Bengals Will Be Challenged In AFC North

The Bengals play in one of the toughest divisions in the NFL. It’s a difficult task being in the same division as the defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens, who lost to the Steelers in the AFC Championship game. The AFC North has two of the top teams in the conference and the Cleveland Browns have a revamped defense under new head coach Eric Mangini so they have the potential to compete for a playoff spot.

This off season Mangini and the Browns focused on improving the defense. They signed veteran cornerbacks Corey Ivey and Hank Poteat, and acquired defensive end Kenyon Coleman and safety Abram Elam from the Jets in a draft day trade to go along with defensive tackle Shaun Rogers and cornerback Brandon McDonald. In the draft, the Browns added defensive end David Veikune and linebacker Kaluka Maiava and then in the sixth round drafted cornerbacks Don Carey and Coye Francies., but it’s still uncertain on who will lead the offense. Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn will compete for the spot in training camp, but this could be an issue all season if the team starts off slow. Each week Mangini will have to answer questions on if he is going to switch quarterbacks so this could lead to rifts in the locker room.

The Ravens took a step back after defensive coordinator Rex Ryan left the team to become the head coach of the Jets, and took some of his players from the top defense in the league, but they still have Ray Lewis, Terrell Suggs and Ed Reed so the defense is still strong. They added former Falcons cornerback Domonique Foxworth to bolster the secondary. Joe Flacco leads the offense for the second straight season and they signed former Pro Bowl center Matt Birk to be the leader on the offensive line. After going 11-5 a year ago, expect this team to return to the playoffs and make a run at the Steelers for the division.

It’s going to be a tough task for any team to take the Steelers off their pedestal. Ben Roethlisberger has won two Super Bowl rings and he is only 27-years-old. Roethlisberger lost one of his receivers, Nate Washington, to Tennessee in free agency but Santonio Holmes and HinesWard return along with tight end Heath Miller. Limas Sweed could pick up the slack for Washington. On the defense side, the Steelers are just as strong as they were a year ago as they return NFL defensive player of the year James Harrison, linebacker James Farrior and strong safety Troy Polamalu. The defense was first in the league in allowing the least amount of points, total yardage and passing yardage. They were second in the league in rushing yards allowed. Expect the Steelers to have similar success this season.

The Bengals will be challenged every week playing in this division. After only making the playoffs once in the last 18 years, don’t expect the Bengals to play in the postseason. Cincinnati has improved but still aren’t better than the Steelers or Ravens. It would be difficult for the Bengals to be the third team from that division to make the playoffs, especially when they are fighting for a spot between Patriots, Colts, Titans, Chargers and Jaguars. It could be another long season for Cincinnati fans.