It was just a few weeks ago when the AFC North appeared to be the most competitive and talent-stacked division in all of the NFL. All four teams were .500 or better, and you could make a realistic case that any of the four could've made a deep run in the postseason. Sure, it was trickier to envision Pittsburgh or Cleveland playing into late January, but those defenses are no joke, and as the old adage goes, defense wins championships.

Fast forward from mid-November to early-December, and now the AFC North doesn't seem quite as daunting, does it? Three of the four teams in the division have endured injuries to their starting quarterbacks, and now it's Baltimore who is clearly atop the pecking order — loaded on both sides of the ball, and in a strange twist compared to previous seasons, the healthiest team of the bunch.

Lamar Jackson's status for Week 14's home game against the suddenly surging Los Angeles Rams had been in question due to an illness, but while addressing the media today, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh shared that Lamar was back at practice, “full of life,” and apparently good to go for Sunday.

Lamar Jackson has missed five games in each of the last two seasons, and Baltimore is 3-7 in those ten games. Compare that to Ravens 24-12 record in the 36 games Lamar Jackson has started the last three seasons, and it's pretty clear how valuable the former league MVP truly is to John Harbaugh and his Ravens squad. Even if Lamar's statistical output this year doesn't compare to what he did during his absolutely bonkers 2019 MVP season (and boy, let me tell you, it was bonkers), Baltimore will still go as far as their starting quarterback can take them.