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AFC North in Week 8: Browns and Steelers Fight for First Place in Pittsburgh

Published

1 hour ago

October 30, 2026

Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt in his black and gold uniform during a game.

No division in football is tighter, or meaner, than the AFC North right now. Every team in the division has a winning record, and Sunday’s headline game is a straight fight for first place.

The standings: Pittsburgh Steelers 5-2, Cleveland Browns 5-2, Cincinnati Bengals 4-2, Baltimore Ravens 4-3.

Cleveland at Pittsburgh, 1:00 PM ET at Acrisure Stadium, is the rematch the whole division has been waiting on. The Browns won the first meeting 27-24 in Week 4 on a last-second field goal, and that win is the only thing separating the two 5-2 teams at the top. Pittsburgh has answered with three straight wins since that loss, and the Steelers’ own count says they have won 22 straight regular season home games against Cleveland. Something has to give on Sunday.

Cincinnati (4-2) hosts the Tennessee Titans (1-6) at Paycor Stadium at 1:00 PM ET. The Bengals own the division’s best point differential and have won two straight, and a home win keeps them right on the leaders’ heels no matter what happens in Pittsburgh.

Baltimore (4-3) travels to Buffalo for a 1:00 PM ET kickoff with the biggest storyline of the weekend: Lamar Jackson returns at quarterback after missing three games with a high ankle sprain. The Ravens went 1-2 without him and fell into last place, but a win at Buffalo pulls them right back into the race.

First place will have a new owner, or a shared one, by Sunday evening. In the AFC North, that is exactly how it should be.

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NFC West in Week 8: 49ers Lead Big, Rams Host the Winless Chargers at SoFi Stadium

Published

1 hour ago

October 30, 2026

We Speak Media

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford throws a pass.

The NFC West has a clear boss and a long weekend for everybody chasing them. San Francisco watches Week 8 from the couch with the division’s biggest lead.

The standings: San Francisco 49ers 6-1, Seattle Seahawks 4-3, Los Angeles Rams 3-4, Arizona Cardinals 2-5.

The 49ers, two games clear of Seattle, have the week off after taking their first loss of the season at Atlanta. Nobody in the division can touch them this weekend, so the race is for second place and wild card position.

The Rams host the Chargers at SoFi Stadium at 4:05 PM ET, the first regular season meeting between the two Los Angeles teams in their shared building since New Year’s Day 2023. The Rams (3-4) lead the NFL in total yards, and quarterback Matthew Stafford leads all passers with 1,989 yards. The Chargers (0-6) are the league’s last winless team, with the fewest points scored in football and the most turnovers, 15 of them. The Rams get back to .500 with a win, and Sean McVay’s team has spent all week saying it will not overlook a desperate opponent.

Arizona (2-5) visits the Dallas Cowboys (3-4) at 1:00 PM ET, and Seattle (4-3) closes the week on Monday night at home against the Chicago Bears (8:15 PM ET), a game with real wild card weight for both conferences.

San Francisco is in control. Week 8 decides who gets to call themselves the challenger.

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