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John breaks down the biggest positional needs for each AFC North team -- the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, and Pittsburgh Steelers.
The AFC North, comprised of the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, and Pittsburgh Steelers, sent two teams to the playoffs in 2024 and had one on the cusp of a playoff berth. The Ravens have the best roster of the four teams by a long shot.
The Steelers have a solid defensive group, and the Bengals have one of the best offenses in the league, but each has multiple position groups that are seriously lacking. Meanwhile, the lowly Browns have very little going for them right now.
All four teams still have needs at a variety of positions, though, so it will be crucial for them to address the roster holes they have in the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft and through free agency.
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Baltimore Ravens
Wide Receiver
Having a team without a true alpha WR1 and an inconsistent WR2 tends to bite teams in the NFL playoffs. Even though the Ravens have tight end Mark Andrews, who's served as their top pass-catching option in the past and can fill in as a WR2 for the most part, sometimes that's just not good enough.
MARK ANDREWS DROPPED THE GAME-TYING PASS 😳
(via @NFL) pic.twitter.com/dGHC30xxun
— ESPN (@espn) January 20, 2025
Especially when he makes crucial drops like this. The Ravens' offense is, in general, very productive, but offensive coordinator Todd Monken's three tight end rotation of Andrews, Isaiah Likely, and Charlie Kolar, combined with having Zay Flowers as the team's WR1, just isn't a recipe for success in the postseason.
Against good pass defenses or against offenses that are also capable of running up the score, Baltimore will continue to fall flat in the playoffs unless they upgrade their WR corps. Which isn't something they seem intent on doing. In today's NFL, it's very hard to win with just a good run game and a quarterback that can help his mediocre wide receivers get more separation as opposing linebackers cheat up to try to stop the threat of the run game.
Edge Rusher
Every team that doesn't have an elite edge rusher, quarterback pressurer, and sack collector has a desire to acquire one, as one can turn a mediocre defense into a solid one and a solid defense into an elite group. Linebacker Kyle Van Noy led the team with 12.5 sacks while fellow LB Odafe Oweh racked up 8.5 of his own, but Van Noy is will be 34 when the 2025 season starts, so we might have seen his final great season.
Love how Kyle Van Noy goes from wrecking ball to sack on his combo with Nnamdi Madubuike.
On his other sack, KVN just walked big first-round pick Broderick Jones with straight power. 💪 pic.twitter.com/FMISt7NxKB
— Ryan Mink (@ryanmink) December 23, 2024
He was a huge part of the defense last year, so as soon as his play starts to fall off, the team could have major issues pressuring the quarterbacks. Luckily, this year's draft class has quite a few highly talented defensive ends and defensive linemen, so it wouldn't be surprising if Baltimore opts to select one with its first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Cincinnati Bengals
Edge Rusher/Defensive Line
Poor defense was the name of the game for the Bengals in 2025. Despite quarterback Joe Burrow's heroics, the fact that Cincy allowed over 25 points per game to opposing offenses was just too much to overcome. A big reason for this was their weakness at all parts of their defensive line, which resulted in a sack rate of just 5.91 percent, easily bottom-10 in the league.
If the Bengals lose Trey Hendrickson, they'll have to replace 1,348 snaps at defensive end in 2024 between he and Sam Hubbard. pic.twitter.com/ycilGViGZF
— Bengalscentre (@benga1scentre) March 9, 2025
That was despite the presence of defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who racked up 17.5 sacks. Now the Bengals are exploring trade options for their star pass-rusher, who's the only thing holding the defense together at this point. If they move forward with the trade, they'll have a massive need along the line.
They also lost DE Sam Hubbard, who announced his retirement after the 2024 season. It's unclear what their plans will be for the future.
Linebacker
The whole defense sucked, so they have needs at every position. While LB Logan Wilson had a solid season, Germaine Pratt did not, and finding an upgrade for him should be on the Bengals' to-do list. Pratt racked up plenty of tackles, but his overall play wasn't great. Also, he apparently wants out.
#Bengals defensive captain and leading tackler Germaine Pratt has requested a trade, sources tell me and @TomPelissero.
Cincinnati has been devoting resources to keeping their offensive core together and Pratt was close to DC Lou Anarumo, who was fired after last season. pic.twitter.com/NuP0TmxIZv
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 12, 2025
Safety
While cornerback is also a need for Cincy, the safeties weren't nearly as good this season, and the combination of Jordan Battle and Geno Stone were not suitable replacements for the departed Jesse Bates and Vonn Bell. The absence of Bates was especially felt. Cincinnati allowed opponents to convert over 42 percent of their third downs, bottom-10 in the league.
