NFL Quarterly Review: AFC North

AFC North

MVP: Joe Flacco

Analysts all over the place were predicting a bigger role for Flacco than seen in previous years, and so far they’ve been right. Torrey Smith is turning into a top-tear wideout for the Ravens, while Ray Rice continues to catch ball out of the backfield, and Dennis Pitta is slowly emerging as one of Flacco’s favorite targets. I wonder what happens to the Ravens’ offense once winter sets in and it becomes tough to throw the ball in Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Cincinnati, but so far Flacco—and his 95.8 quarterback rating—looks great.

LVP: Brandon Weeden

We knew it was going to be a tough adjustment for Weeden. He’s looked a little better recently, but I can’t get that Week 1 stinker out of my head (12 for 35, 118 yards, 0 touchdowns, 4 interceptions, 5.1 QB rating). The Browns will most likely center their offense around Trent Richardson, and will most likely be out of the playoff hunt, so there won’t be a ton of pressure on Weeden going forward. Brown’s fans should just hope for steady, marked improvement week to week.

Weeden has been hit-or-miss so far this year

Player to Watch: Andy Dalton

Go take a look at Andy Dalton’s numbers from the last 3 games. Better yet, here they are. So in Week 1 he was terrible, and from Week 2 through Week 4 he’s been elite. Like, he’s been elite. Personally, I thought the Bengals were due for a regression this year. Dalton looks like he’s on a mission to prove me wrong. As a fellow ginger, I wish him all the best.

Division Winner: Baltimore Ravens

I’m of the opinion that the Ravens and Texans are the two best best teams in the AFC, so naturally I’m picking Baltimore to win the division. The Steelers offensive line has looked really bad this year, so I can’t get behind them, and I’m going to have to see Dalton put up a couple more weeks worth of good numbers before I buy the Bengals. The Browns aren’t in the conversation here. So it has to be the Ravens.

Torrey Smith looks like he's emerged as a true No. 1 receiver

Division Dog: Cleveland Browns

Not a lot of analysis here. The Browns just aren’t as good as the other 3 teams in the AFC North. They have a good nucleus, and I still think Trent Richardson will end up being a beast. But they just aren’t ready to compete for the division title yet.