Season after season, the AFC North has been thoroughly dominated by the blood feud between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens.

Since the division’s rebranding in 2002, the Steelers and Ravens have shared 13 of the available 17 division titles and helped themselves to a combined three Super Bowl victories in the process.

While Baltimore and Pittsburgh have monopolised all of the AFC North’s attention for almost two decades, the Cincinnati Bengals have had small periods of competitiveness, while the Cleveland Browns have long functioned as the division’s unwanted step-child, existing in their own stratosphere of underachievement, while being the butt of league-wide jokes.

Yet the entire tenor of this division has changed in the past twelve months.

The Browns are suddenly a formidable NFL force with one of the most exciting rosters in the league, while the Steelers are going through a significant transition period, and are no guarantee to return to the NFL Playoffs after missing the postseason for the first time in five years.

The Ravens also find themselves amidst something of an identity crisis, having finally said their farewells to long-time quarterback, Joe Flacco, and defensive stalwart, Terrell Suggs.

As for Cincinnati's role in this brave new AFC North? Well, the Bengals will also enter 2019 not quite feeling like themselves, with a new head coach at the helm for the first time in 17 years, while the franchise’s most decorated player, AJ Green, faces another lengthy stint on the sidelines after injuring his ankle in the pre-season.

With just days left until the start of the NFL season, Stats Insider is previewing each of the NFL’s eight divisions and asking one pertinent question for each team. 

- Inside the NFC SOUTH: Saints, Falcons, Panthers, Buccaneers
- Inside the NFC EAST: Cowboys, Eagles, Redskins, Giants
- Inside the NFC WEST: Rams, Seahawks, 49ers, Cardinals
- Inside the NFC NORTH: Bears, Vikings, Packers, Lions
- Inside the AFC SOUTH: Colts, Texans, Titans, Jaguars

Today, it's the AFC North. 

Where have the old Pittsburgh Steelers gone, and will the new ones be any good? 

For so long, the Pittsburgh Steelers have made for some of the most valuable and dependable stock in the entire NFL.

While the Steelers haven’t been winning Super Bowls at the rate of the New England Patriots in recent seasons, they do have a record-equaling six titles to their name, with their most recent arriving in 2009.

Over the last 27 seasons, the Steelers have missed the playoffs just nine times, while incredibly being ranked within the league’s Top 20 for defense each and every season.

Yet for all of Pittsburgh’s consistent excellence, there’s a feeling around the NFL that things are about to look  very different in the City of Bridges.

After missing the playoffs for the first time in five seasons, the Steelers have also said goodbye to two of the team's most iconic stars of recent times.

Two-time All-Pro running back, LeVeon Bell - who famously held out for the entirety of the 2018 season - has finally left town after securing a four year, $52 million deal with the New York Jets. Bell takes with him an otherworldly 7,996 yards from scrimmage during his last five seasons as a Steeler, along with his 42 total touchdowns.  

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Yet even more monumental than the Bell departure was Pittsburgh parting ways with future Hall of Fame wide receiver, Antonio Brown, who was traded to the Oakland Raiders after amassing a sublime 11,207 receiving yards which earned him no less than seven trips to the Pro Bowl as a Steeler.

For most franchises, replacing that level of talent would be a nigh-on impossible task, yet the Steelers under the stewardship of long-time coach Mike Tomlin and General Manager Kevin Colbert feel they’re uniquely qualified to withstand the turnover.

For starters, Pittsburgh will continue to rely on their 37-year-old quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger who just had one of his most dominating seasons, throwing for a career-high 5,129 yards season as well as 34 touchdowns, at a brilliant 67% accuracy.

The Steelers are also confident they already have an in-house replacement for Antonio Brown in the form of Juju Smith Schuster, who by every measure outperformed Brown in Pittsburgh last year, and has established himself as one of the NFL’s most exciting young receivers.

The Steelers are going to look profoundly different in 2019 but it's a credit to such a progressive organisation that their system is established and stable enough to withstand such turnover, while the internal expectation, as it always is in Steel Town, will be another trip to the NFL Playoffs.

