Last season, the AFC North made history for being the first division in the modern era to have all four teams finish the season with a winning record. When you accomplish historical feats like that, no one on the planet can argue against the fact that the division was without a doubt the best in the NFL. Even after a catastrophic injury to Cincinnati Bengals superstar Joe Burrow, backup quarterback Jake Browning was able to lead the team to a 9-8 record.
AFC North Gets Even Better After 36 Hours of Free Agency
To answer a hypothetical question, let’s just forget for a moment that this was the best division of all time last season. Some of the better players from the division such as Baltimore Ravens linebacker Patrick Queen and safety Geno Stone left their team this week to join other teams within the division. Queen announced minutes ago that he would leave for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Stone will be heading farther down along the Ohio River to Cincinnati.
On top of that, the elite talent that these teams have brought in during the free agency window has been staggering. Last season, Pittsburgh was the only team in this division without an elite quarterback so what do they do? Pittsburgh went out earlier this week and signed Super Bowl Champion Russell Wilson from his bout in purgatory with the Denver Broncos.
On top of landing a superstar at the quarterback position, the best team in the AFC last season just went out and acquired arguably the most talented running back to play the game in the past twenty years. If you could believe it, the Baltimore Ravens felt that their running game was below par last season with Most Valuable Player award winner Lamar Jackson. To make up for that, they went out and signed the overpowering strength of former Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry to pair with him.
Even past his prime, the thought of having to defend the speed option with either Henry taking the ball in or Jackson bouncing it out terrifies me as a Bengals fan. Jackson put up spectacular performances last season even without a suitable skill player on the field aside from blossoming wide receiver Zay Flowers. While it doesn’t fit the mold of the modern NFL offense, Baltimore and their running game are going to give defensive coordinators literal nightmares next season.
As horrifying as it is for me to admit, Cincinnati looks like the worst team in the division on paper heading into 2024. The only thing holding back the Pittsburgh Steelers was the quarterback position with the inconsistent play of Kenny Pickett over the past few seasons. Even though Wilson appears to have lost a step since leaving Seattle, he generally pairs best with an elite running game. 2021 first round pick Najee Harris may have a tremendous comeback season in 2024 after this offense is rejuvenated under Wilson.
Just to avoid appearing as though I’m sensationalizing just how good this conference is, let’s just look at these teams on paper. Last season, three of these teams had top 5 defenses and those units remain virtually unchanged as we cruise through the first week of free agency. Now, all four of these teams have elite quarterback play that will make defending them challenging. Six months ahead of the regular season, I’m locking in my bet that the AFC North will remain the best division in the NFL in 2024.
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