2023 AFC North Prediction

By: Garret Kryzanowski

The AFC North is the other AFC division that is arguably the best in the NFL. You could make a case for each team to not only win the AFC north but the Super Bowl as well. But only one team can win the division.

So who will it be?

The Pittsburgh Steelers will finish fourth in the AFC North this season. The Steelers are full of young talented players including their former first round pick at quarterback, Kenny Pickett. Now, Pickett started off slow last year and did throw more interceptions than touchdowns but the Steelers did win their last four games and barely missed the playoffs. The weapons around him are going to give him the chance to improve tremendously in year two. At running back they will rely heavily on Najee Harris to help acclimate Pickett while the defence led by TJ Watt and Minkah Fitzpatrick will look to keep the opposing teams in check. So why are they predicted to finish fourth? Two things. One, their youth will cost them in some close games and this division is too good for mistakes late in games. Two, Matt Canada is their offensive coordinator and he has zero imagination when calling plays. These two things will be the key contributors to the Steelers finishing fourth in the North this season.

Next up I have the Cleveland Browns finishing in third place in 2023. This team is very tricky to pinpoint because on paper they're one of the best teams in the league, but the NFL isn't a paper league. So, will the Browns perform in 2023? Maybe. At quarterback they have the former Pro Bowler Deshaun Watson. Watson had a very bad season last year once he came back from his 11 game suspension last season. To be far he hadn't played an NFL game in 18 months so I do expect Watson to bounce back and have a good season, thanks in no part to the weapons around him. At receiver he has former Pro Bowler Amari Cooper and Donovan Peoples-Jones. The Browns also have a very underrated tight end in David Njoku and arguably the best running back in the NFL, Nick Chubb. On defence they are full of big time names in Myles Garrett, Za'darius Smith and Denzel Ward. The defence will be very stingy this season and a great example of the bend don't break mantra. So what is their downfall besides a tough division? Coaching. I think Kevin Stefanski is a terrible game manager late in games, as we saw in week two against the Jets in 2022. I believe that they will be in lots of close games and I truly believe Stefanski will mismanage his use of timeouts late in games. As well as his fourth down decision making. You can't lose lots of close games and win a division. That is why the Browns will finish third this season.

That leaves two teams with two MVP candidate quarterbacks in the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals. Both teams will make the playoffs and it will be very close and come down to the last weeks of the season. So who will prevail?

The Baltimore Ravens will finish in a close second in the battle for the AFC North. The Ravens roster is full of insane talent in 2023, starting with the 2019 MVP, Lamar Jackson. For the first time in Jackson's career the Ravens have given him multiple weapons not named Mark Andrews. The Ravens drafted my pick for Offensive Rookie of the Year, Zay Flowers as well as bringing in Odell Beckham Jr to help take the pressure off of 2021 first round pick Rashod Bateman. At running back they finally have a fully healthy J.K Dobbins who will benefit from the spies defences will put on Jackson. All of these weapons will be in full use in new offensive coordinator Todd Monken's system. On defence they have playmakers in Roquan Smith and Patrick Queen at linebacker. At safety they have two great safeties in Kyle Hamilton and Marcus Williams. The questions for the Ravens this year are with the secondary. They lack depth, especially with Marlon Humphrey being out the first two weeks. I also see the defensive line struggling to create pressure on quarterbacks unless Smith or Queen are blitzing. They lack the depth that elite teams need on the defensive line. The Ravens will win tons of games this season and they will make the playoffs, however, they will not win the AFC North.

That leaves the two-time defending AFC North champion Cincinnati Bengals as the division champions in 2023. The Bengals will be led by their offence once again this season and that starts and ends with Joe Burrow. Burrow has taken the NFL by storm the last two seasons and is what every franchise wants in a quarterback; calm, cool and collected. The receivers around him help a lot too. There isn't any team in the NFL with a trio as good as Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. They make his job easier. As does Joe Mixon who is a very consistent and reliable running back and the addition of Chase Brown will provide the Bengals with depth at the running back position. On defence they will be led by Sam Hubbard and Trey Hendrickson on the defensive line. The questions with this Bengals team lie within the offensive line. Can they protect Joe Burrow? I don't know. Adding Orlando Brown Jr has already improved the offensive line from last year but it needs to be better. Burrow was already banged up with a calf injury during the preseason and if he goes down their season is over. They must protect Burrow at all costs. The division will once again go to Cincinnati but it will be close.

My prediction? The Bengals will win the AFC North by way of tiebreakers in 2023.