One classic topic of annual discussion around the NFL is which team has the best chance to go from worst to first in their respective division the following season.
CBS Sports took a different approach and ranked the eight reigning division champions by their vulnerability and chance of repeating. And it’s not a good look for the reigning AFC North champions.
The Cincinnati Bengals were ranked as the most vulnerable division winner heading into 2022. To be fair, it’s not necessarily a shot at the Bengals. They still really like the makeup of the team. It’s more a matter of how tough the AFC North always is and the expectation that at least two, if not all three, of the Bengals’ division rivals also make a run at the division crown.
It’s not that we’re down on the Bengals. Joe Burrow and their play-makers are the real deal, and they wisely addressed the O-line. The defense is also underrated. But they’ve got a tough schedule with an absolutely brutal finish (their final eight are against projected playoff teams), and the division is always tight. It’d be a surprise if at least two of their rivals didn’t challenge for the title; the Ravens should be much healthier, the Steelers are never losers under Mike Tomlin, and the Browns still have lots of talent.
Without a doubt, the AFC North will be a dogfight that could very well come down to the Ravens-Bengals battle in Cincinnati in Week 18.
One could make the argument, however, that a team like the Dallas Cowboys are a bit more vulnerable in that aspect. More and more, people are flocking toward the Philadelphia Eagles as the favorite in the NFC East after their aggressive offseason, including adding WR A.J. Brown and CB James Bradberry, while the Cowboys traded WR Amari Cooper to the Browns.
There’s no surprise on the least-vulnerable division winner here: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who may get some competition from the New Orleans Saints, while the Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons may both be contending for the No. 1 draft pick in 2023.
