Hello. Football is back on our television screens for the next couple of months. All of the AFC North teams were in action on Sunday, with the Cincinnati Bengals stealing a victory in the Battle of Ohio from the Cleveland Browns
and the Pittsburgh Steelers escaping the Meadowlands in the Battle of the Ex-Quarterbacks. Oh and Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry is still good at football, even if his fumble was key.Who knew? Let’s get into it a look at the AFC North after Week 1:
Winner: The QB Unc-tion in Cleveland and Pittsburgh
For those who
are unfamiliar with the term “unc” or “old-head” it’s a new slang that is used frequently. Basically, it’s an older male who’s seems older than their original age. Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers and Browns quarterback Joe Flacco are the oldest starters in both the league and their own division, but you couldn’t tell on Sunday.
Both Rodgers and Flacco won a Super Bowl back when they were younger, but they aren’t the same quarterbacks they were back in the day. In a winning effort, Rodgers eclipsed 200 yards passing and threw 4 TDs in the 34-32 win against the New York Jets, his former club, whom he played for two seasons. Flacco, on the other hand, almost had 300 yards passing in a losing effort against the Cincinnati Bengals.
The play for both Rodgers and Flacco likely won’t be sustainable for the entire season, but they turned the clock back for opening week.
Loser: Bengals Defense
It might come off as controversial to some, but not to those who watched closely. Yes, the Bengals defense forced two turnovers, sacked QB Joe Flacco twice and held the Browns running game in check, but the Bengals defense didn’t play as well as the boxscore said.
Cleveland’s offense isn’t projected to be very good, but Cincinnati’s defense made them look good. The secondary? Still not great. Pass rush? Inconsistent at best. The run defense was better and the tackling looked improved, but that’s pretty much it. If a bad offense like the Browns can move the ball consistently against the Bengals, imagine how they would look against better offenses?
Sure, the Bengals came away with a win but the questions about the team are still valid.
Loser: Missed Opportunities
Nothing is more infuriating than when your favorite team loses a game that they should’ve won. It happened Sunday afternoon if you were a Browns fan. Whether it was untimely drops by the wide receivers or missed kicks by the kicker, the Browns had an opportunity to steal a division game at home but came away short. The Browns outplayed the Bengals for most of the game after the opening drive but the mental errors is what is separated the Browns from being 1-0 and instead they are 0-1.
Meanwhile, the Baltimore Ravens. Inexcusable.
It appeared that Baltimore was trending towards sending a statement to the rest of the league, instead, they are wondering what happened. Blowing a lead like that is inexcusable, especially with how well the Ravens played. The only team stopping Baltimore is Baltimore and Baltimore ended up losing due to costly mistakes that were self-inflicted.
Winner: Season isn’t over in Week 1
It’s Week 1. However, if there is any silver lining for all 4 teams in the AFC North, it’s that your season isn’t defined by the opening week. The Browns can look for moral victories despite losing a winnable game, the Bengals can hope their defense can improve, same can be said for the Steelers. The Ravens can hope not to blow things against great teams again.
The NFL Season isn’t a sprint; it’s a long, grueling marathon that has highs and lows. Your season isn’t over until you are officially eliminated from playoff contention. All 4 teams have different goals that they are trying to obtain, internal and external. It’s all about perspective.
