The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens have long since been celebrated for their defensive prowess. Now it's time to add the other two AFC North teams -- the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns -- to the conversation about the NFL's best defenses. Through seven weeks of the 2011 season, the AFC North rivals are the four best defenses in the NFL in terms of yards per game.
↵Yards Per Game Allowed:
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- Baltimore Ravens: 272.7 ↵
- Cincinnati Bengals: 278.5 ↵
- Pittsburgh Steelers: 279.0 ↵
- Cleveland Browns: 291.0 ↵
We'll have to see if a division has ever finished in the top four or top five in yards per game allowed, but my hunch is not even close. And I don't suspect that we'll see it happen this year. But there's certainly the possibility that three of four might. The Bengals sport a very solid defense that very few know about. The Browns, however, probably don't have the personnel to hold on to one of the top spots.
↵Three of the four teams are in action this Sunday in Week 8, with the Bengals being the lone team off. After their bye week, Cincinnati will have a good shot at padding their stats defensively when they travel to Seattle to play a Seahawks team that was stuffed by the Browns.
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