With so much going on in the NFL offseason, it already feels like a lifetime ago that Super Bowl LX reached its conclusion with the Seahawks lifting their second title in franchise history.
The coaching carousel has seen several prominent changes, and free agency began with a bang as many top names found their new homes. Generally seen as one of the tightest divisions in the league, the 2025-26 NFL season was a disappointing one as the Steelers were the only team to make the playoffs.
In this article, we will look at the early odds for the AFC North division winner for the upcoming 2026-27 NFL season, but before that, let us have a brief recap of the last season.
2025-26 AFC North Recap
The 2025-26 NFL season was not as close as anticipated during the offseason. Generally, the division has been a tight one with the Steelers, Bengals, and the Ravens all in competition for the divisional crown.
With a 10-7 record, the Pittsburgh Steelers won the division for the first time in 5 years. The Baltimore Ravens provided some competition after a horrible start, but eventually it was not enough to make the playoffs as they finished with an 8-9 record. Lamar Jackson missed multiple games, and the Ravens’ defense went through a terrible run, due to which Baltimore started 1-5.
The Cincinnati Bengals had their fair share of horrid luck as Joe Burrow went down due to a turf toe injury and missed 9 games, which ultimately resulted in a lost season. Moreover, Cincinnati also had one of the worst defenses last season, leading to a disappointing 6-11 campaign.
As for the Cleveland Browns, there were several issues on the offensive side of the ball, starting with the quarterback. The Browns went through 3 different signal callers in the season, and even though the defense was much better, they could only manage 5 wins and 12 losses.
AFC North Division Winner Odds 2026-27
The Baltimore Ravens are currently the team with the best odds to clinch the AFC North divisional crown for the 2026-27 NFL season, as per the odds on FanDuel. The table below represents the latest division winner odds for the AFC North ahead of the upcoming season.
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2026-27 AFC North Key Changes, Strength of Schedule, and Draft
Let us now take a look at some of the key offseason changes these teams have made so far, along with the strength of schedule and draft picks for the AFC North teams for the upcoming season.
Key Offseason Changes
The Ravens have been very busy this offseason, and it all started with the firing of long-term head coach John Harbaugh. The former Super Bowl winner has now been replaced by former Chargers’ defensive coordinator Jesse Minter.
As for the roster, while the Ravens failed to sign Maxx Crosby due to medical concerns, they have strengthened the defense with the addition of Trey Hendrickson, which is seen as a big move. They also signed OG John Simpson to bolster the interior O-line. But Baltimore has also lost key pieces such as C Tyler Linderbaum, TE Isaiah Likely, and others.
Cincinnati’s biggest loss is that of defensive end Trey Hendrickson, but they have countered it by signing Super Bowl LX winner Boye Mafe to a 3-year deal. The Bengals have also strengthened the secondary with former Chiefs’ safety Bryan Cook.
Pittsburgh became the second team in the AFC North to lose a long-term head coach after Mike Tomlin stepped down at the end of the 2025-26 season. The Steelers have since appointed Mike McCarthy for the role. Aaron Rodgers has yet to confirm his future, keeping the Steelers on hold.
Pittsburgh has lost quite a few players in the offseason, including RB Kenneth Gainwell, TE Jonnu Smith, WR Calvin Austin III, and TE/FB Connor Heyward. However, a couple of big signings include WR Michael Pittman Jr. and RB Rico Dowdle.
The Cleveland Browns are the third team to make a head coaching change from the AFC North. The Browns let go of Kevin Stefanski and have appointed former Ravens’ OC Todd Monken. Key departures for the Browns include tight end David Njoku, Devin Bush, and Jack Conklin, whereas key additions are those of tackle Tytus Howard, guards Zion Johnson and Elgton Jenkins, along with linebacker Quincy Williams.
Strength of Schedule
When it comes to the strength of schedule, the AFC North is probably one of the most relaxed places to be. The Steelers are the highest on the list of the AFC North teams with a (.495) strength of schedule, which ranks number 19 in the league.
Baltimore comes in next with a (.479) strength of schedule, which gives them the 24th toughest schedule in the league. The Bengals (.450) and the Browns (.429) have the 3rd easiest and the easiest schedules in the league, respectively.
The Baltimore Ravens have a grand total of 11 draft picks as per the current status in the upcoming 2026 NFL draft. The Ravens’ first pick is the number 14 overall in round 1. They also hold the number 45 and 80 overall picks from rounds 2 and 3.
Cincinnati holds a total of 8 draft picks this year, with their first round selection being the number 10 overall pick. They also hold picks 41 and 72 in the second and third rounds, respectively.
Pittsburgh has acquired quite a lot of draft capital with 12 selections to its name. Apart from the 21st overall pick in round 1, the Steelers also hold the 53rd overall pick from the second round and 3 picks in round 3.
And last but not least, the Cleveland Browns hold a total of 9 picks, but they have the added advantage of 2 first-round selections with the 6th and the 24th overall picks in the upcoming draft. They will then select the 39th pick in round 2 and the 70th pick in round 3.
Early prediction: Taking into account all the above and the overall rosters of the AFC North teams, we feel the Baltimore Ravens do hold a slight edge over the Cincinnati Bengals and the other teams as the divisional champs for the 2026-27 NFL season.
(The above odds are sourced from FanDuel. Use FanDuel to ace your betting game in all sports!)
I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!
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