Ravens Beat Steelers, Browns, Bengals Once Again

We're approaching the two month mark until this upcoming NFL season kicks off, and now that teams have started to take shape and practice together, publications are submitting their expectations for this fall.

It's no fun for everyone to agree on who'll win a division, but consensus seems to point towards the Baltimore Ravens once again prevailing atop the AFC North. While CBS Sports attempted to make the case for some of their most bitter rivals, they settled on the "most complete team in the North" taking their third straight divisional crown.

They pulled off an offseason of subtlety, rounding out their roster using all of the resources at their expense. Baltimore improved on their occasionally-spotty defense with smart use of their premier draft picks, and capped off a winning summer with some key free agency pickups to bring veteran voices into an otherwise-young locker room that's ready to win now.

"Unlike the rival Steelers, the Ravens didn't make any major splashes this offseason, but that's partially because they didn't have to," Cody Benjamin wrote. "Lamar Jackson has his playoff hurdles to clear, but he's still one of aat quarterback going into Year 8, boasting improved passing efficiency in back-to-back years."

His diverse receiving corps, along with the added upside the Ravens inserted into their front line and the secondary, gives Baltimore the most obvious shot at surpassing the Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers in the win column, despite some interesting offseasons from all across the north.

The Bengals' Joe Burrow-powered passing attack alone prevents Cincinnati from getting counted out, and as Benjamin points out, "it'll be hard for the Bengals defense to be much worse than it was in 2024." The Steelers finally got a big-name quarterback of their own, albeit one entering his early-40s in Aaron Rodgers, while the Browns sort out their own signal-caller drama in Cleveland.

The AFC North regularly gives the NFL-viewing audience a lot to talk about between their routine matchups and the competitive football they regularly produce, but CBS cuts right to the chase with this one. The Ravens are the only team of the bunch with an over/under win total set in the double-digits for good reason.