The NFL's 100th season is finally upon us after thousands of hours - and hundreds of thousands of minutes - without a competitive snap. After all the talk, the questions we over-thought during the off-season will finally get some answers.
So let's kick things off by looking at the state of each team.
Baltimore Ravens
Does the Ravens season rely on quarterback Lamar Jackson's progress? The second year quarterback was one of the most talked about names in the off-season and figures to take a step forward with a bespoke offense around him. Relying on the run, the team figures to operate a bit like the Rams, and will open up the field by disguising pass plays as play action.
If I'm head coach John Harbaugh, I limit my expectations of Jackson's arm. Scheme men open, and give him bigger windows to throw in to. There's no problem being inaccurate when you can make up for it through easier plays and a guy who can take off every once in a while.
The running should be left up to Mark Ingram -- who if you didn't know, should be a beast on Fantasy. The offensive line - and tight end room - is built for the ground game, and the play-calling will likely mean plenty of snaps for Ingram.
The wide receiver group isn't great on paper. Harbaugh will hope first round draft pick, Marquise Brown, comes out as a deep threat sooner rather than later. You need Hollywood Brown to stretch the field rather than moving it left to right. It's a risky strategy moving forward with clearly-not-WR1 talents Willie Snead and Seth Roberts around him. But that's fine with the way the game plan is shaping up.
It's crazy to see how quickly strength and weaknesses have changed on the defense. Last year's ferocious front seven began to regress when it lost linebackers CJ Mosley and Terrell Suggs in free agency. But the exclamation point is Pernell McPhee starting on the defensive line -- seeing as he has 23 starts in 109 games in eight years with Baltimore. That's not a good sign.
But while they lost their pass rush, they loaded up in the secondary - similar to what the Chargers have done - and are tipped to be one of the league's best defenses in 2019. Per Spotrac, Baltimore spends a whopping 30.96% of its salary cap in the secondary. That's more than double any of its other position groups.
There's quality guys like cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey and Jimmy Smith, and safeties Earl Thomas - our pick for Comeback Player of the Year - alongside Tony Jefferson. That's going to make the Ravens look impenetrable. With a bunch of depth behind them, teams will find it difficult to move the ball in the air, and when they attempt this, it could easily be batted away or intercepted.
In a nutshell, the Ravens can challenge this year. But a lot of it relies on Jackson, and the team manufacturing a pass rush despite a weakened front seven.
Cincinnati Bengals
Coming soon
Cleveland Browns
Is there a team that fans want to see play more than Cleveland? Granted the storyline became a bit exhausted there the last few weeks, but we're still looking forward to the Browns hitting the field.
Let's just hope it's all what we expect it to be.
Let's get a caveat out of the way quickly: not much separates Cleveland from the rest of the division. There's concerns on the O-Line, quarterback Baker Mayfield isn't endearing himself to opposing pass rushers, and defensive coordinator Steve Wilks still has to prove he wasn't a product of a good situation in Carolina after a woeful year with the Cardinals.
The roster most certainly improved since the Browns went 5-3 - under then temporary head coach Freddie Kitchens - down the stretch last year. It added a great talent, Todd Monkens, as offensive coordinator. Running back sensation Kareem Hunt was a gamble that looks set to pay off from Week 10 this year. All the key offensive pieces return. Along with wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.
It's a great situation, and something we wrote in depth about over the summer. Put simply: Cleveland stripped everything back - collected tangible draft picks along the way - and built from the ground back up. With ease. Cap space and draft picks meant Beckham and edge rusher Olivier Vernon could be acquired from the Giants, and both players add a crease in their respective areas.
Vernon shores up a defense that would have been on the rise through its draft selections anyway. He should allow former first overall pick Myles Garrett to have a very productive year, one we think could be in the Defensive Player of the Year race.
A bit like Denver, Cleveland has such a good defensive line - rounded out by nose tackle Sheldon Richardson and Larry Ogebole - that the area can be relied on and let everything fall into place behind it.
But speaking of building from the ground up, former Cleveland draft picks Denzel Ward and Greedy Williams look set to tackle the secondary problem. If the two live up to their billing, Cleveland will have a substantially better cornerback solution at a cheap price for a few years. Williams might not start from Week 1, but the second round draft-steal is a play maker ready to make an impact.
The Browns have never been favourites for the AFC North. Until now.
Pittsburgh Steelers
An unproven wide receiver group with a strong defense. Sounds like the Ravens, right? Turns out Pittsburgh finds itself in a similar situation.
The difference between the Steelers and Baltimore is we have some idea of this receiver group's ceiling. And it's quite high. JuJu Smith-Schuster looks well capable of filling Antonio Brown's shoes, while second year guy James Washington and Donte Moncrief are strong depth options behind him. Tight end Vance McDonald will no longer split reps with the departed Jesse James. So individually, he's bound to look good.
It all comes buoyed by a strong offensive line. And did we mention the quarterback situation isn't as hazy as in Maryland?
It doesn't mean AB's absence will go unnoticed, but it certainly doesn't rule out the Steelers getting the last laugh here either. Especially with how James Conner is playing out at running back.
There's sizeable talent on the other side of the ball, with head coach and defensive guru Mike Tomlin working with one of the best groups he's had in Pittsburgh. TJ Watt off the edge has been great, which helps defensive end Cameron Heyward out a lot.
Linebacker Bud Dupree has better stats than his play might suggest, but he's a good option in there nonetheless. Especially with a guy like Devin Bush coming in, who will be under pressure to perform early. Pittsburgh traded up hoping he'd fill the role of an injured Ryan Shazier, and while the ask is big, the player looks like a stud.
The secondary is pretty good too. Safety Terrell Edmunds is good-not-great but can definitely take a step up in Year 2.
All told, the Steelers have a surprisingly under-the-radar roster that can definitely come in without the hype of Cleveland and Baltimore and win this division. It's not good for storylines, but Pittsburgh and Brown/ LeVeon Bell provided enough of those over the last year.
Time for them to just do football.
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