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PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - JANUARY 12: T.J. Watt #90 of the Pittsburgh Steelers rushes the passer during an NFL wild card playoff football game against the Houston Texans at Acrisure Stadium on January 12, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Perry Knotts/Getty Images) | Getty Images
During this year’s free agency cycle and 2026 NFL draft, all four AFC North teams made significant moves to add talent to their rosters. While more additions are still possible over the next few months, everyone’s core players are mostly set ahead of the 2026 season.
How do the different positional groups in the division stack up to one another? Let’s rank the AFC North squads by position, continuing with edge rusher.
1. Pittsburgh Steelers
Starters: T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith
Depth: Nick Herbig, Jack Sawyer, KJ Henry, Julius Welschof
With Myles Garrett out of the division, T.J. Watt can now hold sole possession of the best edge rusher in the AFC North title. Watt earned his eighth consecutive Pro Bowl nod last season but was left off both All-Pro teams for the first time since 2022. In 14 games, Watt’s pass rushing production declined a little and his 74.2 PFF grade ranked 31st at the position, but he remains a high-level player. Alex Highsmith remains his running mate on the opposite edge and is coming off another productive season, where he recorded 9.5 sacks, 19 quarterback hits and 23 pressures in just 13 games. The Steelers gave rising fourth-year edge rusher Nick Herbig a hefty four-year contract extension this offseason. Herbig has only 16 sacks in three seasons but is already a proven disruptor with nine career forced fumbles. In 2025, Herbig had a career-high 29 pressures and 18 quarterback hits, grading out as the seventh-best edge rusher with a PFF grade of 86.7.
2. Baltimore Ravens
Starters: Trey Hendrickson, Tavius Robinson
Depth: Mike Green, Zion Young, Adisa Isaac, Kaimon Rucker
Trey Hendrickson made the rare switch to a fellow division rival by signing with the Ravens this spring. He steps in as an immediate starter and leader of the edge rusher group. The Ravens will be relying on Hendrickson’s elite pass rushing abilities, as they ranked near the bottom of the NFL last year in sacks. In the draft, the Ravens added Missouri’s Zion Young with the No. 45 overall pick. Young is a physical, well-rounded prospect that figures to see the field often right away. Young and Tavius Robinson are similar edge-setters who are strong against the run, whereas Hendrickson and Mike Green are more pass rushing specialists. Green has the potential to make a big jump in his second year after showing flashes of high-level ability in 2025.
3. Cleveland Browns
Starters: Jared Verse, Alex Wright
Depth: Julian Okwara, Isaiah McGuire, Logan Fano, Benton Whitley
Losing Myles Garrett is undoubtedly a crushing blow to the Browns’ defense, which he’s been a carrying force of for several years on end. With Garrett gone, the Browns’ edge rusher room inevitably falls in these rankings. They did at least get a solid consolation prize in return by acquiring Jared Verse, the 2024 defensive rookie of the year winner. In two career seasons, Verse has racked up 12 sacks, 22 tackles for loss, 45 quarterback hits and 69 pressures, quickly establishing himself as a force to be reckon with. Opposite him is returning starter Alex Wright, who set new career-highs across the board in only nine starts last season. Wright is entering his fifth season and was previously a third-round pick in 2022.
4. Cincinnati Bengals
Starters: Boye Mafe, Myles Murphy
Depth: Shemar Stewart, Cashius Howell, Cedric Johnson, Isaiah Foskey
Gone is Trey Hendrickson from the Bengals’ edge rusher room, whose been their pass rushing ace for the last five seasons. Hendrickson’s departure marks a changing of the guard for Cincinnati, and they’ll have a lot of production to replace. The Bengals drafted Texas A&M’s Cashius Howell in the second round this year and signed Boye Mafe from the Seattle Seahawks. Howell was a productive five-year collegiate player who should be an immediate impact player. Mafe, meanwhile, did not post gaudy statistics in Seattle but was an integral part of the Seahawks’ elite championship defense. The biggest X-factor of this group is 2025 first-round pick Shemar Stewart. Stewart’s rookie season, clouded by early contract disputes and injury struggles later on, was a disappointment. If he can develop into a contributor in Year 2, this unit will be improved.
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