(Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
Last year, the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers came from the AFC with the league's top defense. The AFC, and AFC North, where the Steelers play, were very strong last year and that is where I will start my 2009 NFL preview.
I am going to go to each division, review each team, and give a division winner and wild card if there is one in that division.
AFC North
1. Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers came away with this division last year with a 12-4 record and an amazing 6-0 record against that division(7-0 including the AFC Championship victory against the Ravens).
The Steelers still have a lot of the pieces from last year's Super Bowl team.
Starting on offense, Ben Roethlisberger has had an achilles injury, but he should be back in time for the season and ready to go. The legal problems that he has been facing shouldn't phase him at all.
The running game can be a lot better if second year player Rashard Mendenhall can stay healthy this year. Him, Willie Parker, and maybe even Mewelde Moore could be a very good trio of running backs.
The WR's pretty much look the same, with the exception of Nate Washington who went to Tennessee. They still have Super Bowl MVP Santonio Holmes and Hines Ward.
And then there is the defense, which can come back and be a top three defense again. With the cast of defensive players they have there(which could include rookie Ziggy Hood) the Steelers defense will be the strong point of this team again.
MVP: Troy Polamalu
He is the defensive leader, and really stood out as a top two safety last year along with Ed Reed.
2. Baltimore Ravens*
Having one of the best defenses this year, I think the Ravens could have a set back this year. Yes, they do have Ed Reed, Ray Lewis, and Terrell Suggs, but they lost Bart Scott and defensive coordinator Rex Ryan to the Jets.
The Ravens do still have a great defense, but the offense could really hold this team back from being better. There is no doubt that the defense carried this team last year and they may have to do it again.
Joe Flacco seemed to have a great season last year, taking the team to the AFC Championship but he really wasn't all that great. 14 TDs, 12 INTs and 2,971 yards. It puts him 20th in yards, 20th in TDs, and tied for 11th in INTs.
It also doesn't help that Flacco has virtually no receivers to throw to. Derrick Mason did decide to come back, which helps a little bit but he and Mark Clayton will be the top two guys for Flacco to throw to. Ouch. Todd Heap is nothing like he used to be either, and evidence of that is the Ravens bringing in LJ Smith.
Put aside the passing game and the Ravens do have a pretty good rushing attack. Willis McGahee and Ray Rice could go down as one of the top tandems of running backs this season. Those two, plus now FB Le'Ron McClain did a lot of damage last season.
MVP: Ed Reed
It's weird that I chose a safety for MVP of both of the first two teams, but Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu are two of the best defensive players in the league. Ray Lewis is getting older, and this is becoming Ed Reed's defense.
3. Cincinnati Bengals
The focal point of this year's HBO's Hard Knocks series, the Bengals need a huge improvement from last year.
QB Carson Palmer missed most of the season, but with him back and healthy this year, the Bengals should be able to improve their league last seven points per game average from last season.
The passing game should be pretty good this year, even with the departure of T.J Houshmanzadeh. They still have Chad Ochocinco, added Laverneaus Coles, and brought back Chris Henry for another go.
They drafted Rey Maualuga, who I am a big fan of, and brought in Tank Johnson to try and help this defense who only allowed 11.5 PPG which was fifth in the league.
But bringing back Chris Henry and Tank Johnson doesn't help the team's image, and if they don't improve their image, or the team's record, I can see the Bengals kicking out head coach Marvin Lewis.
MVP: Carson Palmer
Like I said, I think Carson will bounce back from injury and make this offense so much better than it was last year.
4. Cleveland Browns
Whether it is Derek Anderson or Brady Quinn starting, the Browns just don't have the firepower to compete in this division or the AFC North.
They didn't really have a good draft, trading down a couple of times just to take Alex Mack.
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