Baltimore and Cleveland are the odds-on favorites to win the AFC North division title this year. But it sure didn’t look that way after the smoke cleared Monday night.
The Ravens and Browns both suffered season-opening defeats, and it is Cincinnati and Pittsburgh who stand atop the AFC North standings after Week 1 of the 2021 NFL season.
The Bengals upset visiting Minnesota 27-24 in overtime Sunday. And the Steelers one-upped them by going to Buffalo and knocking off the defending AFC East champions by a 23-16 count.
Cleveland jumped out to a healthy lead at Kansas City but could not hold on, falling by a 33-29 count, while Baltimore’s injury-plagued offense could not string together enough plays to weather a Las Vegas assault, and fell to the Raiders in overtime by a score of 33-27.