The AFC North is once again shaping up to be a fight until the end to no one’s surprise. The Baltimore Ravens are leading the division at 5-2 thanks to having played one more game than the rest of the AFC North. The Pittsburgh Steelers are second at 4-2, right above the Cleveland Browns at 4-2 thanks to winning in Week Two. The Cincinnati Bengals are one game behind at 3-3. All four teams are riding two-game winning streaks.
While there is still plenty of football to play in the 2023 season, there is not much separation in the AFC North, which gives every fan base a measure of hope. However, NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah threw a little bit of cold water on Steelers fans when he spoke with Ryan Brown on Disrupt Media’s YouTube channel Wednesday to talk about the AFC North.
“Pittsburgh, to me, feels like they’re going to be second or third,” Jeremiah said. “They’re going to tough their way, they’re going to will their way to the playoffs, and they’ll be the second or third team here. I don’t think they have enough juice offensively with Kenny Pickett to win this division.”
It’s no secret that the Steelers have struggled mightily on offense this season. The most points the team has scored was 26 in that win over Cleveland in Week Two, and the defense scored two touchdowns in that game. They have picked up 87 first downs this season, which is dead last in the NFL per Pro Football Reference. Their five passing touchdowns rank 28th in the league and their three rushing touchdowns rank 23rd. Then you factor in that they hold the ball an average of 2:17 per offensive drive, which is also dead last, and it’s a recipe for offensive disaster.
So it’s easy to see why Jeremiah would express his concern about the offense holding the Steelers back from winning the division title. Whether that’s Pickett’s fault, as Jeremiah seems to suggest, or other issues is still up for debate. If you look at Pickett’s performance in the fourth quarter of last Sunday’s win over the Los Angeles Rams, he completed all seven of his officially attempted passes (an incompletion was wiped out by offsetting penalties, including a defensive pass interference flag). He made good decisions with the ball and helped move the offense down the field on two touchdown drives.
Now we wait and see if that performance plus other adjustments made during the bye week carry over to Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars and beyond. If Pickett can elevate his play during the first two-plus quarters, perhaps the offense will find enough juice to win the division. For now, the Steelers are in the vast majority of their games late, and that’s where the team is finding the will to win. Whether that’s Pickett or OLBs T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith, there are players who are able to leave their mark when the game matters the most.
You can watch the entirety of Jeremiah breaking down the AFC North below.
