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TSN Football Analyst Chris Schultz takes a pre-season look at all eight divisions, with the AFC North on tap. Andy Dalton Youth Jersey . Tomorrow - the AFC South. The AFC North had three playoff teams last year and may have three playoff teams again this year. Pittsburgh and Baltimore will compete for the division crown, with the wild card being the Bengals. You could make the argument that they were the surprise of the NFL last year, but they were 0-4 against the Ravens and Steelers, and they must break that cycle this year if they want to reach the next level. Its a tough and aggressive division, and to me, the Ravens are still the toughest and most aggressive team – they are a true Super Bowl contender. Baltimore Ravens: One more completed pass or one more field goal and it would have been a Ravens-Giants Super Bowl in Lucas Oil Stadium last February. It will be hard for the Ravens to duplicate 12 wins again this year after the amazing string they put together in 2011 - winning all eight at home and all six in their division against Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and Cleveland. In order to come close, this has to be another year of improvement for Joe Flacco at QB. He has made four consecutive playoff appearances and has been to the AFC championship twice, which is pretty good for any QB, but the expectations are high in Baltimore that he will take the next step. That means being a "winner" is not enough - he has to be the ultimate winner to receive the respect he deserves. Flacco will be running the same offense again with Cam Cameron, but his receivers have never been as good as they are now. Any QB would love to have Anquan Bolden, Torrey Smith and Jacoby Jones . The big questions for the Ravens, for a change, are on defence. How do you adapt to the absence of Terrell Suggs and his guaranteed pass rush production and intimidation? Can first round pick Courtney Upshaw be an impact player as an individual pass rush threat? And then there is Ray Lewis, with 16 years of experience, and Ed Reed with 10. Are they as good now as they once were? The truth is, probably not, but their leadership and personal standards of excellence off-sets any issues of age. To me, Ray Lewis is the greatest leader in team sports as he takes responsibility for the emotional intensity of the entire team. But Ray is running out of time and everyone in the Ravens organization knows this might be his last kick at the can. They will kick hard. I predict Baltimore will win the AFC North. Pittsburgh Steelers: They are good, but there are some things that concern me about the Steelers. First, there is Troy Polamalus health. His ability is not in question, but the way he talked about concussions so openly in the off-season, saying he had many more than anyone would think possible to manage, has to create concern for his ability to stay on the field and compete at a high level. Troy has made a ton of money and may be the nicest mean guy in all of sports, but his health is clearly on his mind, and thats not a good thing for any football player. Second, Ben Roethlisberger has already talked about a rotator cuff injury in his throwing shoulder. The Steelers say its nothing to worry about, but to me, this is BIG news. His durability and throwing ability will be challenged and evaluated like never before. Especially behind a suspect line. And finally, seven of the 11 defensive starters are 30+ in age. I know the Steelers were No. 1 in total defense and No. 1 in points allowed last year, so why is this an issue one season later? Well, age hits a football player fast and if even a few of the seven hit the wall together, the Steelers will have problems. Its unlikely, but certainly possible. The priority this year for Pittsburgh is to force turnovers. Nothing is more important in defensive football and the Steelers finished - 13 in the takeaway: giveaway ratio. The other priority, part B so to speak, is the health of the offensive line. Not ability, but durability. The Steelers used 25 different offensive line combinations last year, an extremely high number. Perhaps that is why their first two draft picks were Stanford guard David DeCastro and Mike Adams, a tackle out of Ohio State. You add Maurkice Pouncey and Marcus Gilbert, and what was old is brand new again. But the rookies have to play well and stay healthy. Dick LeBeau will get the best out of his players on defence, but will Todd Haley get the best out of Ben Roethlisberger and the offence? The Steelers have won six Super Bowls - nobody has won more - but I am not sure they can even move past the Ravens for best in the AFC North this year. I pick the Steelers to finish second. Cincinnati Bengals: The 2012 Bengals could finish anywhere from first in the AFC North to fourth - it all depends on how they handle the success they had in 2011. Does it re-juvenate, regenerate and rekindle that desire to not only get back to the playoffs, but to get to the Super Bowl? Or does it create an attitude of entitlement and dissolve the memory of the price required to achieve success? Teams that win one year are often not as good the next year for various hidden reasons. It happened to Atlanta Falcons, among others, in 2011. The fact is that it is harder to maintain success than to actually create it the first time. That is challenge number one in Cincinnati. Offensive co-ordinator Jay Gruden has done excellent work with Andy Dalton and A.J. Green. Now