man out.
The mortal lock in terms of maintaining the status quo is the Cleveland Browns finishing in last place. This season already has the feel of a "dead man walking" and the pre-season hasn't even started yet. The Browns went 4-12 last year despite a creampuff non-division schedule. They followed that up by butchering the 2012 NFL draft (article here) after they did next to nothing of significance in free agency. Now they face a much tougher schedule in 2012 after that series of missteps. They will be lucky to repeat that 4-12 record and they could be vying for the top pick in the 2013 NFL Draft. The old adage of "waiting 'til next year" has to be grating on the nerves of every realistic Browns fan out there by this point.
Who wins the AFC North
