If the playoffs started today, all four teams in the AFC North would make it.
The 7-2 Ravens lead the AFC North and would be the No. 2 seed in the conference based on current standings. The 5-3 Steelers, 5-3 Browns and 5-3 Bengals would be the three wild card teams.
The NFL has never had every team in a division make the playoffs, mostly because it hasn’t been possible for most of NFL history. But the current format of four-team divisions and three wild card teams in each conference makes it possible, and the AFC North could do it this year.
The four AFC North teams still have to play each other a lot (the Ravens and Browns will play three more games within the division and the Steelers and Bengals will play four), so they might beat each other enough that they won’t all make the postseason. But the AFC North looks poised to be the most competitive in football for the rest of the year.
