Highlighting AFC North blockbuster games of 2025 season

The NFL released its complete schedule for the 2025 season on Wednesday. Here is the blockbuster game (and another intriguing matchup) for every team in the AFC North.

Baltimore Ravens | Complete schedule

BLOCKBUSTER | at Buffalo Bills, Sept. 7 (Week 1): 

Starting the season off with a potentially classic Sunday Night matchup, and a potential AFC Championship preview. Baltimore and Buffalo are two of the best teams in the NFL, Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen are two of the best quarterbacks in the NFL and it is a rematch of last year's divisional playoff game that came down to a two-point conversion attempt late in the fourth quarter. 

ALSO INTRIGUING | at Kansas City Chiefs, Sept. 28 (Week 4): 

The Ravens' early-season schedule is loaded with an absolute murderer's row of potential Super Bowl contenders, including Buffalo in Week 1, Detroit in Week 3, Kansas City in Week 4 and Houston in Week 5. That's about as difficult a stretch as a team can have through the first five weeks and could make-or-break their season. The Week 4 game against Kansas City is another potential AFC Championship Game preview. 

Cincinnati Bengals | Complete schedule

BLOCKBUSTER | at Baltimore Ravens, Nov. 27 (Week 13): 

Cincinnati and Baltimore should figure to be the favorites in the AFC North, and their first meeting of the season comes in a primetime, Thursday night game on Thanksgiving. Cincinnati lost both of the 2024 meetings by a combined four points. They were one or two players away from winning both, which could have easily put them into the playoffs. 

ALSO INTRIGUING | at Buffalo Bills, Dec. 7 (Week 14): 

Cincinnati's stretch of games between Weeks 13 and 15 is by far its toughest stretch of the season. It is during that stretch where they play both Baltimore games, and then have a road game at Buffalo sandwiched into the middle of it. Joe Burrow vs. Josh Allen is going to be one of the best quarterback matchups of the season. 

Cleveland Browns | Complete schedule

BLOCKBUSTER | at Baltimore Ravens, Sept. 14 (Week 2): 

There is always history and bad blood when the Ravens and Browns meet, but this one could also be fascinating depending on who the Browns' starting quarterback is. If it is Joe Flacco — as it probably might be — it would almost certainly be one of Flacco's final games in Baltimore, the city where he started his career and won a Super Bowl. 

ALSO INTRIGUING | at Pittsburgh Steelers, Oct. 12 (Week 6): 

Along the same lines as the Week 2 game in Baltimore, this could largely come down to who the starting quarterback is. 

The Browns-Steelers rivalry has been pretty even the past few years, with home-field advantage largely dictating who wins. But the sub-plot to this could be Kenny Pickett returning to Pittsburgh and potentially playing against the team that made him a first-round pick. 

Pittsburgh Steelers | Complete schedule

BLOCKBUSTER | at New York Jets, Sept. 7 (Week 1): 

This, of course, is assuming that Aaron Rodgers ultimately decides to sign with the Steelers, as has been rumored for the past few months. If he does, you have Rodgers going against the Jets after his failed tenure there, and Justin Fields opening his Jets career against the team that benched him after a 4-2 start a year ago. That is some good intrigue. 

ALSO INTRIGUING | vs. Green Bay Packers, Oct. 26 (Week 8): 

Another potential Aaron Rodgers revenge game (again, with the assumption that he signs in Pittsburgh), and this one would be on prime-time on a Sunday night in Pittsburgh. Rodgers has never had a chance to play against Green Bay after spending a decade-and-a-half as its quarterback and making it a yearly Super Bowl contender.