The 2017 NFL regular season is slowly coming to a close, but with two AFC North teams in playoff contention and all four undergoing their own dramas and newsworthy moments, there’s still a lot to talk about. Here is the latest updates this week on the Cincinnati Bengals, Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens.
Pittsburgh Steelers: Right now, the Pittsburgh Steelers are the top-seeded team in the AFC and are currently in line for home-field advantage throughout the postseason as well as a first-round bye. Behind the Steel Curtain’s Anthony Defeo thinks, however, that the Steelers heading into the playoffs as the No. 2 seed could be the most beneficial thing for them, based on what history has shown.
Also: Bill Dundas broke down the snap counts of the Steelers’ defensive players this season and has found a trend emerging: The youth movement is alive and well, with high draft picks from the last four years doing the majority of the team’s heavy lifting.
One of those high draft picks, defensive end Cameron Heyward, was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week this week. However, don’t forget about the hidden gems the Steelers have unearthed to great success this season, such as slot cornerback Mike Hilton, who Jeff Hartman argues has been the biggest pleasant surprise of the season.
Baltimore Ravens: Despite kicker Justin Tucker winning AFC Special Teams Player of the Month honors for November and punter Sam Koch being named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week, Baltimore Beatdown’s Tyler Jackson has noted something interesting: The Ravens currently have no players headed to the Pro Bowl this year. Though Baltimore could be represented by way of alternates and replacements, their struggling season seems to be reflected in the fan voting that is underway.
Also: Though the Ravens have struggled, their 6-5 record in a sluggish AFC currently has them as the conference’s sixth seed and on track for a Wild Card playoff berth. But Logan Levy believes that if the Ravens’ positioning holds up, they’re in line to be one-and-done in the postseason this year if they cannot make fundamental improvements, particularly on offense. Kyle P. Barber is most surprised by the struggles the Ravens’ passing offense has had this season.
Cincinnati Bengals: The offensive line has been one area in which the Cincinnati Bengals have struggled this year. In his Week 12 “Weekly Lineman” series, Cincy Jungle’s John Sheeran takes a look at how Bengals left tackle Cedric Ogbuehi fared against the Browns’ Myles Garrett. Braden Whited, meanwhile, breaks down the Bengals’ run game production from Week 12, in which they totaled 152 rushing yards, making it their best performance of the season.
Also: Patrick Judis gives a full preview of the Bengals’ Week 13 Monday Night tilt against the Steelers. This is a must-win for the Bengals if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive as the current eighth seed in the AFC. A win could also be a spoiler for the Steelers’ dreams of home-field advantage and a first-round bye in the postseason.