Dawgs By Nature
The AFC North joined historical company at the end of the 2023 NFL season, with all four teams having winning records and the North tying for the most victories by a division since realignment in 2002. The 2025 NFL season has brought about something much different for what was one of the best divisions in football, even last season.
In Week 7, the Cleveland Browns controlled the Miami Dolphins, which seemed to say a lot about both teams. Browns GM Andrew Berry’s two in-season trades had a direct impact on two wins this week, the other was the Cincinnati Bengals win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, with QB Joe Flacco leading the way.
The Baltimore Ravens had a bye this week but after being the preseason favorites, have the worst record in all of the AFC North.
At this point, it is anyone’s guess as to how the division will work out. No one expects Cleveland to make some miraculous resurgence, but they are two games out in the win column. The Ravens still have high expectations despite their putrid start, while Bengals fans are hoping Flacco has eight to ten more miracle games.
The Steelers are still the favorites despite some very clear flaws.
The one fun thing to point out about the AFC North through Week 7 is the numerical fun of the win column if you stack the division top to bottom:
Something so satisfying about that quirk. Too bad the loss column doesn’t also have that same quality:
For now, the AFC North has far more questions than answers, and, at least for one week, Cleveland fans are at least curious as to how the division stacks up.
