AFC North report cards through first quarter of the 2020 season

Pittsburgh Steelers (4-0)

The Steelers were the wildcard team going into the season as many wondered how Ben Roethlisberger would play coming off of last season’s elbow injury. So far the team has rallied together and got onto a hot start for their first quarter of the season.

The major issue with this team is not the offense as it has put up consistently good numbers but the defense is a major cause for concern right now. The major issue is the secondary as many players that were standouts last season have gone extremely quiet for Pittsburgh early on in this season.

They have escaped some games with victories and rallied to beat other close matchups but those were against lesser teams. This game on Sunday against the Browns will help define who and what this team is going forward. Are they capable of challenging and winning the division or are they more of a middle of the pack team that gets a wild card spot? Those will be found out over the next four games.

The defense is a major concern going forward for the Steelers, especially the secondary and their lack of ability to cover and get off the field on third downs. The offense has been able to consistently put up large numbers so moving forward this team needs to play full games. There is not enough consistency or “complementary football”, as Mike Tomlin would say, to this point.

Grade: B

The AFC North seems to be a very tough and competitive division moving forward for these four teams. It will take longer to figure out which teams are pretenders and which are contenders.