- Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4) - The class of the division... they have the QB I trust the most (Roethlisberger), the most offensive weapons (Mendenhall, Wallace, et al), AND the best defense? I don't see any issue here... I actually think Ben will be better this year than he was in 2010 without the distractions from last year, and he's got some underrated receivers in Wallace, Emmanuel Sanders, and Antonio Brown... on defense? The major players return with big-time guys like Hampton and Smith up front with the best linebacking corps in the league led by Harrison and Woodley... Basically, I love the Steelers...
- Baltimore Ravens (10-6) - Yes, they won 12 games last year... and I still like the Ravens, so why take a step back? well, first of all they were hilariously lucky in the turnover margin category last year, and that's bound to regress... and secondly, it's really difficult to go 12-4 with just a +87 scoring margin on the season... so yeah, if they are the same team? They should lose 2-3 less games... I think Flacco is steady and should be as good or better as last year, I LOVE Ray Rice out of the backfield, but the receiving options leave a bit to be desired after Boldin with the loss of Mason and Heap... the defense is still very good and talented, but Ray Lewis is a year older (and worse) and they haven't addressed the cornerback situation much either... On the bright side, they bring back Haloti Ngata who may be the best defensive player you don't know... this is a playoff team...
- Cleveland Browns (7-9) - This is a bit of a bump for them... and it's all about Colt McCoy for me... I think he's solid... 61% completion as a rookie who wasn't expected to play, and while he STILL doesn't have any weapons, I think he takes a small step forward, and teamed with Peyton Hillis, that offense won't be terrible.. they were middle of the pack last year in scoring D and total D and with a young nucleus led by Joe Haden and TJ Ward on the back-end, that should hold pat... and basically, somebody has to win some more games here...
- Cincinnati Bengals (4-12) - Bleh... this could get ugly... Carson Palmer isn't walking through the door, and while he was pretty bad last year, that'd still be better than whatever they get from rookie Andy Dalton this year... I'm actually not all that down on Dalton, but with Cedric Benson's corpse and a bad receiving corps outside of rookie AJ Green, he's not going to get any help, and it could be ugly early... on defense, they do return pro bowl CB Leon Hall, but the front 7 isn't too intimidating... interested to see what Nate Clements has in the tank on the other side as he replaces Jonathan Joseph... This is certainly the dregs of the division, but on the bright side for Bengal fans, AJ Green and Dalton get some experience...
Enjoy...
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