AFC North Mock Draft For 2020 Draft

AFC North Mock Draft For 2020 Draft

Written by on April 21, 2020

It may not yet be totally official, but every team in the NFL is now on the clock, as the 2020 Draft is now just a couple of days from starting. Every team in the league prepares as best they can for the draft, but they also all know that things can change very quickly. Players that they thought might still be available when their pick comes around may already be gone, which means that teams need to be fast on their feet while also ensuring that they get a player that can fit the holes that every team, no matter how good, currently has. There are certainly some teams that need more help than most, a couple of whom can be found in the AFC North. Everyone is playing catchup to the Baltimore Ravens this season, but can that gap be closed through the draft? Let’s take a look at what all 4 teams in the North might do in the 2020 Draft and their odds.

AFC North Mock Draft For 2020 Draft

Baltimore Ravens

Despite finishing the regular season with a 14-2 record and the #1 seed in the AFC North division, the Ravens will have come away disappointed after taking another early exit in the playoffs. They have their franchise QB in Lamar Jackson, but while the offense looked great, the defense looked shaky at times. Their weaknesses were exposed by the Titans in the playoffs, so look for Baltimore to shore up the center of the defense in an effort to limit the run, which was what ultimately killed them last season. The feeling is that the Ravens will take an LB, possibly Patrick Queen, while opting for an edge rusher in the second round.

Pittsburgh Steelers

That the Steelers somehow managed to go 8-8 last season with the number of major injuries the team had is nothing short of a miracle. Much of their success was down to the play of the defense, which is young and hungry. With that in mind, the Steelers are likely going to look to the offensive side of the football with their early picks, with their first pick coming in the second round. It would not be a total shock to see Pittsburgh take an RB with their opening pick, and if Jonathan Taylor is still on the board, he looks a good bet. Pittsburgh could also use a TE and a DT, and they may also be on the lookout for a QB to back up Big Ben.

Cleveland Browns

No team entered last season with more hype surrounding them than the Cleveland Browns. They were the sext dark horse pick that people were taking to win the North, but we ended up seeing the Browns being the Browns, as they slipped to a 6-10 record on the season. Cleveland needs help on the line on both sides of the football, and the talk is that they may be willing to part with Odell Beckham Jr. for draft picks. Cleveland could potentially load up with prospects this season, and while that might mean another year in the weeds, the hope would be that they would eventually build a winner, a little more quietly.

Cincinnati Bengals

After a run of 5 consecutive winning seasons, the Bengals have slowly drifted backwards over the past few years. The low point came last season, when they finished the regular season with a 2-14 record. It is going to take more than one draft to get this team back to winning ways, but Cincinnati should make a good start this season by taking QB Joe Burrow as the #1 pick in the draft. They are going to need to get him some O-Line protection and maybe another weapon, but the reality is that this team is a long way off from winning.