The Baltimore Ravens offense promises to be different, but will it be any good?

There can be no question that the Baltimore Ravens enter season 2019 with more questions regarding the shape and complexion of its offense than any other franchise in the NFL.

After deciding to put Lamar Jackson in at QB after another poor start by Joe Flacco, the former first-round pick out of Louisville immediately demonstrated his unique skill-set, electrifying the league with his speed and improvisation.

Without his injection into the team, the Ravens would not have won their first division title since 2012, while also breaking a three-year playoff drought.

There is just one problem with Jackson however. From the point of view of actually throwing the ball, he was - by every conceivable measure - simply terrible.

Jackson threw for just six touchdowns in the seven games he started in 2018, while his 58.2% accuracy and paltry 1,201 passing yards meant Baltimore’s vertical game was virtually non-existent.

Despite Jackson’s struggles as a passer, the Ravens appear to have unwavering faith in their unorthodox signal-caller, comfortable to build their offense around his legs, which from a rushing perspective, were good enough to scramble for 695 yards last season, while producing five touchdowns.

It will be interesting to see how much Baltimore ask of Jackson's arm in season two, particularly when they come up against more nuanced defensive schemes able to contain his run threat.

Their NFL Draft was very interesting as well, with the Ravens taking the first available wide receiver with the 25^th pick, in the form of Oklahoma’s Marquise Brown. In free agency, the Ravens also secured the signature of former New Orleans Saint, Mark Ingram, who’s long been a valuable and dependable force in the NFL, and promises to take at least some of the attention off Jackson.

While NFL analysts speculate on just how the Ravens' offense will function in 2019, it's easy to forget just how dominant its defense was last season.

In the first season under new defensive coordinator Don Martindale, the Ravens made for one of the league’s most fearsome defensive fronts, conceding just 287 regular-season points, a number bettered only by the vaunted Chicago Bears.

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Led by Pro Bowl nose-tackle, Brandon Williams, Baltimore allowed on average just 3.7 rushing yards per attempt last season, which was ranked #3 in the league behind New Orleans and Houston. Meanwhile, the Ravens showcased its athleticism and aggression, producing 43 sacks while defending the pass at a league-best 58.4%.

Like their bitter foes in Pittsburgh, the Ravens are a rock-solid franchise whose calling card is stability and continuity, with head coach John Harbaugh being at the helm since 2008, making him the league's fourth-longest tenured head coach outside of Bill Belichick, Sean Payton and Mike Tomlin.  

It is a very big ‘if’, but if the Ravens unconventional offense can break into the league's top ten, coupled with a phenomenal defence again, a deep playoff run is by no means outside the realm of possibility in 2019. 

Is it OK to actually be excited about the Cleveland Browns?

Hopefully, you’ve been able to get all of your best Cleveland Browns jokes out of your system over the last twenty years, because finally (finally!), the Browns have a legitimately excellent squad which now has the NFL buzzing.

After being one of the most underperforming franchises in all of US sports, the Browns are now genuinely on the brink of a successful era off the back of a super-charged roster, led by one of the most exciting quarterback prospects in the league.  

Since the Browns returned to the NFL in 1999, they have made the NFL Playoffs just once, while in 18 of their 20 completed seasons they’ve posted a losing record, finishing last in the division on 15 such occasions.

The images of Browns fans appearing at home games wearing paper bags over their heads has made for one of contemporary sports' most enduring images, and a perfect representation of just how deplorable Cleveland have been.

After a 0-16 season in 2017, Cleveland rocketed up to seven and a half wins last campaign off the back of the incredible rookie season by 2018 #1 NFL Draft selection Baker Mayfield, who threw for 3,725 yards, 27 touchdowns while positing an excellent 93.7 QB rating.

While the Cleveland resurrection has a number of significant figures behind it, none loom larger than General Manager Jon Dorsey and recently appointed head coach, Freddie Kitchens.

