2013 AFC North Division Odds
(The Spread) – Despite being edged out by their division rivals last season, the Pittsburgh Steelers are favored to win the AFC North in 2012-13.
Oddsmakers have installed the Steelers as +120 money line favorites over the Baltimore Ravens, who are +130. The Cincinnati Bengals are listed right behind the Steelers and Ravens at +400 to win the AFC North while the Cleveland Browns are the current long shots at +2500.
The Ravens’ offensive line took a hit when Ben Grubbs signed with the New Orleans Saints for a five-year deal in March. Baltimore also lost defensive end Croy Redding (Indianapolis Colts), although the Ravens were able to re-sign cornerback Lardarius Webb. In the draft, the Ravens addressed the loss of Terrell Suggs (Achilles) with the selection of second-round pick Courtney Upshaw and the departure of Grubbs with Iowa State guard Kelechi Osemele.
As usual, the Steelers were quiet in free agency but they had another product draft (at least on paper, that is). Stanford guard David DeCastro surprisingly fell to Pittsburgh with the 24th overall pick in round one and Ohio State offensive tackle Mike Adams slipped to the Steelers in round two. The team hopes that fifth-round pick Chris Rainey out of Florida will at least somewhat ease the loss of running back Rashard Mendenhall, who is expected to miss extensive time following knee surgery.
Out of the teams in the division, the Browns made the most noise in the draft when they selected Alabama running back Trent Richardson with the third overall pick and then came back at No. 22 and took Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Weeden. Both players are expected to start, as is receiver Josh Gordon, whom Cleveland selected with a second-round pick in the supplemental draft.
The Bengals selected Alabama cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick and Wisconsin guard Kevin Zeitler in the first round of this year’s draft, and then followed up those picks with the selections of Penn State defensive tackle Devon Still and Rutgers’ receiver Mohamed Sanu.
The Steelers and Ravens also have similar odds to win the 2013 Super Bowl, as Pittsburgh is 16/1 and Baltimore is 18/1. The Bengals are 40/1 long shots to win this year’s championship while the Browns are massive long shots at 200/1.
2013 AFC North Division Odds
Pittsburgh Steelers +120
Baltimore Ravens +130
Cincinnati Bengals +400
Cleveland Browns +2500
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