As mini-camps start and rosters start to take form, we here at WhoDeyRevolution are taking our first stab at predicting the division. I am listing the teams in order of where I think they will finish this year—and yes, you’ll have to scroll down for a bit to find the Bengals.
The AFC North should be extremely competitive this year, in part because I see all four teams losing a lot of non-conference games. This year, the AFC North matches up with the tough NFC East division, including a solid Eagles team, playoff contending Washington Redskins, pre-season Super Bowl pick Dallas Cowboys, and oh yeah, the defending Super Bowl champion NY Giants. The schedule this year for all four teams means that, in terms of strength of schedule (based on 2007 finish), the Steelers have the hardest schedule in football, the Ravens are at #5, and the Browns and Bengals are tied with the seventh hardest schedule.
Given the tough slate of opponents, the intra-division battles should be even more intense. Overall, I don’t think any team in our division will win more than 11 games, and I wouldn’t be surprised if a team won the division at 10-6 or even 9-7. I give the nod to the Steelers, who have dominated in division play. The Browns—much like the Bengals—remain a wild card, but I don’t see either one overcoming glaring problems on defense. In the end, I think Marvin Lewis is right that smash-mouth football rules this division. We saw it last year when the Steelers completely controlled the tempo of both games our by pounding the ball. I think with the addition of Rashard Mendenhall, it will be more of the same.
Click here to read the preview (warning, it is very long).
Please remind us to take our friends at StripeHype to Las Vegas for a crash course in Sports Betting 101...as they report the Bengals are very early one point favorites against the Ravens in Week 1. Here is their post:
