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Cleveland Browns quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson. Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

AFC North stock up, down: Are the Browns kicking themselves?

By Aaron Becker | Last updated 8/29/23

With the preseason behind us, here's a look at whose stock is up and down in the AFC North ahead of the start of the regular season.

Stock up

Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback: It was a "Picket-ture" perfect preseason for the Steelers under the second-year quarterback. Pickett completed 13-of-15 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns and had a perfect passer rating of 158.3. Every offensive drive led by Pickett resulted in a touchdown, giving Steelers fans reasons for optimism after last season's weak performance by the offense.

Pittsburgh has surrounded Pickett with a stable of weapons, including wide receivers Diontae Johnson, George Pickens, Allen Robinson II and Calvin Austin III, tight end Pat Freiermuth and running backs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren. All signs point toward Pickett finding similar success in the regular season.

Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Cleveland Browns quarterback: Thompson-Robinson, the No. 140 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, has quickly climbed the depth chart as the backup to Deshaun Watson. After completing 37-of-58 passes for 440 yards and two touchdowns, the rookie quarterback clearly earned the job.

Cleveland has since traded QB Joshua Dobbs to the Cardinals and could still cut QB Kellen Mond to trim its roster to 53 players. The franchise has struggled to find talent at the position for years, but it seems like it might be set for the foreseeable future.

Andrei Iosivas, Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver: This is a classic case of the rich getting richer. The Bengals already boast one of the league's top receiving corps. The sixth-round wide receiver has impressed, posting 12 catches for 129 yards and a touchdown in the preseason.

Bengals may have got a steal with Andrei Iosivas

(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/lMVcUl24u3
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) August 26, 2023

It is still unknown what Iosivas' role will be as he is behind wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. But the rookie has earned his spot on Cincinnati's 53-man roster and could see playing time if any of the three were to miss time.

Stock down

Ravens' preseason dominance: The Ravens won an NFL-record 24 consecutive preseason games, a streak that ended with a 29-28 loss to the Commanders last Monday. Then, on Saturday, Baltimore lost to the Buccaneers.

Baltimore's reign in the preseason was impressive, proving how good the team's depth and coaching has been for years. But it must now prove it can win big in the regular season after a busy offseason that included signing QB Lamar Jackson to a record-breaking deal and adding first-round wide receivers Odell Beckham Jr., Zay Flowers and Nelson Agholor.

Browns' kicking game: Cade York was serviceable in his rookie year with a 75 percent field-goal percentage and a long FG of 58 yards. But the second-year kicker struggled this preseason, missing a field goal in each Cleveland's four games.

The Browns have since released York and traded for Chargers kicker Dustin Hopkins. However, there is still cause for concern as Hopkins was traded because he lost his job to Cameron Dicker. Cleveland used a fourth-round pick on York in 2022 and now its seventh-round pick in 2025 for Hopkins. Did they make the same mistake by using draft capital on a kicker?

Markus Golden, Pittsburgh Steelers edge-rusher: Golden's stock being down is more a product of rookie LB Nick Herbig's play than his own. The veteran finished the preseason with only four tackles. Herbig, meanwhile, totaled 10 tackles, 3.5 sacks, one forced fumble and one pass defensed.

Golden joined the Steelers on a one-year deal this offseason with the mindset of likely being the team's third edge-rusher behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith. But that might not be the case after Herbig's preseason performance. Having too many edge-rushers is a good problem to have for Pittsburgh. The same can't be said for Golden, 32, who's in his ninth season in the league.

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