{"id":287205,"date":"2026-06-15T08:30:44","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T12:30:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=287205"},"modified":"2026-06-15T06:50:03","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T10:50:03","slug":"2026-afc-north-shakeup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/06\/15\/2026-afc-north-shakeup\/","title":{"rendered":"AFC North Shakeup Dazzled In The 2026 NFL Head Coach Rankings"},"content":{"rendered":"

No division in the NFL represented such a comprehensive teardown as the AFC North shakeup shocked the league. After decades of coaching stability, the division underwent a dramatic overhaul, so much so that the most shaky coach<\/a> is now the dean of AFCN coaches. The NFL is in the midst of mandatory minicamps and then hits the briefest of pauses for summer vacation. The AFC North shakeup brought changes for many coaches in the division.<\/p>\n

Note: All statistics are courtesy of Pro Football Reference<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

AFC North Shakeup Dazzled In The 2026 NFL Head Coach Power Rankings<\/h2>\n

Who are the best coaches in the division after the AFC North shakeup that caused aftershocks through the league? The AFC East took its turn in the sun with Bills Mafia leading the way<\/a> by a nose over the reigning AFC champions. How will the AFC North shakeup cause the top of the division to fall one way or the other?<\/p>\n

1. Pittsburgh Steelers<\/h3>\n

Head Coach: Mike McCarthy<\/h4>\n

One long-tenured Mike leaves the Steel City; another enters Yinzer land with a Super Bowl title so long ago that it can legally obtain a driver’s permit. Mike McCarthy knows what it takes to win in Pittsburgh and how beloved a coach can become if they are consistently good. While the departed Tomlin was a defensive whiz who kept the organization a contender long past its expiration date, McCarthy is known for his offensive acumen<\/a>. Tomlin held the role for so long that McCarthy’s arrival is a culture shock.<\/p>\n

There are bones of a strong roster left behind, but GM Omar Khan has some work to do to overhaul the aging defense. He’s off to a good start<\/a>, but the quarterback situation remains dicey with an aging quarterback stubbornly holding on. The next quarterback for the storied franchise might not be on the current roster. McCarthy’s defensive coordinator, Patrick Graham, is a great hire, while his OC, Brian Angelichio, is less well-known. The Steelers were definitely a part of the AFC North shakeup with this hire. McCarthy’s resume barely beats out their blood rival for the top spot.<\/p>\n

2. Baltimore Ravens<\/h3>\n

Head Coach: Jesse Minter<\/h4>\n

You can take a Harbaugh out of Baltimore, but you can’t take the Baltimore out of Harbaugh. Minter has served his entire coaching career under a Harbaugh brother. He previously served as the Chargers’ defensive coordinator last season before becoming the latest coach to attempt to extract another MVP season from Lamar Jackson<\/a>. Minter is a fast-rising star who is a subject of many head-coaching searches, but he went home in a way.<\/p>\n

Can he take the Ravens farther in the playoffs of recent vintage than his predecessor did with Jackson leading the way? This might be the last hurrah for several aging veterans like Marlon Humphrey, Calais Campbell, and Mark Andrews. Funny enough, former Bengals star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson<\/a> ended up in Baltimore after some shenanigans related to Maxx Crosby. Minter is expected to maximize their potential into something greater. To that end, he’s hired some stout coordinators<\/a> like Anthony Weaver. OC DeClan Doyle is the lesser-known name, while Weaver is a perennial head-coaching candidate. Minter’s potential as a head coach vaults him to second place after an AFC North shakeup.<\/p>\n

<\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n

3. Cleveland Browns<\/h3>\n

Head Coach: Todd Monken<\/h4>\n

Monken is the latest coach in the sadly hilarious line of doomed hires<\/a>\u00a0by the “Factory of Sadness,” owned by the mercurial Haslams. He has extensive coordinator experience in the NFL and college football ranks, leading efficient offenses wherever Monken goes. The new Browns head coach comes over from being the offensive coordinator of the Ravens for the past several seasons. This is his second stint in Cleveland, having coached there in 2019 as the OC, so he’s not unfamiliar with the “Mistake By The Lake” franchise. His first coordinators are intriguing, especially DC Mike Rutenberg. However, the defense took a massive hit<\/a> after trading away future Hall of Famer Myles Garrett.<\/p>\n

However, the quarterback situation might be the most dire in the entire league. GM Andrew Berry has retooled the offense for whoever takes the reins after Deshaun Watson in 2027. Monken ranks ahead of the Bengals’ head-coaching pariah after the AFC North shakeup because he offers at least an element of intrigue.<\/p>\n

4. Cincinnati Bengals<\/h3>\n

Head Coach: Zac Taylor<\/h4>\n

In a twist worthy of legendary satirists like George Orwell, Dave Chappelle, and Mark Twain, Zac Taylor is the dean of AFC North coaches. It could be argued that he is the worst in the division, given his penchant for underperforming<\/a> without the heroics of Joe Burrow. Taylor’s teams should be much better than what his track record suggests. However, in his defense, the lack of high-end talent on the defensive side and the coaching there have been lackluster, to say the least.<\/p>\n

Simply put, his reign of error in the Queen City will reach its natural conclusion if the most recent acquisitions<\/a> don’t take. Dan Pitcher is an interesting offensive coordinator in theory, but Taylor’s niche is on that side of the ball. Al Golden boasts a credible coaching CV despite the hilarity of the Bengals’ defense sans Trey Hendrickson. If Taylor isn’t careful, he could be part of a further AFC North shakeup next offseason.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The division of coaching stability underwent significant change in the offseason. Which coaching staff leads the race after an AFC North shakeup that shook the foundation of the NFL? <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4788,"featured_media":287699,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[36,6431,11],"tags":[32322,276,32088,9679,4584],"class_list":["post-287205","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl-news","category-nfl-teams","category-titans","tag-jesse-minter","tag-mike-mccarthy","tag-nfl-coaches","tag-todd-monken","tag-zac-taylor"],"modified_by":"Sue Levine","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287205","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4788"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=287205"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287205\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":287698,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287205\/revisions\/287698"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/287699"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=287205"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=287205"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=287205"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}