In less than a month, teams in the league will begin reporting for Training Camp and the new NFL season will be upon us. It was a great 2025 season filled with tons of memorable games, new teams vying for spots at the top, and the emergence of new superstars. We are previewing every division and what you need to know. Here is our 2026 AFC North preview.
Last Year
It was a brutal year for two teams in the AFC North and an up and down season for another two. Ultimately, the offseason brought three new coaches to the division. Mike McCarthy is now in Pittsburgh, Jesse Minter in Baltimore, and Todd Monken in Cleveland. The only coach that stayed is Zac Taylor whose Bengals went 6-11. The Steelers won 10 games and took the division but couldn’t turn that into playoff success. The Ravens were a win away from making things happen but lost to the Steelers in the final week of the season. The Bengals had a brutally bad defense all season long and it torched them when it mattered the most. As for the Browns, what is there to say? Another disappointing season and a franchise that never seems to have a clear path forward.
Favorite to win in 2026
There are a lot of unknowns in this division. How will Mike McCarthy run the Steelers? Will it be similar to his time in Dallas? Will he and Aaron Rodgers get along? How about over in Baltimore? John Harbaugh ran a tight ship that produced consistent yet underwhelming results. Is Jesse Minter the coach that finally untaps all the talent on the roster? For the Bengals, they have some of the very best players in the entire league but haven’t put together a quality season in some time. And the Browns are a team that just can’t be trusted until they have a legit franchise QB…who they then might trade away.
Offensive Player to Watch: Aaron Rodgers
Why is a 42-year-old on this list? Because it is going to be the final season for one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game. Rodgers has announced that he will play his final season with the Steelers and ride into the sunset. Even at his older age, he played very well a season ago. He threw for 3200 yards with 24 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. It was an impressive season.
Defensive Player to Watch: Jared Verse
This was a massive shift for Verse who was becoming one of the most talented, young defensive players on the Los Angeles Rams. Well, they flipped him to Cleveland. On the positive, this is where Verse is from and maybe that’s motivation. He can make the trade worth it for the Browns or it can go the other way.
Prediction
With so much change in the division, I am going with a team that had a little stability in Cincinnati who has the same QB and the same receivers with an offense intact and an improved defense. Record (11-6)