AFC North breakdown: What will the division look like in the 2024 NFL season?

With the 2024 NFL regular season fast approaching, teams across the league are preparing to make tough decisions, trimming their rosters to get to 53 players who will start the year with Super Bowl aspirations.

But with only a limited number of playoff spots to secure, teams will likely be fighting to win their division or at least secure a wild-card spot.

Colin Cowherd of FOX Sports predicted how each division would fare before training camp began, and using his rankings, here's a breakdown of each team in each division, followed by a look at the AFC North, which Cowherd calls the best division in football.

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1. Baltimore Ravens

“The Ravens are top-five in the league in both offense and defense, and they have the best special teams coach. I think they'll win the division,” Collin said.

In the toughest division in football, Cowherd sees the Ravens, the AFC's current No. 1 seed, as the winner again.

Lamar Jackson led the Ravens to a 13-3 record as a starter and was once again named MVP after passing for 3,678 yards and 24 touchdowns and rushing for 821 yards and five scores.

Coach John Harbaugh will look to rely on Jackson's strong combination of weapons and solid defense to lead Baltimore to another division title.

Notable addition: RB Derrick Henry

This shouldn't be too difficult: After losing Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins to the Los Angeles Chargers in free agency, the Ravens forced their way back into an even bigger deal in Henry from the Tennessee Titans.

AFC East breakdown: What will the division look like in the 2024 NFL season?

The Ravens are known for their strong run game, but now they have a running back who makes NFL defenses sigh when they see his name on the schedule because he can wear them down.

Henry has scored at least 10 touchdowns on the ground since 2018 and has been selected to the Pro Bowl four times during that time, including two in the last two seasons. His offensive line has only gotten stronger, making him the prime candidate to find the paint at the end of drives and help the Ravens' Super Bowl hopes.

Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry (22) receives a handoff from quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) during a joint practice with the Green Bay Packers at Ray Nitschke Field, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin. (Tork Mason/USA Today Network)

The biggest question: Can Mark Andrews stay healthy?

The Ravens defense has everything a coordinator wants, so the issue isn't with that side of things. The issue is with the players Jackson has relied on since entering the league (who haven't been healthy for the majority of 2023).

Andrews suffered a gruesome ankle injury and was replaced by 2022 fourth-round draft pick Isaiah Likely. Likely played well, but Andrews is Jackson's safety and a player who can be a monster in the red zone.

The biggest question, then, is whether Andrews can stay healthy throughout the season and especially come playoff time. He's a big boost for this offense, and 2023 rookie Zay Flowers immediately became the No. 1 wide receiver, giving Jackson another solid option in the passing game.

Week 1: @ Kansas City Chiefs (Sept. 5, 8:15 p.m.)

2. Cincinnati Bengals

Collin says, “Zac Taylor and Joe Burrow have proven that when Joe is healthy, they can win. Tell me what? They had a winning record last year when Jake Browning was there. When Jake Browning comes back, they're a playoff team.”

With Burrow at center, it's easy to imagine him being calm, composed and delivering some scoring hits.

As Cowherd noted, they are a favorite to make the playoffs and potentially even make another Super Bowl appearance, like they did in 2021.

The newly blonde Burrow comes into training camp after playing just 10 games last season because of a wrist injury. The Bengals got off to a sluggish start, going 5-5, when Burrow showed up to training camp, but the year before that they went 12-4 and 10-6 in their Super Bowl season.

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) did not pitch but watched training camp practices at Kettering Health Training Facility. (Kareem El Ghazar-USA Today Sports)

Notable addition: WR Tee Higgins

What kind of addition is this? Well, the Bengals have had some very public wrangles over wide receiver contracts this offseason (we'll get to one of them later), but adding Higgins to the team would be huge for Burrow.

Higgins, who rushed for 1,000 yards in 2021 and 2022 but saw his production drop in 2023 due to quarterback troubles and his own injuries, is arguably the best No. 2 receiver in football.

The Bengals signed Higgins to a franchise contract in the offseason, but Higgins wanted a long-term extension. Instead, Higgins signed a franchise contract with over $21 million fully guaranteed. The addition of Higgins gives the Bengals a much more powerful offense, allowing Burrow to have a big man on the outside who can float the ball into the end zone or hit the ball deep down the field for big chunk plays.

NFC WEST BREAKDOWN: What will happen to this division this NFL season?

Biggest question: Will WR Ja'Marr Chase hold up?

Throughout training camp, we watched receiver after receiver earn their desired long-term contract extensions… except for Chase.

