The biggest advancement the Ravens made last year was in the running game.
The AFC North was the powerhouse division in the NFL last season, finishing a league-best 13 games over .500 and getting both AFC wild cards for only the second time since the current playoff format was invented in 2002.
That came as somewhat of a surprise considering the loop had a 31-33 mark the previous season, its worst since 2004. This year, though, instead of Baltimore, Cincinnati, Cleveland and Pittsburgh playing NFC South teams, which finished a cumulative 19 games under .500 in 2014, up comes the potent NFC West.
Thus, it?ll be a reach to expect two wild cards from this cluster again this year.
The early favorite to win the North is Baltimore, whose Super Bowl odds dropped from 25-1 in mid-February to 14-1. On the other hand, the Browns rose from opening 60-1 to 100-1.
Here?s how the division figures to play out, with teams listed in order of predicted finish.
Ravens: (5-4 div; 14-1 SB):
Baltimore snapped back nicely from its post-Super Bowl hangover by winning five of its final seven games and earning a wild-card berth at 10-6. Then came a surprise victory in Pittsburgh in the first round and a close-call loss at New England that counted as a win for Ravens backers in the sportsbooks.
The biggest advancement the Ravens made last year was in the running game, going from 3.1 a carry in 2013 to 4.5 last year behind Justin Forsett, who had 2,166 yards, a 5.4 per-carry norm and eight TDs. Discarded Ray Rice wasn?t needed.
All of which benefited graybeard receiver Steve Smith, who had 1,065 yards on 79 catches and six TDs. And the Ravens also drafted Breshad Perriman from Central Florida, who was the fastest receiver on the board.
Defensively, if the Ravens can get pass-rush production from Elvis Dumervil (17 sacks last year) and Terrell Suggs (12), they should be a force again.
Note: If Baltimore can make it through the first seven weeks (five road games, including three in the Western time zone and one in Denver) the schedule sets up well. There?s a pair of three-game home stands ? Weeks 8-11 (wrapped around a bye) and Weeks 12-14.
Bengals (9-4 div, 30-1 SB):
Coach Marvin Lewis has to be feeling the heat now that he has a 0-6 playoff record as head man, tied with arguably the worst playoff coach in NFL history, Jim Mora Sr. Now if only QB Andy Dalton, who?s been one-and-done the past four seasons, can break through and not merely have solid regular seasons.
Cincinnati?s running game came on strong late last season, with back-to-back games of 244 rushing yards (at Cleveland) and 207 at home against Denver. Yet despite a strong ground threat last year, twice Dalton was held to less than 3.0 yards a per throw.
With WR A.J. Green healthy and the return of TE Tyler Eifert, the offense should be even more productive. If not, Cincinnati could wind up in third and feeling the cold breath of the Browns. That will be especially true if the Bengals can?t summon up a better pass rush than the one that generated a league-low 20 sacks.
Note: The Bengals catch three teams coming off MNF games, with two coming at home.
Steelers (2-1 to div; 25-1 SB):
Pittsburgh has the league?s toughest strength of schedule based on last season?s records at .579, which is the stoutest in the league since Miami was at .594 in 2009.
That said, when Pittsburgh last won the Super Bowl in 2008, opponents had a .598 winning percentage the previous year, which remains the toughest for anyone this century.
The Steelers had the most productive offense in the league last year behind QB Ben Roethlisberger, finishing only 5 yards behind New Orleans on the total offense chart with 27 fewer snaps.
But with RB Le?Veon Bell serving a three-game suspension to open the season for his marijuana arrest last season, it?s going to be hard to beat New England, San Francisco and St. Louis early. Ex-Carolina RB DeAngelo Williams is expected to fill the void.
On defense, the squad is generally weak across the board and will be without sparkplug safety Troy Polamalu and LB Jason Worilds, both of whom retired.
Note: Pittsburgh won five games without having an offensive possession start in enemy territory, two more than any other squad.
Browns (15-1 div, 100-1 SB):
Three cheers for the 2014 Browns. For only the second time since 2003, Cleveland didn?t lose 10 or more games, although going 7-9 isn?t worth texting home about.
The big negative, though, is that mediocre QB Brian Hoyer is gone, and it?s been left up to awful Josh McCown, the assumed No. 1, and Johnny Manziel to battle for first-string honors. McCown was 1-10 as Tampa Bay?s top guy last year and inexplicably was picked up.
On defense, the Browns have a pair of All-Pro safeties, but it?s not going to matter unless that run defense stiffens dramatically. It was the worst in the NFL at 141.6 yards per game and has long been a sore spot. Cleveland?s unit was on the field 69.9 plays per game, worst in the league. Also, the defense was on the field 108 more plays than its offense, third worst.
Note: If the Browns can?t get off to a fast start vs. the Jets, Titans and Raiders, who went a combined 9-39 last year, it?s going to be another long year.
