Gerry Dulac: Steelers enter Browns week with a chance to run away with the division early

Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Oct 7, 2025

Published in Football

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PITTSBURGH — It's a little early to ask, but are the Steelers already running away with the AFC North?

They have certainly positioned themselves to do so after their 3-1 start and the struggles of the other teams in the division, most notably their chief nemesis, the Baltimore Ravens.

They already have a 2 1/2 game lead on the Ravens (1-4). The Cincinnati Bengals (2-3) haven't won since Joe Burrow was declared out for three months. And the Cleveland Browns are already on their second quarterback.

"Forget my perception of it — we're 3-1, and that's all that matters," coach Mike Tomlin said after their 24-21 victory against the Minnesota Vikings in Dublin, Ireland. "Would I like to be 4-0? Certainly. But we are what we are. I've learned not to kid myself. You are what your record says you are."

And right now, that puts the Steelers in a good position.

After a Sunday in which the Ravens, Browns and Bengals all lost, the AFC North is the only division in the league with three teams under .500. The Steelers can stretch their advantage even more with back-to-back games against the Browns on Sunday at Acrisure Stadium and a Thursday night game in Cincinnati four days later.

This is a rare position in the division for the Steelers.

Sine Bill Cowher became coach in 1992, they have never had the division lead after five weeks where the other three teams were all under .500.

In fact, the only other times it happened in the AFC North were in 2019 and again in 2022, when the Ravens were leading the division at 3-2 and the Steelers, Bengals and Browns were all under .500.

The last time all four AFC North teams were under .500 after five weeks was 1999, when the Steelers and Ravens were 2-3, the Bengals were 1-4 and the Browns were 0-5.

The Steelers will take any kind of advantage they can get, however early, against the Ravens.

They are 1-4 for only the second time in the franchise's 30-year history and their defense bears little resemblance to the days of Ray Lewis, Terrell Suggs and Ed Reed. They have allowed 37 or more points in four of their five games and are coming off a 44-10 loss to the Houston Texans — the second-worst margin of defeat in John Harbaugh's tenure.

What's more, quarterback Lamar Jackson has a hamstring injury that kept him out of the loss to the Texans and could cause him to miss Sunday's home game against the Los Angeles Rams. Only six teams in NFL history have ever come back from a 1-4 start or worse to make the playoffs.

But unlike the Steelers, the Ravens have started with the toughest schedule in the league. The Rams will be the fifth 2024 playoff team they will have faced already this season. The Ravens are winless in the four previous games.

However, their schedule eases after the Rams. They have a bye in Week 7 then face the Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings, Browns, New York Jets and Bengals before playing the Steelers on Dec. 7 in Acrisure Stadium.

Recent history has shown that to be a critical point of the season for the Steelers.

They were 10-3 and leading the division after a 27-14 victory against the Browns on Dec. 8 last year, then went into a December tailspin that has become a bothersome pattern, losing their final four games.

It marked the fourth time in the past six seasons the Steelers had a three-game losing streak in December that either affected their playoff seeding or caused them to miss the postseason. It was the fifth time in the past seven seasons they had a three-game losing streak after Thanksgiving.

That's why any early advantage they can continue to build in the division is important for the Steelers. They are off to a good start.

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