The Baltimore Ravens picked up their second consecutive statement win, this time beating the New England Patriots 37-20 in front of a prime-time audience. What had been an undefeated team obliterating opponents was on the receiving end of the Ravens’ bullying. The win vaulted Baltimore to 6-2 and maintained their lead over the rest of the AFC North.
The Steelers picked up a really big win over the Indianapolis Colts. While Pittsburgh’s offense continues not to look good, the defense is really coming into their own, harassing quarterbacks Jacoby Brissett (who left with a knee injury) and Brian Hoyer all game and getting three takeaways.
Another week and another Browns loss. As seems to be a trend, Cleveland managed to play down to their opponent, losing to a Denver Broncos team that was starting backup quarterback Brandon Allen in his first NFL game and sat at 2-5. In spite of having a ton of talent on both sides of the ball, the Browns just can’t seem to get out of their own way and appear to be on the brink of a meltdown.
The Cincinnati Bengals were on a bye this week, but let’s be honest — at 0-8, they’re out of contention and already looking to next year.
But that’s enough talking about the competition. Let’s take a look at the AFC North standings after Week 9:
AFC North standings:
| Team | Record | Division Record | Conference Record |
| Baltimore Ravens | 6-2 | 2-1 | 4-2 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 4-4 | 1-1 | 4-2 |
| Cleveland Browns | 2-6 | 1-0 | 2-3 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 0-8 | 0-2 | 0-4 |
With the Steelers in second, the Ravens effectively have a three-game lead given Baltimore owns the head-to-head tiebreaker thanks to their Week 5 win.