Cleveland Browns
Quarterback
The biggest need is at the quarterback position, which is ironic, because they won't be getting any serious help there any time soon. Ownership decided to hand QB Deshaun Watson, who is absolutely terrible both as a human being (I'm being generous calling him that) and an NFL player (I'm being generous there too), the most guaranteed money in NFL history to bring him from the Houston Texans to their team, and gave up a ton of draft capital.
The Deshaun Watson era in Cleveland will go down as one the biggest disasters in the franchise’s history. We all knew it was bad, but some of this stuff is eye opening.
Sounds like Stefanski tried to set him up for success in his scheme, but Watson didn’t adapt.#DawgPound pic.twitter.com/50vUCx4KAJ
— Big Mike (@big_mike9169) January 15, 2025
He's been nothing but dreadful in his time with Cleveland. The effort clearly doesn't seem to be there. Ever since he was exposed for being an absolute cretin, he's been in contention for the worst starting QB in the league. He's thrown just 19 touchdowns to 12 interceptions, failed to complete more than 65 percent of his passes, and faceplanted when trying to run a functional NFL offense. It's been repulsive.
Offensive Line
Cleveland also had a poor offensive line in 2024. Despite the presences of Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller, the group routinely underperformed. It's interesting that their win rates are pretty solid, according to ESPN, yet their composite rankings (aggregated scores from a variety of rating sources) aren't very good.
Run block and pass block composite ratings pic.twitter.com/JKR8xH99Wr
— Computer Cowboy (@benbbaldwin) January 7, 2025
Maybe no one wants to block for Watson, and the guys are just there to pick up their paycheck and go home. That might be a bigger part of it than they'd admit.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Wide Receiver
WR George Pickens is the undisputed No. 1 wideout for the team. He will also never reach his full potential because he's absolutely insane, crashes out with regularity, and seems more interested in doing things his way and getting what he wants than helping his team win.
I’m re-posting this video. The more I think about it. The more I think it’s the single worst highlight montage of a wide receiver from an NFL game ever produced. Drops galore. Immature behavior. I don’t think you win with guys like George Pickens. pic.twitter.com/qcl8LoQqBX
— Andrew Fillipponi (@ThePoniExpress) January 5, 2025
While many are enamored with his highlight-reel catches and insist that he's on the cusp of a monster season, he caught just three touchdowns in 2024 and didn't show much improvement in his game, despite Russell Wilson being a clear upgrade over QBs Kenny Pickett and Mason Rudolph in 2023.
And behind Pickens, there's just a washed Mike Williams (if he even remains on the team or gets re-signed by the Steelers), and Calvin Austin III, who's not a true WR2, but best suited as a WR3 and gadget receiver. Without better wideouts, Pittsburgh will continue to struggle in the passing game, as they have for years now.
Quarterback
They aren't going to bring back QB Russell Wilson. Which is fine.
RUSS TAKES A HARD HIT AND FUMBLES TO THE RAVENS 😱
(via @NFL)
pic.twitter.com/i2JPvdhPhd— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 21, 2024
I'll admit that there really isn't a good path forward here, considering the current market.
Running Back
The duo of RBs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren was mostly ineffective last season. Despite offensive coordinator Arthur Smith implementing one of the most run-happy offenses- over 48 percent of their plays were runs- Warren and Harris both failed to be difference makers. Harris, in particular, was a volume merchant.
Najee Harris fantasy finish by year:
2021: RB4
2022: RB14
2023: RB20
2024: RB20 pic.twitter.com/v1hpVnIVe7— Yahoo Fantasy Sports (@YahooFantasy) March 9, 2025
Harris is just alright. He's not a difference-maker, doesn't have explosive speed, and isn't particularly elusive, but he can handle a big workload, remain mostly injury-free, and produce with modest efficiency. A team like the Steelers isn't going to succeed in the playoffs without an elite RB1, though, and they don't currently have one.
There's plenty of propaganda out there suggesting that Harris is actually elite and that Warren is one of the most slept-on backs in the league, but after three or more years of play, you generally have a good idea of who a player is. And it's not like neither hasn't had plenty of opportunities to shine.
Brute Strength + Power
- Power stiff arm
- Lower body strengthHe’s got the Madden “Arm Bar” trait.
He’s been taking notes watching Derrick Henry and Najee Harris.pic.twitter.com/QGOVw9BOJF
— Snoog's Fantasy HQ (@FFSnoog) March 3, 2025
There are at least eight running backs in the 2025 NFL Draft class who would be an immediate upgrade. I'm not the biggest advocate for Quinshon Judkins, but he's basically a faster and more explosive version of Harris and would fit right in with the culture Pittsburgh supposedly has.
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