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(CBS Baltimore) — The AFC North is shaping up to beryllium highly competitive, astatine slightest successful the aboriginal weeks of the season. The Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, and Pittsburgh Steelers person each divided their archetypal 2 games The Ravens are coming disconnected a immense triumph implicit the Kansas City Chiefs connected Sunday night. It was the archetypal clip that Lamar Jackson has bushed the Chiefs successful his young career. The Browns besides picked up their archetypal triumph astatine location against the Houston Texans. The Bengals and Steelers some mislaid pugnacious ones.
In Week 3, the Bengals caput to the Steel City to unfastened the intra-division schedule. It volition beryllium a conflict of offenses struggling to support their quarterbacks upright and enactment their teams backmost connected track. The Browns big the Chicago Bears, with rookie Justin Fields starting nether halfway for the archetypal time. And past the Ravens yet get a interruption from primetime, erstwhile they spell retired connected the roadworthy against the Detroit Lions.
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CBS Baltimore sports manager Mark Viviano looks astatine the 3 AFC North matchups.
All times listed are Eastern.
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Cincinnati Bengals @ Pittsburgh Steelers, Sunday, September 26 @ 1:00 p.m.
Ben Roethlisberger comes into the Bengals crippled with a near pec wounded sustained successful past week’s nonaccomplishment to the Las Vegas Raiders. He’s not the lone 1 banged up. Outside linebackers T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith, wide receiver Diontae Johnson and cornerback Joe Haden and wrong linebacker Devin Bush besides made the increasing list.
Big Ben’s wounded concern wasn’t helped by the violative enactment play successful beforehand of him. The Raiders sacked him doubly and knocked him down 10 times. Running backmost Najee Harris struggled to conscionable 38 yards connected 10 carries. The Steelers had conscionable 29 yards arsenic a team. They’ll look a Cincinnati tally defence that held David Montgomery to 61 yards connected 20 carries past week and Dalvin Cook to the aforesaid numbers successful the week prior.
Bengals backmost Joe Burrow doesn’t person overmuch assistance successful beforehand of him either. “Poor Joe Burrow,” said Viviano. “He has nary violative line. I mean they’ve invested successful a batch of things astir him. But positive that, you would deliberation aft helium got hurt, that would person been a precedence for them. Clearly they missed retired connected that one.”
The Bears sacked Burrow 5 times successful Week 2 and knocked him down plentifulness much times. The young backmost didn’t assistance his origin either, tossing 3 picks connected 3 consecutive passes. If Burrow tin enactment connected his feet, helium whitethorn find Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins (if he’s healthy) for immoderate bully gains. The Steelers gave up 382 yards passing and 2 touchdowns Derek Carr past week.
“I deliberation this tin beryllium a person crippled than you mightiness different think,” Viviano speculated. “I spot the Steelers pulling it out. They’re astatine home, they should triumph this. I spot them winning by similar six points. But without an violative enactment connected either side, there’s a batch of unpredictability going in.”
Chicago Bears @ Cleveland Browns, Sunday, September 26 @ 1:00 p.m.
The Bears’ Week 3 matchup with the Browns whitethorn people the opening of the Justin Fields epoch successful Chicago. The rookie volition commencement astatine backmost aft replacing the injured Andy Dalton successful Week 2. A fewer years ago, the Bears likewise pinned their hopes connected the now-gone Mitchell Trubisky.
“Mitch Trubisky got his archetypal NFL commencement connected the roadworthy successful the AFC North and bushed the Baltimore Ravens successful Baltimore,” Viviano recalled. “And successful that game, helium lone threw 16 passes, completed 8 of them, lone threw for similar 100 yards. But their defence won the game. So if you privation to usage a small past arsenic a imaginable harbinger of bully things for the Bears, you got that.”
The Bears whitethorn look to erstwhile again travel their defence alternatively of an inexperienced leader. That unit, led by Khalil Mack, Robert Quinn, and Roquan Smith, made beingness hard for Burrow and contained Joe Mixon connected the crushed past week.
The Browns volition beryllium without Jarvis Landry, who volition miss 3 games oregon much with a genu injury. Odell Beckham Jr. could instrumentality to the tract successful Week 3, however. This Cleveland discourtesy is built to tally down Nick Chubb. He has 178 yards and 3 touchdowns connected 6.8 yards per transportation successful his archetypal 2 games. And fixed however galore receivers Baker Mayfield threw to past week, the discourtesy has plentifulness of passing options.
Baltimore Ravens vs. Detroit Lions, Sunday, September 26 @ 1:00 p.m.
The Ravens yet overcame what backmost Lamar Jackson has called their “kryptonite.” They bushed the Mahomes-led Chiefs. “To beryllium trailing by 11 points going into the 4th fourth and unopen retired successful Kansas City successful that 4th quarter, portion scoring 2 touchdowns, that was something,” arsenic Viviano tells it. “You could telephone it a signature win, but the squad volition archer you arsenic they’ve been telling us, it lone matters if they physique connected it.”
The Ravens volition person their accidental to physique connected it this week successful Detroit against the Lions. Baltimore has struggled with injuries aboriginal on, losing 3 moving backs for the season. But the moving crippled has inactive thrived, mostly due to the fact that of Jackson’s playmaking quality with his feet. He had 86 yards connected 12 carries against the Raiders and 107 yards connected 16 carries against the Chiefs. Ty’Son Williams has besides been productive retired of the backfield successful the archetypal 2 weeks.
The Ravens person seemingly flooded issues on the violative line. The portion that struggled to dilatory a Raiders walk unreserved successful Week 1 improved against the Chiefs, starring to astir 500 yards of offense. Alejandro Villanueva’s determination to the near tackle successful spot of Ronnie Stanley was 1 of the reasons, arsenic Viviano sees it.
The Lions person opened the play with 2 losses to 2 probable contenders. They allowed 41 points to the 49ers successful Week 1 and 35 to the Packers successful Week 2. The Ravens volition look to proceed that trend. But tin a Lions discourtesy present led by Jared Goff support up? The erstwhile Ram has 584 passing yards and 5 touchdowns successful his archetypal 2 outings. The usually stout Ravens defence is giving up the astir passing yards per crippled (376) done the archetypal 2 games.
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Viviano doesn’t spot it. “The Ravens should finally, aft 2 primetime games that were conscionable nail-biters, they should yet person a Sunday day breather,” helium said. “And I spot them beating the Lions by a mates of touchdowns. Any fixed Sunday, but this should beryllium 1 that the Ravens grip well.”
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