AFC North Preview Week 9: Ravens host wildcard contender; Browns face another Harbaugh

Taking a look ahead for the AFC North division in Week 9.

Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2)

After recording a new season-high in total yards on offense for the second week in a row since inserting Russell Wilson under center as the starting quarterback, the Steelers are heading into their bye riding a three-game winning streak and sitting alone atop the division standings. They’ll have the week off and get to rest and watch the rest of their rivals try to play catch up as they gear up for a gruesome gauntlet upon their return to action that includes all six division games, four of which come will back to back from Week 11-14.

Baltimore Ravens (5-3)

The reigning AFC North champions had their five-game win streak snapped in deflating fashion against a previously one-win divisional opponent last week. Now they will return home after a two-game road stint to host the surprisingly competitive Denver Broncos who boast the same record as them and are highlighted by a stifling defense and an offense led by rookie quarterback Bo Nix that has made some impressive strides over the past four weeks. This team could have massive playoff implications in terms of sorting wildcard seeding down the stretch if the Ravens can’t overtake the Steelers and regain the division lead.

This will mark the first meeting between these two teams since Week 13 of the 2022 regular season when the Ravens eked out a one-point victory at home in a low-scoring defensive battle 10-9 but it came at great cost. After being sacked from behind while in the pocket in the first half, franchise quarterback Lamar Jackson left the game and would not take another snap for the remainder of the season due to a lingering knee injury.

The Ravens are entering this AFC matchup banged up after playing in a physical divisional game this past Sunday but are trending toward getting some key pieces back in the lineup. They had nine players listed on Wednesday’s initial injury report with the most notable being their star quarterback who head coach John Harbaugh said was given a rest day but was officially listed with back and knee injuries. Other players who did not practice included running back Rasheen Ali (ankle), defensive tackle Travis Jones (ankle), cornerback Arthur Maulet (neck) and defensive end Brent Urban (concussion). Cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey (knee) and Nate Wiggins (shoulder/illness) and defensive tackle Broderick Washington (knee) while running back Keaton Mitchell (knee) was the only full participant listed which bodes well for the odds of him making his debut this week.

On Thursday, Jackson didn’t practice for the second day in a row and Washington, who was limited on Wednesday, also wasn’t present while Jones and Urban sat out for the second day in a row as well. That leaves the Ravens with 2023 Pro Bowler Nnamdi Madubuike as the only healthy interior defensive lineman on the active roster. They do have a pair of seasoned AFC North veterans with defensive end Chris Wormley and recently re-signed nose tackle Josh Tupou who can get called up to play on Sunday if they are without their regular starters and depth pieces. On the bright side, Wiggins and Maulet were full participants signaling a closer return to full strength for the secondary, Ali took part on a limited basis and Mitchell practiced fully for the second day in a row.

Cincinnati Bengals (3-5)

Coming off suffering their fifth loss of the season and first in the last three weeks, the Bengals will host a middling Las Vegas Raiders that held their own against but ultimately fell to the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs last week. Even though they’ll be favored to come out on top, with how poorly their defense consistently plays, they could be in store for another shootout or at least than expected contest.

This will mark the first meeting between these two teams in two years since the Wildcard round of the 2021 postseason to kick off Cincinnati’s run to the Super Bowl. That game came down to a defensive stand and was ultimately won by the Bengals 26-19 but their defense can’t be trusted to come up with such clutch plays based on how they’ve played this season.

The Bengals are heading into another must-win game with just four players listed on their initial injury report. Only half practiced on Wednesday with quarterback Joe Burrow (wrist, shin) and defensive tackle Kris Jenkins Jr. (thumb) being full participants while starting left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. (knee) and wide receiver Tee Higgins (quadriceps) sat out.

Cleveland Browns (2-6)

In their first game after losing starting quarterback Deshaun Watson to a season-ending torn Achilles and head coach Kevin Stefanski relinquished play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey, the Browns had their best offensive outing of the season in a shocking upset of the Ravens. Not only did they snap a five-game losing skid, but they also snapped their rival’s five-game winning streak, which caused them to fall back to second place in the current division standings. Former No. 1 overall pick Jameis Winston who took over under center and shined in his first start in over two seasons will face another daunting task this week when Cleveland hosts a second-straight hardnosed team coached by a Harbaugh brother as Jim Harbaugh and the Los Angeles Chargers (4-3) are coming to town for what will be another tough test against league’s stingiest scoring defense.

This will mark the first meeting between these two teams since Week 5 of the 2022 season. The Chargers won their fourth straight against the Browns since 2017 by just two points, 30-28, on the road. The Browns also started a backup quarterback in that game, Jacoby Brissett, who nearly led them to an upset victory.

The Browns have over a dozen players on their injury report, including 11 starters between both sides of the ball. Of the five players who did not take the practice field on Wednesday were linebacker Jordan Hicks (elbow, triceps), guard Joel Bitonio, linebackers Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, defensive end Za-Darius Smith and cornerback Denzel Ward (concussion). The list of limited and full participants includes the following:

OT Jedrick Wills (knee)

DB Juan Thornhill (shoulder)

DE Ogbo Okoronkwo (knee)

OT Jake Conklin (knee)

DB Ronnie Hickman (ankle)

RB Jerome Ford (hamstring)

DB Tony Brown (ankle)

C Ethan Pocic (knee)

OG Wyatt Teller (knee)

DB Ronnie Hickman Jr. (ankle)

DE Myles Garrett (Achilles)

QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson (finger)

WR Jerry Jeudy (knee)

DT Shelby Harris (hamstring)

DB Grant Delpit (groin)

LB Mohamoud Diabate (thigh/groin)