AFC North QB roundtable: Changes, injuries, trades, chaos - ESPN

Through five weeks of the 2025 NFL regular season, the AFC North and its quarterback landscape does not resemble what it looked like when the season opened on Sept. 7.

As of Friday, three of the four teams are expected to start a different QB than they did in Week 1. A quick recap for those who might have missed the churn at the most important position:

The Baltimore Ravens are still waiting to see if veteran Lamar Jackson (hamstring) is healthy to start their Week 6 game. He has missed four consecutive practices. If he's not, Cooper Rush will get his second start of the season.

The Cincinnati Bengals, who are without the injured Joe Burrow (turf toe), acquired 40-year-old Joe Flacco from the Cleveland Browns on Tuesday in a package that included draft picks. Flacco will start Sunday against the Green Bay Packers after losing his starting spot to Dillon Gabriel in Cleveland.

The move was expected to elevate Shedeur Sanders to Gabriel's backup, but coach Kevin Stefanski has waited on announcing that designation.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are the only team in the division that has started the same QB all season as the 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers is 3-1 despite being 25th in QBR.

Rodgers hasn't been the only QB in the division to struggle. In fact, AFC North QBs have posted a 44.4 Total QBR, by the worst of any division. QBs in the division have also turned the ball over 29 times (most of any division) and had 21 interceptions (most of any division).

This isn't how it was supposed to play out when the season started with two-time MVP Jackson in Baltimore and Burrow, who finished fourth for MVP last year, in Cincinnati.

AFC North reporters Jamison Hensley (Baltimore), Ben Baby (Cincinnati), Daniel Oyefusi (Cleveland) and Brooke