Through three weeks, the AFC North has turned into a four-way traffic jam. No team has separated itself, and all four clubs sit at two wins apiece. The biggest surprise in that pile is Cleveland, a team many had written off before the season even got rolling.
Todd Monken’s Browns have now stacked back-to-back upset wins, and the latest came Sunday against the Carolina Panthers in dramatic fashion. What once looked like a lost season has suddenly put Cleveland in a tie for the top spot in the division.
Baltimore remains the group’s most convincing team at the moment. The Ravens bounced back with a win over the Cowboys in Brazil, and the talent level on the roster is obvious even with some rough edges still showing.
A new coaching staff had to be absorbed for the first time in nearly two decades, so some early turbulence was expected. Even so, Baltimore’s offense is already inside the league’s top four in both EPA per pass and EPA per rush through three weeks.
Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson are both producing at a high level, and once Jesse Minter’s defense settles in, the Ravens look built to chase a spot in the conference championship.
Cincinnati, meanwhile, took the hit that comes with a defense still trying to find itself. Aaron Rodgers rolled back the years and pushed the Steelers to a high-scoring win, exposing some of the Bengals’ issues on that side of the ball.
When Dexter Lawrence II is on the field, the defense looks much better, but one player can’t carry the whole unit. The Bengals need more help from the rest of the roster if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Cleveland’s rise is the biggest twist in the division. The Browns are not exactly winning with style, but they keep finding ways to close out games.
That matters in a division this crowded. Their ceiling remains limited with Deshaun Watson under center, but they are clearly not the bottom-feeder most people expected.
If they can knock off the Steelers in Week 4, they’ll force everyone to take them seriously as a playoff threat.
Pittsburgh sits fourth despite the surge from Rodgers in Sunday’s win. He looked like the version of himself the Steelers were hoping for, and the victory over Cincinnati was impressive.
But the first two weeks still hang over this team. Pittsburgh’s offense is sitting 31st in EPA per play and 30th in success rate, and one strong outing won’t erase that kind of start.
Rodgers will get another chance to prove it next Thursday when the Steelers visit Cleveland, a game that could go a long way toward sorting out the AFC North order.
Week 3 results: Browns beat Panthers 21-18
Steelers beat Bengals 30-27
Ravens beat Cowboys 34-31
Next games: Ravens vs.
Titans on Sunday, Oct. 4
Bengals vs. Jaguars on Sunday, Oct.
4 Browns vs.
Steelers on Thursday, Oct. 1
In Other News...
Pat Freiermuth Just Reopened An Ugly Browns Fan Reputation
Pat Freiermuth brought an old scar back into view this week when he revisited a rookie-season memory that stuck with him far beyond the final whistle. Ahead of the Steelers upcoming game against the Browns, the tight end described the scene around his game-winning touchdown in Cleveland, a moment that should have been about the play itself but instead turned into something far uglier in the stands.
Freiermuth said his mother was the one caught in the middle of it, and the memory has been enough to change her routine when the Steelers head to Cleveland. Even so, he made clear there are no lingering hard feelings, just a reminder of how quickly a night in the AFC North can turn personal and why certain road games still carry an edge no scoreboard can erase. [Read more 🡒]
Browns Keep Winning But One Problem Is Starting To Look Dangerous
The Browns have done enough through three games to sit at 2-1, but the way they have gotten there has left a growing concern hanging over an otherwise encouraging start. Cleveland has been flagged 34 times already, the second-highest total in the NFL, and the issue has become hard to ignore even as head coach Todd Monken and his staff continue to stress the need to clean it up.
The bigger worry is that the problem has not settled down, even with key players drawing repeated flags, including right tackle Tytus Howard. The Browns have been able to survive it by winning tight games and leaning on late scoring drives from Deshaun Watson, but the margin for error shrinks quickly when a team keeps putting itself behind the chains and giving away yards it cannot afford to lose. [Read more 🡒]
Browns Rookie Is Pushing Veterans In A Troubling Position Battle
Emmanuel McNeil-Warren arrived in Cleveland as a second-round pick with the usual rookie expectations, but his first three weeks have started to look more like a challenge to the veterans in front of him than a slow apprenticeship. His defensive snaps have been limited so far, yet when he has been on the field, he has made the most of it and drawn strong grades from PFF relative to other Browns defenders.
That kind of early efficiency can change a depth chart quickly, especially for a team trying to sort out its safety mix and steady itself against the run. Cleveland has reason to consider expanding McNeil-Warrens role if the current personnel at the position keeps leaving openings, and the next stretch could show whether the rookie is merely earning more trust or forcing a tougher conversation about who should be playing more. [Read more 🡒]