It's been a wild ride in the first half of the 2026 season for the AFC North. Since Week 1, we've seen the power rankings shake up in just about every week, while the standings right now aren't what anyone would have expected. The Pittsburgh Steelers sit atop the division entering their Week 9 bye,
The best part? There's nothing Mike McCarthy's team can do to lose first place this week—even as they're on their mid-season break.
This doesn't guarantee the Steelers a spot in the driver's seat all season, but this team just put the whole AFC North on watch with their 21-point beatdown of the Cleveland Browns in Week 8. As McCarthy and the coaching staff go back to the drawing board, the Baltimore Ravens remain buried at the bottom of AFC North power rankings.
Week 9 AFC North power rankings sees Steelers vaulting, Bengals sliding
4. Baltimore Ravens (4-5)
The Ravens are in trouble—serious trouble. If the news of Lamar Jackson being out indefinitely with a thumb injury wasn't enough, backup quarterback Tyler Huntley landed on season-ending IR with a turf toe injury. In a desperation attempt to save their season, the Ravens traded for Cardinals veteran QB Jacoby Brissett.
Meanwhile, Baltimore is coming off a 33-10 blowout loss against the Jacksonville Jaguars. They've lost four straight games and, over the past two weeks alone, the Ravens have been outscored 69 to 20.
The Ravens already had a below-average defense, and without Jackson, they may be doomed to finish last in the division. Nobody saw this coming, but they are the least threatening team in the AFC North halfway through the season.
3. Cleveland Browns (5-3)
We don't want to count the Browns out completely, but it's important to note that three of their five wins have come on last-season field goals. They didn't get so lucky in Week 8. Pittsburgh laid the smackdown on Cleveland in the 27-6 win, as the Browns struggled to run the football and to stop the run (which is usually the recipe for a loss).
Cleveland is last in the division in point differential (-34). Meanwhile, they are just 25th in offense EPA per play and 14th in defense EPA per play, per RBSDM Stats. This team has the look of a 'pretender' entering Week 9, and it's really starting to show.
2. Cincinnati Bengals (5-2)
The Bengals were just a few plays away from losing at home to the now-1-7 Tennessee Titans last week, and it took quarterback Joe Burrow every bit of his 462-yard, six-total-touchdown performance to pull off a 43-36 overtime win over one of the worst teams in the league.
While Burrow's three interceptions didn't help, the biggest issue was the despicable defense, as Cincinnati allowed quarterback Cam Ward to go off for 304 yards and two touchdowns while getting gashed for 158 rushing yards on 5.6 yards per carry.
The Bengals unquestionably have a high-powered offense, but their defense is still as bad as it has been in recent years, and they are going to have to win shootouts. They could very easily have lost their Week 8 matchup against a bottom-dwelling AFC opponent. Still, Burrow and their firepower have them sitting firmly in the No. 2 spot at the halfway point of the 2026 season.
1. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2)
Not only did the Steelers rise to the top entering their Week 9 bye, but there's more than enough reason to believe they could remain here for quite some time. Pittsburgh is doing two things at an outstanding level: running the football and shutting down opposing rushing attacks. This will give them a shot at winning every game on their schedule.
Meanwhile, the coaching changes seem to be making a massive impact this year, and Jaylen Warren looks like an All-Pro running back. Even if the Bengals win this week and advance to 6-2, the Steelers hold the head-to-head tiebreaker, which makes their Week 10 matchup against Cincinnati critically important.
McCarthy's team certainly has plenty to work on during the bye week, but they can take comfort in knowing that they sit atop the division after their four-game winning streak.
Add us as a preferred source on Google