With Brandon Aiyuk and CeeDee Lamb happy, Chase is the last on the list of players who want to sign but haven't yet. He was a sitting out player during camp, but head coach Zac Taylor gave a day-to-day update on whether Chase would play in Week 1, which really got Bengals fans worried.

With how important Chase is to the Bengals organization, how long will it be before the front office gives their star receiver what he wants? Will he miss games and cast a huge shadow on a team heading into the playoffs?

Pittsburgh Steelers player Russell Wilson (No. 3) steps back to throw a pass during the first quarter of a preseason game against the Buffalo Bills at Acrisure Stadium on August 17, 2024 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Justin Baer/Getty Images)

3. Pittsburgh Steelers

Collin said, “The Steelers can't put together an offensive line or an offensive coordinator. Frankly, I like the makeup of their roster. In an offensive league, I worry about being able to do it offensively.”

Somehow, Mike Tomlin's Steelers streak of never having a season under .500 has remained intact since last season, and in fact, his team went 10-7 and made the playoffs despite a terrible offense.

But the Steelers' defense remains as strong as ever, and they're hoping that a switch to quarterback Russell Wilson (or maybe Justin Fields midway through the season?) and offensive coordinator Arthur Smith will give them an extra boost on the offensive end.

Key addition: QB Russell Wilson

He should be a key addition to the Steelers, having won a quarterback battle in camp against Fields, who was acquired in a trade with the Chicago Bears in the offseason.

Wilson and Fields had a fierce battle, but Tomlin and his coaching staff gave the 35-year-old Wilson the reins of Smith's offense to start the season.

So what can Wilson do with those numbers, especially after he was traded from the Seattle Seahawks two seasons ago and then failed with the Denver Broncos? Wilson needs to step up and lead the Steelers, or Tomlin could fire him soon and hand the offense over to first-round draft pick Fields.

The big question: is Arthur Smith the right man for the job?

As Cowherd noted, the Steelers made a poor choice of offensive coordinator, firing Matt Canada after a lack of performance that led to fans calling for his firing for weeks last season.

Smith took over as head coach after failing to get the most out of the Atlanta Falcons' star-studded offense as head coach, and he's looking to bounce back with the Steelers, but if Wilson and co. can hit their stride, this team could surprise people.

The Steelers will face their division rivals twice this season and will have to face some tough opponents in between, so they'll need to score points as their defense may not be able to save them like it did last season.

Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) makes a gesture during an NFL joint practice with the Minnesota Vikings. (AP Photo/Sue Oglocki)

4. Cleveland Browns

Collin said, “I love the coaches in Cleveland. Deshaun Watson is a total question mark. Weird personality, weird injury, I'll put him at No. 4 for now.”

Again, Cowherd noted that this division is measured in inches, not feet, so just because the Browns were in the playoffs last season (thanks to Joe Flacco and a great coaching staff) doesn't mean they're flopping like they're last in the division. We'll see how that plays out.

But the Browns have big question marks about Watson (more on that later), as he's only played in 12 games combined over the past two seasons and a shoulder injury will have Cleveland fans waiting with bated breath to see if he can still pitch.

Meanwhile, the Browns offense, led by reigning Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett, is lethal and capable of suffocating opposing offenses at will.

Notable addition: WR Jerry Jeudy

Could the Browns tap into the talents of Jeudy, the Alabama star who never quite lived up to his potential as a first-round draft pick with the Denver Broncos?

It's not entirely Jeudy's fault that things haven't worked out after four mediocre seasons in Denver: He was on track to reach 1,000 yards in 2022 and some believed he was supposed to break out last season before Wilson's quarterback situation unfolded under first-year head coach Sean Payton.

Now, Jeudy finds himself immersed in the offensive mindset of Cowherd's beloved “coach” Kevin Stefanski in Cleveland, whose schemes may be a perfect fit for a player like Jeudy, who can break the top of defenses and run sharp routes to get open.

Can he quickly build a rapport with Watson and give him a solid No. 2 behind Amari Cooper in the passing game?

The big question: What will happen with Watson this year?

The Browns' playoff hopes will depend on what their three-time Pro Bowl quarterback can do this season.

At the moment, Browns fans aren't happy with center Watson as their franchise player because he hasn't lived up to the huge contract he received after being traded from the Houston Texans. They want a Pro Bowl Watson, but he couldn't stay healthy in 2023 and served a lengthy suspension in 2022.

The AFC North remains an extremely tough division with talent concentrated on just four teams. (Getty Images)

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He has a host of stars around him who can perform well, and Nick Chubb should return this season.

Week 1: vs. Dallas Cowboys (Sept. 8, 4:25 p.m.)

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