AFC North offseason grades Steelers get

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AFC North offseason grades Steelers get

The cruised to the AFC North title last season, winning 13 games, four more than the next closest team. The Steelers won the division in 2016 too. They've made the playoffs the last four years and eight out of the 11 seasons Mike Tomlin has been head coach. During that time, the and have been to the postseason six times each, while the ' last postseason appearance came in 2002. For some perspective on just how good Pittsburgh has been from 2007-17, consider this: They're 116-60 (0.659), which is 17 wins more than the Ravens, who are 99-77 (0.563) over that span. The Bengals are 90-83 (0.520) and the Browns are 48-128 (0.273). And while every team but the Browns have won the AFC North in that time, this could be the year Cleveland turns things around. Of course, we were making similar claims last offseason, months after the team went 1-15 -- and months before they outdid themselves by going winle s in '17. But no team in the AFC has done more this offseason to improve than the Browns; they traded for a starting quarterback, used the No. 1 pick to draft another one, and Lorenzo Carter Jersey packed the roster with playmakers -- who will join a core group of young, athletic players who could seemingly help the team to its first .500-or-better season since 2010, back when Romeo Crennel was the coach, was the quarterback, and Braylon Edwards was the leading receiver. Whether potential meets reality is another matter but for the first time in a long time the Browns aren't the AFC North's default laughingstock. This is the next installment of our divisional offseason reviews. On Tuesday, CBSSports.com's Sean Wagner-McGough . Today, we're looking at the AFC North ahead of the 2018 season. Below, you'll find an offseason review for each of the four division teams -- including key additions, Nate Solder Jersey key lo ses, key rookies, a more general overview of what happened from February to May, and finally a grade for their offseasons. The remaining divisions will follow in the coming days. First up: Baltimore. Baltimore RavensKey additions:WR , WR , WR , QB Key lo ses: WR , WR, , WR , C , TE , RB , S Key rookies: TE Hayden Hurst, QB , OT Orlando BrownThe Ravens didn't feel like a 9-7 team a season ago, but a lot of that had to do with the continued mediocrity of an offense that seems incapable of improvement. The defense ranked third in the league, and the special teams was No. 1, according to , but the offense finished in the bottom third. Actually, the running game was a top-10 outfit; it was the pa sing game (again) that floundered, ranking 26th. It gets worse: Flacco ranked 32nd in total value among quarterbacks, sandwiched between and Trevor Siemian. The Ravens signed quarterback Robert Griffin III, the second-overall pick in the 2012 draft who was out of football last season, but there's no guarantee he even makes the roster. Lamar Jackson, however, is a different story; Baltimore traded into the first round to grab the standout, and while there will be no rush to get him on the field, should Flacco stumble his way through the first month of the season, don't be surprised if Jackson gets promoted. There's already speculation that the Ravens could have Jackson play a few series early in the season because ... well, why not? Flacco has been terrible, though some of the blame falls to the lack of playmakers around him. To addre s those concerns, the Ravens signed Michael Crabtree, John Brown and Willie Snead. Brown and Snead are role players while Crabtree will likely be the centerpiece of the downfield pa sing game that has regularly included established veterans (Derrick Mason, , ) over high-round draft picks. (The Ravens have taken exactly one Kyle Lauletta Jersey wide receiver in the first round since Flacco joined the league in 2008 -- in 2015, and his career to date has been largely disappointing.) The team also drafted tight end Hayden Hurst in Round 1, and doubled down with another tight end, , two rounds later. Flacco has leaned on tight ends throughout his career -- was a favorite target through the 2016 season, and Benjamin Watson, who's now with the , led the team in receptions in 2017 as a 37-year-old. Flacco has four years left on his current deal, but his cap hit is $24.8 million in 2018 and $26.5 million in 2019. Put another way: If he doesn't produce this season, it will almost certainly be his last in Baltimore. The good news is that is one of the league's best young backs and the Ravens' defense remains as good as ever. But if Baltimore is to make the playoffs for the first time since 2014, Flacco and the pa sing game have to become something more than a punchline. The problem is that, even with the addition of Crabtree, the unit lacks a consistent deep threat. Daniel Jones Jersey Offseason grade: B- Cincinnati BengalsKey additions:ILB Preston Brown, OT , DT , QB Key lo ses: C , RB , QB , OT , DE Key rookies: C Billy Price, S Je sie Bates, LB Malik Jefferson is coming off his worst season as a pro, though some of that can be blamed on an offensive line that struggled to protect him. He was sacked 80 times the last two seasons and his pa ser rating was around 90. In 2015, when he was sacked just 20 times, Dalton completed two-thirds of his pa ses and set career highs in yards per attempt (8.4), pa ser rating (106.2) and touchdown-to-interception ratio (25:7). The Bengals spent the offseason upgrading the O-line, trading for tackle Cordy Glenn and taking center Billy Price in the first round of the draft. More proof the Bengals are addre sing the right problems: In 13 starts in 2015, a year when the team went 12-4, Dalton ranked No. 2 in value per play among all quarterbacks, behind only . Last season, Dalton was 25th, well below replacement level and behind names like and . An improved offensive line should not only make life easier for Dalton, who is extremely effective in a clean pocket, but will benefit second-year back , who managed just 3.5 yards per carry as a rookie but has the potential to be an explosive player. The Bengals also got better on defense; they signed , considered one of the best under-the-radar free-agent additions of the offseason. The team also drafted safety Je sie Bates in the second round and linebacker Malik Jefferson a Carl Banks Jersey round later all in an effort to right a unit that was replacement level in 2017. Offseason grade: A- Cleveland BrownsKey additions:QB Tyrod Taylor, WR , OT , RB , CB E.J. Gaines, CB T.J. Carrie, QB , WR , DE Chris Smith, CB , OT Key lo ses: CB , RB , DL , DB , QB Key rookies: QB Baker Mayfield, CB Denzel Ward, RB , DE Chad ThomasIs the year the Browns finally figure everything out? They're perpetually in rebuilding mode but unlike the previous two offseasons, where they made plenty of moves to bolster the roster but neglected the most important position, they have traded for Tyrod Ta
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