State of AFC North: Everyone lost so the Bengals win!

In a week where the Bengals didn't play, they must have had a pretty good time watching everyone else in the division lose. The Bengals now have a 2.5 game lead for first place in what has turned into a two horse race between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals.

The Baltimore Ravens (1-6) lost to the Arizona Cardinals (5-2) 26-18

Another hard fought loss for the Ravens

Eight points, that is how much the Ravens lost by Monday night to the Arizona Cardinals. Eight points is also the biggest loss the Ravens have had all season. The Ravens somehow found themselves with another chance at the end of the game to tie or win the game, in this case tie, and just like every game, except for their matchup against the Steelers, they didn't come through. The Cardinals had Joe Flacco under constant pressure for most of the game, and Flacco's receivers didn't do him any favors. That has become the norm for the Ravens' offense though. Justin Forsett only had 12 carries for 36 yards, but he did have a touchdown that gave the Ravens the lead in the second quarter. After taking a 10-7 lead early the Ravens offense fell asleep until the final drive. On that drive, the Ravens worked their way inside the Cardinals' 10 yard line with 13 seconds left. The Cardinals sent the house against an empty backfield and forced Flacco to get rid of the ball which turned into a game sealing interception. Eventually the Ravens will win one of these close games, but it won't really matter. Their season will end in a Week 17 game in Cincinnati.

Another week, another list of injuries for Ravens

As if the Ravens needed it, two of their starting offensive linemen left the game with injuries, Eugene Monroe (Shoulder) and Kelechi Osemele (knee). They make up the left side of their offensive line, responsible for protecting Flacco's blind side. The severity of these injuries are still up in the air, but them not returning to the game isn't a good sign, and if they miss any amount of time it certainly won't help the Ravens' offensive woes.

The Cleveland Browns (2-5) lost to the St. Louis Rams (3-3) 24-6

Browns can't hold onto the ball or the game

The Browns really aren't THAT bad of a team. If they could limit turnovers and stop their opponents from running the ball at will, they could be a very solid team. Unfortunately for them, they struggle mightily with both of these things. The Browns had four fumbles against the Rams, FOUR. It is hard enough to win a football game without fumbling the ball away four times, it becomes nearly impossible when you do. It also is hard to win a football game when Todd Gurley is running the ball for the other team. Gurley was a walking highlight on Sunday, partially because he is a monster but also because the Browns refused to tackle him. Josh McCown had 270 passing yards, completed 26 of 32 passes, but the Rams defensive line was in his lap all day. Couple that with the running game failing to produce, and it's easy to see why the Browns only managed six points.

Josh McCown 'dinged up', status for Week 8 up in the air

Probably the most interesting thing to happen during the game for Browns' fans, given the game was over for them quickly, was the fact Johnny Manziel got a chance to play. McCown hurt his shoulder in the fourth quarter (or maybe earlier, depending on who you ask. Rumor has it, he may have hurt his arm when he ran out of bounds and into a sideline retaining wall in celebration earlier in the game) which opened the door for Manziel. His stat line wasn't anything to applaud, considering he only had 7 plays and completed four passes for 27 yards and a rush for 5 yards. With the Browns at 2-5, and their schedule not getting any easier with the Cardinals, Bengals, and Steelers before their bye week, they'll need to figure out if McCown will be playing this week or if it'll be Manziel to the rescue. After their Week 10 bye, the Browns play the pathetic Baltimore pass defense. It'll be interesting to see if Manziel may be the Browns' starting quarterback by the end of the season.

The Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3) lost to the Kansas City Chiefs (2-5) 23-13

Who's to blame for the Steelers dropping one in Kansas City?

It is easy to point at Landry Jones as the scapegoat for the Steelers' disappointing loss to Kansas City, but the truth is much more complicated with that. The fact is Jones should have never been counted on to throw the ball 29 times while Le'Veon Bell carried the ball only 17 times. The Steelers fell down by six early and abandoned the run far too quickly. While their defense had one of it's worst days tackling, it still kept the Chiefs out of the endzone for most of the game, holding them to field goals. It's simple, if you want to limit the mistakes from an inexperienced quarterback, limit his attempts. Especially if you have a running back like Bell who was quite productive on the day.

Steelers are far from a finished product, even with Roethlisberger

The Steelers showed Sunday that this team is more than an addition of Ben Roethlisberger away from being a major contender. The assumption is that given how much Roethlisberger practiced last week, he'll be ready for this upcoming week's matchup against the Bengals, but many also believe that when he returns, the Steelers will be fixed. There are a few things wrong with that argument. First of all, Roethlisberger isn't going to be running out there with Ryan Shazier and James Harrison on defense. While the Steelers' defense has been good at bending but not breaking in recent weeks, it's hard to imagine that's a sustainable plan of attack against a team like the Bengals who have been great in the red zone. Also Roethlisberger probably won't be able to help pass protect for himself. With offensive linemen Maurkice Pouncey and Kelvin Beachum both out with injuries, the remaining offensive line will have its work cut out trying to protect a hobbled Roethlisberger, who has a habit of holding onto the ball too long.