Can Cleveland Browns Complete Turnaround By Winning AFC North?

Stay tuned for a crazy year in the AFC North where a team that went 0-16 two seasons ago is favored to win the division…

CLEVELAND BROWNS: To say that the Cleveland Browns have been the ‘weak link’ in the AFC North since the NFL realigned divisions in 2002 is a profound understatement. The Pittsburgh Steelers have won the AFC North 8 times, with the Baltimore Ravens checking in at 5 divisional titles and the Cincinnati Bengals with 4 titles. The Cleveland Browns? Zero. The Browns also enter this season with 11 consecutive losing seasons and in the midst of a 16 year playoff drought.

The Browns were 3-13 in 2015, 1-15 in 2016, 0-16 in 2017 and it looked like more of the same at the start of the season last year. Hue Jackson was sent packing after Cleveland got off to a 2-5-1 start. Enter Gregg Williams as interim head coach and more significantly enter Freddie Kitchens as offensive coordinator. From that point forward, the Browns went 5-3 but more profoundly started to not just resemble a legitimate NFL football team for the first time in years but a team that was clearly on the rise.

How high are expectations for the Cleveland Browns? They’ve been installed as +140 favorites to win the AFC North on the NFL futures odds board. Offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens is now ‘head coach’ Freddie Kitchens and on the field the most compelling reason for the team’s quick turnaround was handing the keys over to QB Baker Mayfield. Mayfield might be a couple of inches to short to be a ‘prototype’ NFL quarterback but that notwithstanding has everything you want at the position. In particular, his mental game including confidence, swagger, toughness, leadership, etc. is off the charts.

Cleveland had one of the best offseasons imaginable picking up some serious talent on defense in Olivier Vernon and Sheldon Richardson but the big name acquisition was Odell Beckham Jr. He’s had injury issues over the past few years but when healthy he’s as dominant as any wide receiver in the league. The Browns also brought in a haul from the NFL draft particularly on defense where LSU cornerback Greedy Williams and BYU linebacker Sione Takitaki could contribute immediately. Cleveland GM John Dorsey might not get the media run that Kitchens, Mayfield and ODB do but he’s transformed this team from a underachieving bunch of losers to one that is absolutely loaded on both sides of the ball.

BALTIMORE RAVENS: Assuming that Lamar Jackson doesn’t suffer a ‘sophomore slump’ the Ravens will likely give the Browns the most competition for the AFC North crown. The Ravens got rid of Joe Flacco, Terrell Suggs and C.J. Mosley but with the additions of Mark Ingram and Earl Thomas along with top draft pick Marquise Brown out of Oklahoma definitely got younger and might have gotten better. With John Harbaugh on the sidelines, the Ravens will have the exceptional coaching and strong fundamentals that have characterized this franchise over the years. They could end up winning the division if the Browns underachieve.

PITTSBURGH STEELERS: With Mike Tomlin and Ben Roethlisberger returning you know that the Steelers will be a solid team. The losses of Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown might work in Pittsburgh’s favor due to improved chemistry and cohesion. James Conner and JuJu Smith-Schuster will be expected to fill their shoes. T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward are ferocious pass rushers and first round pick Devin Bush out of Michigan is out of the same mold. The defense has plenty of talent but will need to improve from #16 on the points allowed table a year ago. Pittsburgh is too solid to finish below .500 but they’ve got a lot of things that have to go right if they’re to challenge for the division title.

CINCINNATI BENGALS: For the first time in 17 years, Marvin Lewis is not the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals. Zac Taylor is the new head coach and he has some talent to work with including quarterback Andy Dalton, running back Joe Mixon and wide receiver A.J. Green (who will miss the start of the season due to injury). The offensive line could be an issue though the defensive line looks solid. Hard to see Cincinnati doing much this year in a very tough division.

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH:

1. CLEVELAND BROWNS
2. BALTIMORE RAVENS
3. PITTSBURGH STEELERS
4. CINCINNATI BENGALS

BET BALTIMORE RAVENS OVER 8 WINS -125
BET CINCINNATI BENGALS UNDER 5.5 WINS +105
BET CLEVELAND BROWNS OVER 9 WINS -120
BET BALTIMORE RAVENS TO MAKE PLAYOFFS–YES +175
BEAT BALTIMORE RAVENS +1.5 WINS -130 OVER INDIANAPOLIS COLTS -1.5 WINS

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