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          NFL Nation

          AFC North makes history

          • Jamison Hensley, ESPN Staff WriterNov 11, 2011, 09:13 AM ET
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              Jamison Hensley is a reporter covering the Baltimore Ravens for ESPN. Jamison joined ESPN in 2011, covering the AFC North before focusing exclusively on the Ravens beginning in 2013. Jamison won the National Sports Media Association Maryland Sportswriter of the Year award in 2018, and he authored a book titled: Flying High: Stories of the Baltimore Ravens. He was the Ravens beat writer for the Baltimore Sun from 2000-2011.
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          While the NFC North has taken exception to the stance that the AFC North is the best division, the AFC North did make division history.

          According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this is the first time since the division realignment in 2002 that three teams in a division have at least six wins through nine weeks. The Ravens and Bengals are tied atop the AFC North with 6-2 records, and the Steelers are a half-game back at 6-3.

          Of course, the AFC North has had the advantage of one team playing nine games already (the Steelers) while no team in the NFC North has played more than eight. If the Bears beat the Lions on Sunday, the NFC North would then have three teams with at least six wins.

          This is only the third time since 1990 that at least three teams have had at least six wins through nine weeks. The other times this has happened has been 2000 AFC East (Colts, Dolphins, Jets) and 1999 AFC East (Dolphins, Patriots, Colts, Bills). In 1999, three teams from the AFC East made the playoffs. In 2000, only the Dolphins and Colts advanced to the postseason.