with a true training camp, both should play at the same high level all year long and take a step up. And defensive co-ordinator Mike Zimmer has a young defence that will continue to improve. Depth on defence is also a strength, as the Bengals use eight different defensive lineman throughout a game. But the Bengals were 0-4 against Pittsburgh and Balitmore and went 1-8 against winning teams last year. So they basically beat the teams they should have beaten, and lost the games they should have lost. To take the next step, they need to start beating the other good teams in the NFL. Maybe sticking with one head coach is finally paying off. Marvin Lewis has 69 wins, 74 losses and 1 tie, and he is 0-3 in the playoffs, but consistency at the top has its rewards. With the extra picks from the Carson Palmer deal with Oakland, the Bengals look good, but I just dont think they are as good as the Ravens or the Steelers – yet. I see the Bengals finishing third. Cleveland Browns: Over the last four years, it seemed that no matter who they drafted or who they signed in free agency, the Cleveland Browns just couldnt put a respectable NFL offence together. Over the last four years, their offence has ranked 29th, 29th, 31st and 32nd. Last year the Browns averaged 13.6 points per game, so the organization knows what needs to improve. Enter rookies Brandon Weeden (QB) Trent Richardson (RB) and Josh Gordon (WR). Add rookie Mitchell Schwartz at right tackle to bookend with All Pro Joe Thomas, and maybe the Browns can move the ball as well as they did in 2007 when they won 10 games. Maybe. Run defence continues to be a problem the Browns have had for many years. Last year they allowed 147 yards per game, but did finish with the 10th best overall defence in the NFL. Losing DT Phil Taylor LB Chris Gocong to injury before the season even started will not help Cleveland improve this year. Against St. Louis, at Cincinnati, and at Arizona, the Browns lost by three points or fewer, and they lost one game to the rival Steelers by four. Instead of 4-12, Cleveland had a chance at 8-8 if only they could have scored a few more points. Which brings us back to Weeden, Richardson and Gordon. Last year Andy Dalton and A.J. Green came out of nowhere to dominate in the AFC North for the Bengals. The Browns are hoping that their trio of rookies can do the same. That might be a stretch, but it is their only hope for possible improvement and future playoff appearances. If Steven Jackson of the Rams is the best player on a bad team, then Josh Cribbs is next on the list with the Browns, but Cleveland plans on reducing his role on offence so he can concentrate on special teams. Good field position will help the young offence. Finally, it looks like the Cleveland Browns will be officially sold by October. This can be good as a new owner can bring a new energy, but it can be bad in the short term if the new owner has a new vision and decides to tear everything down and start from scratch. Overall, the Browns should be better, but not good enough to escape fourth place in the AFC North. Jermaine Gresham Womens Jersey . - Rookie midfielder Luis Silva scored twice as Toronto FC defeated FC Dallas 3-0 on Thursday to set up an all-Canadian final at the Disney Pro Soccer Classic. Carlos Dunlap Jersey . Juan Arango opened the scoring with a spectacular goal in the eighth minute and Luuk de Jong doubled the lead in the 24th. Eintracht dominated the match but went behind when Olivier Occean lost the ball in his half and Arango took a few steps before unleashing a fierce left-foot shot from more than 30 metres (yards) out. http://www.shopthecincinnatibengals.com/andy-dalton-jersey . The 34-year-old Grimsby, Ont., native won her semi-final match on Day 13 of London 2012 over Colombias Jackeline Renteria Castillo 1-0, 1-0. Against the upstart Renteria Castillo, Verbeek showed her experience in a close first round, finding an opening in last 20 seconds to push her 26-year-old opponent through the passive zone for the only point of the round. Dre Kirkpatrick Womens Jersey . Haslem will be in a walking boot and on crutches before beginning rehabilitation, and the team expects hell be able to resume basketball activity in about two months. Haslem, a Miami native and the Heat captain, averaged 12 points and nine rebounds in 49 games this season. Anthony Munoz Jersey . Parises agent Wade Arnott added on Sunday afternoon that his client is narrowing down his choices to a small group of teams and will probably decide on Monday.MISSISSAUGA, Ont. -- Former NFL wide receiver Samie Parker highlighted a trio of new signings the Toronto Argonauts announced on Thursday. Parker played 47 regular season games over four years in the NFL with the Kansas City Chiefs and finished with 110 catches for 1,529 yards and seven touchdowns. He left the Oregon Ducks in 2003 as the programs all-time career receiver in both receptions and receiving yards and later when won back-to-back UFL champpionships as a member of the Las Vegas Locomotives. Dre Kirkpatrick Jersey. The Argos also signed quarterback Trevor Harris and safety Matt Estrada. Harris was a standout at Edinboro University in the NCAA Division II division and also played for the UFLs Sacramento Mountain Lions. Estrada was a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars practice roster for 13 weeks in 2011. Parker and Estrada signed two-year contracts while Harris signed through 2014. ' ' '
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