OTL: Chaos in the Mediocre AFC North

Somewhere, Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase are looking at each other and thinking out loud that the AFC North is somehow up for grabs. Think about it. They just held the Ravens to 14 points despite having one of the most historically dismal defenses in the NFL.

Happy Thanksgiving, Baltimore, too bad.

Then they watched the Pittsburgh Steelers lose 26-7 at home to the Buffalo Bills. The Ravens are technically in first place in the AFC North, with an identical 6-6 record to the Steelers. So somewhere, Burrow is probably thinking who could trust either of these teams not to stumble a couple more times? Eight losses felt fairly disqualifying before Turkey Day, now it seems as plausible as one more sandwich made out of leftovers.

NFL.com’s Kevin Patra detailed the downward trajectory of the Steelers:

Pittsburgh’s offense did next to nothing. Against a Bills defense that had been gashed on the ground, the Steelers gained just 58 yards. Rodgers was sporadic and rarely on the same page with his targets – before and after he had his nose split on the sack-fumble. Rodgers looked like a broken man late, with the majority of his passes continuing to be short or behind the line of scrimmage. The lack of any field stretching constricts a wanting offense. Through three quarters, Pittsburgh earned a piddling 90 total yards and seven first downs. The inability to move the chains is demoralizing, as the Steelers ran just 43 plays compared to 74 for Buffalo. The defense was bullied by Buffalo, getting plowed over again and again. Despite facing a one-dimensional offense, Pittsburgh couldn’t get stops in the second half. It got so bad that the hometown fans booed during “Renegade.” It feels like a mutiny is brewing among the Pittsburgh faithful. However, the Steelers, at 6-6, remain tied for the AFC North lead ahead of next week’s showdown with the Ravens.

While we typically love seeing the Pittsburgh fanbase lose faith, you have to wonder if either team feels confident going into next Sunday’s pivotal battle. The Ravens just turned the ball over five times against a team that generates turnovers as quickly as a 90-year-old walks. The offensive line is abysmal. Emery Jones got some action, which gives a little bit of hope, but it’s fairly bleak up front. Daniel Faalele is officially big for nothing and Roger Rosengarten is not looking like a long-term answer at right tackle. Lamar Jackson is not playing well. There’s no other way to slice, it, he’s been missing wide open throws for the past two few weeks. He doesn’t seem to have his normal ability to make things happen with his legs, and the offense is paying for it. The Ravens have enough problems of their own.

The clash next Sunday will favor whoever can rise above their own madness. Maybe, it will be Jackson reclaiming his MVP ways. Maybe, it will be Rodgers looking like he’s in Super Bowl form again. Or just maybe, this will be the ugliest Ravens vs. Steelers game we’ve seen in a long, long time.

The biggest headline of the day was the Carolina Panthers stunning the Los Angeles Rams 31-28. It was a big day for Bryce Young who went 15/20 passing for 206 yards and three touchdowns. When the Panthers needed a first down to seal the game at the two-minute warning, the Panthers called on Young to make a clutch throw. It worked.

https://x.com/Panthers/status/1995238392666198140

Young is now the youngest NFL quarterback with 11-game winning drives. I didn’t know that was a tracked stat until now, but it is definitely a number that meets the moment. Young did it faster than Josh Allen and Peyton Manning. That’s pretty good for a quarterback who everyone wanted to label a bust way too prematurely. The Panthers have a better record than the Ravens, so we may actually be in the upside down. The Chicago Bears are now the number one team in the NFC. Do you know what’s even stranger? The last time the Bears lost, it was to the Tyler Huntley-led Ravens. I’m telling you Stranger Things really is back in more ways than just on Netflix.

As my cheesy but timely jokes crumble into the last few munches of lunch, things are actually getting very serious in the NFL. There are five more weeks in the regular season. Jeff Zrebiec has outlined the final schedule of the AFC North contenders.

https://x.com/jeffzrebiec/status/1995288722737439129

The Ravens have the hardest path. They start the final push with a battle against the Steelers, then fight the Bengals again, battle the Patriots and the Packers, and finish with another showdown against the Steelers, this time in Pittsburgh. In the Steelers’ non Ravens weeks they host the Dolphins, and head on the road to face the Lions and the Browns. The Lions are a tough game, but they should be expected to beat the Dolphins and Browns. The Bengals have the most pressure because they essentially have to win out. Their final stretch opens with the Bills and Ravens, but then it’s the Dolphins, Cardinals and Browns. The bottom line is that the Ravens have to play good football consistently, something you could argue they didn’t even accomplish during their five-game winning streak.

James Rapien of Sports Illustrated reports that the Bengals are far from cooked:

Burrow played against the Ravens just 69 days after undergoing surgery on his left big toe. He suffered a grade 3 toe sprain in Cincinnati’s Week 2 win over the Jaguars. The Bengals are 8-0 in Burrow’s last eight starts dating back to last season. The door is still open in the AFC North, which is something Burrow predicted when he was cleared for practice on Nov. 10.

“Our division is wide open,” Burrow said. “Everything is still there in front of us. It’s very rare that our division looks like this, but it does this year. I think we’ll be at least in it until the end.

The Bengals play the Bills in Buffalo next week, before returning home to play the Ravens. If they win both of those games, their playoff chances would jump to 31%.

I’m not saying the Bengals are going to make the playoffs. I’m just saying the playoffs started early for them, and fitting the theme of this week, stranger things have happened. The Ravens and the Steelers have some soul searching to do. The Bengals could be getting hot at the right time. It’s something to pay attention to at the very least.

For now, it’s beat Pittsburgh week. Happy Monday, let’s get it.

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