A quick AFC North recap to finish off your Christmas Day. The Pittsburgh Steelers are back out of last place following their convincing 34-11 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday, taking third place from the Bengals in the victory. The rest of the division remains the same in standing with the Cleveland Browns in second place at 10-5 and the Baltimore Ravens 12-3 after their 33-19 win over the San Francisco 49ers.
Here are the updated division standings.
AFC North Standings (Through Week 16)
1. Baltimore Ravens: 12-3
2. Cleveland Browns: 10-5
3. Pittsburgh Steelers: 8-7
4. Cincinnati Bengals: 8-7
With the Ravens’ win, they take another step towards becoming the AFC’s No. 1 seed. A win next week against the Miami Dolphins would clinch that spot, meaning they could rest starters for Week 18 against the Steelers. For a Pittsburgh team needing to win out, it’s a rare time to be happy about a Baltimore win.
Of course, you know how the Steelers-Bengals game played out. Pittsburgh in rare form, a dominant and dare I say comfortable win, taking a 24-0 lead into the half. Cincinnati threatened to make it a game when WR Tee Higgins raced 80 yards to open up the second half but QB Mason Rudolph and the Steelers’ offense answered, hitting WR George Pickens for a 66-yard score down the left sideline to make things 31-8. Both kickers would add field goals to produce the final tally. With the win, Pittsburgh sweeps Cincinnati for the season, their first time since 2019. The Steelers hold the North’s best record, 4-1, while the Bengals have the worst, 0-5.
The Browns’ magic under QB Joe Flacco keeps rolling. Throwing for three touchdowns, WR Amari Cooper had a historic day, setting a franchise single-game record with 265 yards and two touchdown catches in a 36-22 win over the Houston Texans. Despite a lack of a run game and numerous defensive injuries, Cleveland once led 36-8 before backup QB Davis Mills took over for Case Keenum (who started in place of an injured C.J. Stroud) and threw two late-game touchdowns. Now with a 99 percent chance of making the playoffs, the Browns can officially clinch with a Thursday night win over the New York Jets. If they do, it’ll be just the second time they’ve made the playoffs since 2003.
To close out the week, the Baltimore Ravens traveled to Santa Clara to take on the San Francisco 49ers for the Christmas Day night game. Things got off to a wonky start, headlined by this wild safety when Ravens QB Lamar Jackson ran into a backpedaling official, leading to an intentional grounding call that resulted in two points the 49ers way. Cue the wacky music.
With the score at one point 5-3 in the 49ers favor, the Ravens turned a Brock Purdy interception into a RB Gus Edwards 1-yard touchdown, his patented short-yardage score. Purdy struggled throughout the half, throwing a pair of picks, though the 49ers closed the gap and made things 13-12 when RB Christian McCaffrey scored from 9-yards out. Justin Tucker added a short field goal to make things 16-12 at half.
After San Francisco punted to open up the second half, Jackson found WR Nelson Agholor on a scramble drill for a 6-yard score. Under pressure the following possession, Purdy erred again, throwing a pick to LB Patrick Queen who returned it deep inside 49ers’ territory. Jackson hit rookie WR Zay Flowers for a touchdown the next play, taking a commanding 30-12 advantage.
Baltimore cruised from there, their only concern stemming from S Kyle Hamilton who suffered a knee injury to his already banged up knee midway through the fourth quarter. He seemed to be in pain on the ground but was able to walk off the field largely under his own power. San Francisco threatened a late comeback, Sam Darnold replacing an injured Brock Purdy, but a 4th and goal heave into the end zone was picked by S Marcus Williams, ending the game 33-19 in Baltimore’s favor.
Next week, the Steelers will take on the Seattle Seahawks. The Ravens will face another contending team in the Miami Dolphins while the Ravens will take on the reeling Kansas City Chiefs and the Browns will host the Jets to kick off Week 17.
