AFCE

AFCE

AFC North Afternoon Roundup

AFC North Afternoon Roundup
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Interesting times we live in.

There’s an old salute of some sort that says, “May you live in interesting times.”  Well, apparently we do.

Who would have predicted that the absurdly bad Dallas Cowboys defense would rally enough to hold the Saints and all-world quarterback Drew Brees to 17 points?  Who would have guessed that Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, barring further injury, may be the best quarterback they’ve had since the venerable Brett Favre?  Who would have thought that the Bengals, currently recovering from their bye week, would be considered by many to be the top team in the NFL?

And who would have surmised that the lowly Tampa Bay Buccaneers would pull out a victory over the Steelers at all, let alone in gut-wrenching last-second fashion?

It’s football, and as such, predictability is out the window.  Consistency is rare enough in the modern world.  To expect it from your football team is starting to border on the ridiculous.

Enjoy today’s AFC North links.

Baltimore Ravens

Wideouts Marlon Brown and Jacoby Jones are heading in different directions.

My Take:  Jones’ decline shouldn’t come as a shock, as he’s never established himself as a consistent, viable option in the passing game.  Brown was due to break out by attrition, let alone his impressive rookie performance.

Cleveland Browns

The Browns are looking forward to their upcoming schedule.

My Take:  They should be.  A number of teams have underperformed and may yet rebound, but the Browns have shown enough improvement – record aside – to envision winning all five games listed here.

Cincinnati Bengals

Paul Dehner Jr. reviews the remaining schedule and surmises its strength based on how the opponents have played thus far.

My Take:  This could – and probably will – change further, as week four may still be too early to effectively know what teams are capable of.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers are racking up penalty yards at a record pace.

My Take:  No excuse for this – it’s on the coaches to reinforce this sort of discipline, and the players to concentrate on technique and sound fundamental play.

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