Steelers Hit With Massive Disrespect As Ravens Continue To Crumble In 2025

The Pittsburgh Steelers came into the 2025 NFL season as a team that was picked by many to finish near the bottom of the AFC North. Many analysts and pundits expected Pittsburgh to be finishing below the Baltimore Ravens and the Cincinnati Bengals, while there were even a few instances where the Cleveland Browns were picked to land above Pittsburgh in the standings. The complete opposite has happened from what was expected ahead of the 2025 season as the Ravens and Bengals have gotten off to rough starts, while also having a tough road ahead of them.

After Week 5, the Steelers are in first place in the AFC North with a 3-1 record. Behind them is Cincinnati at 2-3, but the Bengals will be missing Joe Burrow until at least December. The Ravens currently sit in third place at 1-4, while Lamar Jackson and other key players for Baltimore are battling injuries. The Browns are last, per usual. They have a great defense, but their offense continues to struggle.

Pittsburgh has a firm game and a half lead on Cincinnati, and a two-game lead on Baltimore, yet the Steelers are still not the favorites to win the division. Most books still have the Ravens listed as the favorites to win the AFC North, which is a bit disrespectful to Pittsburgh.

The odds tweeted out from Kay Adams are from the FanDuel Sportsbook, but the Ravens are also favored on DraftKings as well. The gap between the two squads is narrower on DraftKings as the Ravens are currently listed at +100 to win the division and Pittsburgh is listed at +110. Essentially, bookmakers still think the Ravens will win the AFC North and they do not want to list them as underdogs to win the division because that could put them in a spot where they would need to payout a lot of money.

To be fair to the books, it is still very early in the season. Pittsburgh and Baltimore still have to play each other twice, and the Ravens' schedule for the rest of the season is much easier than Pittsburgh's. The Ravens play the Los Angeles Rams in Week 6, which will be a tough game to win due to the injuries Baltimore is dealing with, but once the team gets healthy, they should be able to roll. Steelers insider Mark Kaboly discussed Baltimore's schedule on Monday's episode of Kaboly + Mack, where he shared his thoughts on the outlook for the rest of the Ravens' season.

"I don’t know how they are betting favorites because I can’t see them winning this week at all. They got 2 with the Steelers, so that’s a plus for the Steelers. The Steelers can put the stake in the heart. You’re acting like the Ravens have some kind of cake walk.”

Kaboly doesn't see a cake walk for the Ravens, but Baltimore's remaining schedule is relatively easy outside of the Rams and a game with the Green Bay Packers. The Ravens will take on Cleveland one more time, the Bengals twice, the New York Jets, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins, and New England Patriots. There should be a decent amount of wins in there for Baltimore, which will make things interesting in the AFC North.

Steelers' Schedule Gets Extremely Hard In Second Half Of 2025 Season

The Steelers still need to play all six of their divisional games, and the team also has to play the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions, Los Angeles Chargers, Indianapolis Colts, and the Packers. All five teams seem to be playoff teams as of now, and Pittsburgh's other two games against the Bears and Dolphins could be difficult. 

There is some validity to Baltimore still being favored to win the AFC North, but with a banged up roster and a two-game deficit within the division currently, it is going to be hard to do. There is a high chance that the division could be decided in the regular season finale, when Pittsburgh takes on Baltimore at home.

What do you expect to happen in the AFC North throughout the rest of the season? Let us know in the comments below!

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