After a year of disappointment, the AFC North is reloaded and once again expected to be one of the most competitive divisions in the NFL entering the 2026 season.
This is a division featuring multiple MVP candidates at the quarterback position and some of the best offensive skill position talent in the league, but what if the teams could combine forces to form an elite core of offensive weapons?
We're going to have some fun here in the offseason and try to assemble the best collection of players from the AFC North heading into the 2026 season at the quarterback, running back, wide receiver, and tight end positions. Every player in the division is obviously eligible, but there might be a lot of different combinations that could truly be competitive.
Let's take a crack at assembling a Super Bowl-caliber offensive core, while simultaneously maybe determining the best players at each of the offensive skill positions in the AFC North heading into 2026.
2026 NFL season: Picking the best QB, RB, WR, and TE from the AFC North
Quarterback: Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals
Although he hasn't played in the postseason since the 2022 season due to injuries and historically bad defenses letting him down, Joe Burrow is one of those players you really trust in big moments.
Dating back to his final season at LSU, where the Tigers won the National Championship in one of the greatest single seasons by a team in NCAA football history, Burrow has proven himself to be a winner when it comes to crunch time. He's also been wildly productive in the regular season when he's healthy.
Even though it's at least a difficult decision with Lamar Jackson in the same division, the fact that Burrow is 5-2 in the playoffs with multiple trips to the AFC Championship Game and also a Super Bowl appearance in his career, he's the quarterback we're picking to represent the AFC North in this exercise.
Running Back: Derrick Henry, Baltimore Ravens
There really wasn't any question going into this exercise about which running back would be the pick to represent the AFC North. The only question might be -- who would be the second choice?
Quinshon Judkins finished a distant second here.
Derrick Henry is still one of the best running backs in the entire league, and even into his early 30s, he's still nearly put up 4,000 yards from scrimmage with 34 total touchdowns over the last two seasons.
Henry is obviously a powerful back with outstanding speed, and he can take over games. If we're assembling a collection of the best at each offensive skill position in the AFC North, Henry is the easy pick at running back.
Wide Receiver: Ja'Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals
There are a number of really good receivers in the AFC North, but nobody comes close to Ja'Marr Chase. If you were to put together a list of the top players at every offensive skill position in the entire AFC or even the entire NFL, Ja'Marr Chase would get a lot of votes to be WR1.
He just has such a completeness to his game. He's an elite route runner, he has strong hands, and he knows how to create after the catch. Chase can win with speed, but he can also win when he has to be physical or play with some finesse.
Chase has only missed two games over the last three seasons, and since he came into the NFL, he's averaged a ridiculous 1,490 yards per 17 games played, along with 12 touchdowns. His production and star power speak for themselves.
Tight End: Harold Fannin, Cleveland Browns
Even with players like Mark Andrews and Pat Freiermuth in the AFC North, it almost wasn't hard at all to pick Harold Fannin for this exercise.
The second-year tight end for the Browns is coming off of a phenomenal rookie season in which he caught 72 passes for 731 yards and 6 touchdowns. He added another touchdown getting the ball out of the backfield, and Fannin has quickly proven that what he did at Bowling Green was no fluke.
There might be more proven veteran players at tight end in the division, but Fannin is a young and dynamic option whose best days are yet ahead of him. Given what we saw from him as a rookie, it's scary to think about how good he could be when the game starts to slow down.
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