AFC North
Baltimore Ravens: Edge pressure without blitzing
The acquisitions of safety Earl Thomas and cornerback Marcus Peters turned Baltimore’s defense from good to great in 2019, and along with the NFL’s most effective rushing attack and Lamar Jackson’s continued development, has the Ravens on a potential championship track. But there’s one way in which a franchise that has generally been known for awesome defense could take things to the next level, and that’s the ability to get to the quarterback without bringing extra defenders. The Ravens brought the blitz on 54.9% of their defensive snaps last season, which was by far the most in the NFL — the Buccaneers finished second at 43.4%, and while the 2018 Ravens also led the league in blitz percentage, they did so at a 39.6% rate. Generally, when you blitz that often, it’s because you don’t have a bunch of defenders who can bring pressure without it. That was the case for the Ravens in 2019 — edge defender Matt Judon (who’s scheduled to be a free agent in 2020) led the team with 62 total pressures; rookie end Jaylon Ferguson finished second with 30. Either somebody on the roster is going to have to step up, or more pass-rushing talent will be needed to break away from what could be an unsustainable defensive paradigm.
Cincinnati Bengals: Help all along the secondary
We’re going to assume the Bengals will take care of their quarterback problems by trading Andy Dalton away for whatever they can get, and selecting Joe Burrow with the first overall pick. The next step is to redefine a secondary that was bereft of talent when it wasn’t plagued by injuries. Both Dre Kirkpatrick and Darqueze Dennard missed serious time last season, which didn’t help the cornerback group. Dennard is an upcoming free agent. Second-year cornerback Darius Phillips showed potential last season, but more needs to be done. Safety Jessie Bates, who looked like a breakout star after his rookie year in 2018, fell off in Lou Anarumo’s defense, which was another part of the problem. Everyone needs to get on the same page here, beyond the need for a talent infusion.
Cleveland Browns: Stability at offensive tackle
Not that the Browns were going to bring back left tackle Greg Robinson after a sub-par season, but Robinson’s February marijuana arrest put the last pin in that idea. Chris Hubbard, Cleveland’s primary right tackle, skewed up and down in his second season with the Browns. And after one of the most disappointing distributions of results to talent any team has had in recent years, the Browns — and new head coach Kevin Stefanski — will need reliable bookends for Baker Mayfield and his targets, as well as running back Nick Chubb, who may be the NFL’s most underrated player at his position. Given Stefanski’s history with the Vikings, and their zone-running, boot-action offense, the more mobile those tackles are, the better. Cleveland has $68,129,940 in current cap space, so it’s reasonable to expect the team to start filling those holes in free agency and continue to do so in the draft.
Pittsburgh Steelers: A future franchise quarterback
Ben Roethlisberger on doctor visit Friday: "It was a good report. I got to bypass the tennis ball throwing for a month and go right to the football. Still going to be about 2.5-3 months until I get total clearance from doc but we are doing good!
— Ron Cook (@RonCookPG) February 23, 2020
So, that’s good news for the Steelers and their franchise quarterback for the 2020 season; Roethlisberger missed all but 95 snaps last season with an elbow injury, and it took a miraculous coaching job from Mike Tomlin and his staff, not to mention a trade with the Dolphins for Minkah Fitzpatrick, to keep Pittsburgh in contention. Mason Rudolph and Devlin “Duck” Hodges had their moments in relief of Roethlisberger last season, but a quarterback battery that combines for 18 touchdowns and 17 interceptions in 14 starts won’t get you anywhere beyond .500, no matter how good your coaches are. Roethlisberger turned 38 on March 2, he’s a free agent after the 2021 season, and while a $33.5 million cap hit in 2020 and a $31.5 million cap hit in 2021 isn’t that bad if Big Ben can play at his previous level, we may be talking about the beginning of the end here. As the Steelers rebuild in the post-Le’Veon Bell/Antonio Brown era, a more functional question looms — who will be their quarterback when all the building is done?