When Dorsey took over the ailing Browns front office, he must have been well aware that after twenty years as a scout in Green Bay, and as General Manager in Kansas City, there are no shortcuts to long-term contention, with the draft and elite talent identification therein being the only realistic path for underperforming teams.

But apart from Dorsey’s draft acumen and ability to implement an entirely different clubhouse culture in Cleveland, his best move as GM was to finally let go of struggling head coach, Hue Jackson.

In three seasons in Cleveland, Jackson compiled a 3-36 record with Dorsey finally firing him halfway through the 2018 campaign.  

While Gregg Williams was appointed as caretaker, most in the industry knew that the coaching mastermind behind the Browns second-half surge was offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens, who’s work with Baker Mayfield ultimately helped secure the Alabama native the head coaching job at the end of the season.

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It wasn’t of course just Mayfield who thrived under Kitchens.

Second-year running back Nick Chubb ran for 996 yards off the back of an incredible 5.2 yards per parry. Wide receiver Jarvis Landry was selected to his fourth Pro Bowl thanks to his 81 catch, 976-yard campaign, while David Njoku continued to emerge as an excellent NFL tight end, catching for 639 yards and four touchdowns.

In the off-season, the Browns have only added to its offensive arsenal, trading for one of the NFL’s most dynamic receivers - and colourful personalities - in Odell Beckham Jr, who’ll be sure to make the Browns an even scarier proposition in 2019.

Yet for all the celebration around the Browns offense, credit must also go to its defense which produced an incredible 31 takeaways last season, which was bettered only by Chicago’s 37.

Like the Bear’s defense-  led by its preciously talented Khalil Mack - the Browns have a budding superstar of their own, in the form of 2017 #1 overall NFL Draft pick Myles Garret, whose sophomore season took the NFL by storm, producing 29 QB hits while amassing 13.5 sacks - numbers which make him a bonafide Defensive Player of the Year candidate in 2019.

The excitement in Cleveland is palpable ahead of a season where they are very much expected to qualify for the NFL Playoffs for the first time since 2002.

Something special is brewing in Cleveland, which for fans of the Browns, might mean no longer needing to conceal their identity beneath those paper bags.

Is there any chance the Cincinnatti Bengals won’t finish last in the AFC South?

With the sudden emergence of the Cleveland Browns and the continued relevance of Baltimore and Pittsburgh, the Cincinnati Bengals could be forgiven for feeling as though they’re in an extremely vulnerable position heading into season 2019.

Between 2011 and 2015, the Bengals went to the postseason five straight times, even winning a couple of division crowns along the way, but in recent years the bottom seems to have fallen out, with a return to the NFL Playoffs this season appearing to be only a long-shot possibility.

For the first time since 2002, the Bengals will enter the season with a new head coach, with former LA Rams QB coach, Zac Taylor, bought in with the hope that some of that Sean McVay magic rubs off on his new team.

This is a Bengals offense that, over the last three seasons, has been ranked #24, #26 and #17 in the NFL from a points-scored perspective, with quarterback Andy Dalton once again posting pedestrian numbers across the board, his QB rating slipping to just 89.6 in 2019, while his interception rate was up to 3%, which represents a four-year low.

The Bengals had a deplorable 1-5 record against their division foes last season, not at all helped by an ageing defense, with the likes of Geno Atkins, Dre Kirkpatrick and Carlos Dunlap most certainly in the twilight of their careers.

While granted, William Jackson has emerged as an excellent cornerback with an extremely bright future, and, while Sam Hubbard offers plenty - producing six sacks last season as a rookie - this is a defense whose talent isn’t exactly jumping off the page.

Despite the defense being ranked #30 for points-conceded, and dead last in the entire NFL for yards surrendered last season, Cincinnati hasn’t seemed to be in any rush to inject any draft talent, using just a single first-round pick form their last five drafts on a defensive player.

It’s shaping as a long season in the Queen City, with the Bengals playoff drought highly likely to extend into it's fourth season, constituting its longest postseason hiatus since 2004.

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