Welcome back to the AFC North Power Rankings, now that Week 10 is in the books. Although much like Marvel fans wait to see what abilities Sam Williams has in the upcoming Wonder Man series, we are waiting to see what ‘power,’ if any, the division has, as it remains the worst in the league.
None of the four teams has a positive point differential after nine games played. At this point, it is more of a question of which team will be the least bad among them.
The Cincinnati Bengals watched from home as the Steelers and Browns lost while the Ravens continued to soar.
Fortunately, Week 11 will bring everything to a head as it will be an AFC North battle royal.
Before that, however, as the Bengals, Browns, Ravens, and Steelers look ahead to a pivotal weekend, here are where the division’s power rankings stand after Week 10.
4. Browns’ last gasp incoming against divisional foe
The New York Jets are 2-1 against the AFC North, further adding to the notion that the division is the King of the Worst. The Cleveland Browns were the latest victims of an embarrassing Jets victory, 27-20.
Now, Cleveland is firmly in a race to the bottom for a premium, and perhaps the ‘primiest’ draft pick of them all, just one game behind the Tennessee Titans.
The Browns are 0-3 in the division and 1-5 in the conference. They would need to run the table to have a chance at a playoff berth. The odds of that are slim to none.
However, they take on the second-place Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. They could talk themselves into hoping for a run in a wide-open division if they could pull off a miraculous upset in a game in which they will undoubtedly be home dogs.
3. Bengals one defensive stop away from playoff contention
One team hoping the Browns win on Sunday is the Cincinnati Bengals. There are only eight teams in the NFL that remain undefeated within their division. With a 2-0 record, they are one of those teams that are.
Coming off their bye week, they have a chance to get to 3-0 by defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers. If they can do that, the men in stripes will find themselves a half-game back out of first place in the standings.
Unfortunately, the Bengals’ defense may prevent them from having much hope at all. They have surrendered the most points in the NFL through 10 weeks. As Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk pointed out, Cincinnati is on track to allow the most points in NFL history.
However, with the way the Bengals’ offense is humming after averaging 37 points over the previous three games, as running back Chase Brown colorfully put it, the defense needs one more stop at a critical moment to have the team back in the playoff hunt.
How glorious would that be if that critical stop came against the hated Pittsburgh Steelers when the division rivals rekindle their love for each other on Sunday?
2. Death, taxes, and Steelers fans calling for Mike Tomlin’s firing
While the Pittsburgh Steelers remain in first place in the standings, they are not playing as well as the Ravens, which is why they fall from the top spot in this week’s power rankings.
The Steelers lost their Week 10 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers, 10-25. Thanks to that loss, and despite still being atop the division, their fans are in a state of dismay on social media.
Early morning starts at work are even worse after a Steelers Loss… 😵💫
— Cal 🇬🇧🏈 (@NFL_Callum) November 10, 2025
Struggling to find the right words to describe last nights loss on the road at SOFI…
Has to be up there with one of Aaron Rodgers worse games of his career? 😳#HereWeGo pic.twitter.com/UVaOiOboSS
As usual, after every loss, some fans are pointing the blame at head coach Mike Tomlin. However, others question the biggest name in free agent acquisition this offseason.
Aaron Rodgers’ performance against the Chargers was possibly his worst in a Steelers uniform. Now, fans are already pondering philosophical questions about what his future should be in Pittsburgh.
After a promising and unexpected start to the season, this is the first week in quite a while that the Steelers find themselves out of the top spot in the power rankings.
The Steelers have a shot to get back on track and maintain their divisional pole position when they face the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.
1. Rising Ravens soaring up AFC North standings
A few weeks ago, we noted that the Baltimore Ravens’ bye couldn’t have come at a better time. Since then, they are 3-0 and are now one game behind the Steelers for first place in the division.
Despite being 1-5 at one point, the Ravens, along with many people who pay to discuss football, believed Baltimore had an excellent chance to jump back into the race, thanks to the return of Lamar Jackson and what they perceived as a more manageable schedule.
At that time, Baltimore had the sixth-easiest schedule the rest of the way, according to Warren Sharp. As it turns out, it appears that Sharp and everyone else were correct in their conviction that Baltimore could still win the division.
The Ravens will take their three-game winning streak into Cleveland on Sunday, with an excellent chance to extend it to four while improving to 2-0 in the division.
And with some help from the Bengals, the Ravens could tie the Steelers for first place in the division this time next week.
AFC North’s superpower hidden in plain sight
While the outcomes of the two divisional games seem very predictable, the AFC North has been chaotic this season. And that may be the division’s superpower.
Chaos magic has a good chance to seep into the proceedings this upcoming weekend with inter-divisional matchups taking place. So we should expect the unexpected.
One of the teams may even climb itself into a positive point differential. If that happens, let’s hope it’s the Ravens and not the Steelers.