During the month of August, the Last Word on Sports NFL Department will be breaking down every division in the league by position. This article contains a position-by-position AFC North defense breakdown. This breakdown will contain “the best” at each unit followed by “the rest” in descending order.
AFC North Breakdown: The Offense
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2021 AFC North Defense Breakdown by Position
Defensive Line
The Best: Pittsburgh Steelers
The Rest: Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns
The AFC North has a lot of talent on the defensive line. Pittsburgh is head-and-shoulders the best of the bunch, though. Their defensive end duo of Cameron Heyward and Stephon Tuitt is among the best interior defensive line duos in the NFL. Heyward has been an All-Pro three of the past four years and since 2017, he has the best argument for being the second best defensive lineman in the NFL behind Aaron Donald. All that said, Stephon Tuitt was better than Heyward in 2020 and likely will be moving forward. His 11 sacks and 25 quarterback hits were astounding for an interior defensive lineman.
Baltimore’s trio of Brandon Williams, Calais Campbell, and Derek Wolfe is a solid one. They are very good at stopping the run and even with the loss of Matt Judon, the unit will still be very good in 2021. In Cincinnati, the defensive line has seen worse days in recent years. D.J. Reader is a solid defensive tackle when healthy and Larry Ogunjobi will be a welcome addition from the division-rival Browns. Speaking of the Browns, their defensive front is strong but that has more to do with their edge rushers. Their defensive line group of Andrew Billings, Malik Jackson, and Jordan Elliott isn’t horrible but it’s nothing to write home about, either.
Edge Rushers
The Best: Pittsburgh Steelers
The Rest: Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals
This is another phenomenal group of players featured by the AFC North. Pittsburgh kicks us off once again and it won’t be the last time. T.J. Watt has been the most productive edge rusher in the NFL over the past two seasons. He was a first-team All-Pro each year along with top three placements in Defensive Player of the Year voting. Across from him will be second-year player Alex Highsmith, who’s replacing Watt’s long-time partner Bud Dupree. Don’t expect much of a drop off; Highsmith shined as a rookie and is trending upwards in the preseason. But just in case he struggles at first, Melvin Ingram is waiting in the wings to get after opposing quarterbacks.
Though Watt has been the most productive edge rusher, Myles Garrett might be the best. The two are close, so it’s hard to say who’s better. But it’s not hard to say that Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney will form a fearsome pass-rushing duo in 2021. Baltimore lost Matt Judon in the off-season, but they replaced him with Justin Houston. Their defensive front will continue to wreak havoc this year. Finally, Cincinnati added Trey Hendrickson since last year, forming a strong duo with Sam Hubbard. They come in last in the division, but that’s still a quality pair. There’s just not much depth behind them.
Linebackers
The Best: Pittsburgh Steelers
The Rest: Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns, Cincinnati Bengals
One thing the AFC North doesn’t feature on defense is an elite group of linebackers. There really isn’t much here, but a recent acquisition gives Pittsburgh the undisputed crown. The Steelers traded for Joe Schobert, who will join Devin Bush and compose a potentially elite linebacker tandem. Coming off injury, Bush’s speed and playmaking abilities will be welcomed back to the Steelers defense with open arms. Schobert will be an every down player; he’ll also be the defense’s main communicator. Most importantly, Schobert brings coverage skills to a linebacker group who lacks said skills.
Patrick Queen of Baltimore had a rookie season in 2020 that was full of ups and downs. Sometimes he was great, sometimes he was terrible. Malik Harrison will need to take a second-year leap as well, especially with the injury suffered by L.J. Fort. Baltimore will probably acquire a veteran linebacker; if they don’t, they could fall down this list. Cleveland has some young talent with upside but their linebackers struggled in 2020. With the injury suffered by Jacob Phillips, rookie Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah will be asked to do a lot this year. Finally, the Bengals really have nothing to talk about in their linebacker group. Like most of their defense, Cincinnati’s linebackers are towards the bottom of the NFL.
Cornerbacks
The Best: Baltimore Ravens
The Rest: Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers, Cincinnati Bengals
The Baltimore Ravens feature a fearsome group of cornerbacks. Marlon Humphrey is a top five cornerback in the NFL. Marcus Peters has turned his career around since he came over to Baltimore. They are a very good cornerback tandem. Not enough can be said of their playmaking abilities. Despite only recording one interception in 2020, Humphrey forced an eye-catching eight fumbles. Receivers can’t be careful enough holding onto the ball when Humphrey is in their vicinity. Peters was a turnover machine too, with four interceptions and four forced fumbles of his own last year. Not only are these cornerbacks good in coverage, but they’re elite at making plays and forcing turnovers.
By the end of the season, we could be talking about Cleveland’s cornerbacks as the best in the AFC North. Denzel Ward is one of the best in the league, Troy Hill was a phenomenal off-season addition, and first round pick Greg Newsome II should play a key role, too. Don’t forget about Greedy Williams as a depth piece, either. Pittsburgh lost both Mike Hilton and Steven Nelson over the off-season, which were big losses. Joe Haden and Cameron Sutton are a still a quality duo but there’s minimal depth behind them. Finally, the Bengals group of Trae Waynes, Chidobe Awuzie, and the aforementioned Hilton isn’t a bad group, much better than recent years in Cincinnati.
Safeties
The Best: Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers, Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens
The Browns have the best group of safeties in the AFC North due to their depth. John Johnson III was a massive addition to their secondary over the off-season. Ronnie Harrison was very good in 2020 and will form a strong duo with Johnson. And don’t forget about Grant Delpit. Once a projected top-10 pick, Delpit fell to the Browns at pick 44 of the 2020 NFL Draft. After missing his whole rookie year with a torn Achilles, Delpit will debut in 2021. If he’s healthy, he can be the spark that pushes Cleveland’s secondary over the top with his playmaking abilities.
Pittsburgh has who many consider the league’s best safety in Minkah Fitzpatrick. He has made so many plays during his two years in Pittsburgh that opposing quarterbacks try avoiding him all together. Terrell Edmunds still hasn’t delivered for a first-round pick, but he was surprisingly solid in 2020 and seems to keep getting better. If Fitzpatrick isn’t the best safety in the league, Jessie Bates III of the Bengals might be. His range and coverage abilities are as good as it gets. Unfortunately, there isn’t much talent around him on the Bengals defense. Finally, the Ravens duo of Chuck Clark and DeShon Elliott is actually very good. Neither of them are as good as Johnson, Fitzpatrick, or Bates, but both are quality players. They come in last due to their competition, not their lack of talent.
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