Top AFC North Players To Buy In Dynasty Fantasy Football Leagues

Which AFC North players should managers buy in Dynasty fantasy football leagues? John breaks down the best players to buy from the AFCN in Dynasty ahead of the 2025 season.

The Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, and Pittsburgh Steelers were one of the best divisions in the NFL this season. The Ravens and Steelers both made it to the playoffs, while the Bengals fell just shy due to problems on their defense. The Browns were absolutely terrible, to no one's surprise.

Yet even bad teams have players that are worth pursuing in Dynasty fantasy football leagues. Some franchises spend a long time in the doldrums, and it looks like Cleveland is headed there, yet they still have intriguing members of their team that could return value relative to their cost.

Not all players will be smash buys, but anything that beats the value you put into it is a win. Many leagues feature managers who may have their own reasons for moving on from certain players, and it's always good to capitalize on that. So, let's dive in.

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WR Rashod Bateman

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Rashod Bateman had the best season of his professional career, catching 45 passes for 756 yards and nine touchdowns in 2024. While he was very inconsistent, his scoring proficiency and ability to separate from defenders should give you plenty of reason for optimism moving forward.

TOUCHDOWN RASHOD BATEMAN.

IT’S ON.

🦇🦇🦇🦇🦇🦇🦇🦇🦇 pic.twitter.com/B6MOSuy42D

— Ravens Nation 𝙇𝙄𝙑𝙀 (@LIVERavenNation) January 12, 2025

And with quarterback Lamar Jackson playing like a top-5 player at his position during the regular season, Bateman is in good hands. The early years of his career were marred by injuries, but it seems he's bounced back well from those now. And with tight end Mark Andrews aging, there could be more opportunities for Bateman in 2025.

He had impressive efficiency improvements, as you can see from the below chart. Of course, we'd like to see him be targeted more. But what you want to see from players on the rise is their play earning that extra work. And Baltimore offensive coordinator Todd Monken just signed an extension with the team, so the offense is in good hands moving forward.

Rashod Bateman turned in a really strong Year 4.

Even though he was used as a field-spacer more than ever before (career-high average route depth and career-low target rate), Bateman was far more efficient than we've seen in the past 👇 pic.twitter.com/K8uR0DOAiS

— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) January 6, 2025

We like the value Bateman presents here, as he can probably be acquired for cheap since he's had multiple disappointing seasons, and WR Zay Flowers is still ahead of him on the depth chart.

RB Keaton Mitchell

Another Ravens player, running back Keaton Mitchell, essentially lost his 2024 season entirely due to the ACL tear he suffered late in 2023. And with Henry running the backfield, there wasn't much reason to give him the ball as he recovered from his injury. Yet Henry is now 31 years old, and his time as a dominant RB is drawing to a close. Father time necessitates that.

Can we please at least get Keaton Mitchell a couple screen passes on Sunday🙏🏼 @Ravens

Gotta find ways to get this type of explosiveness on the field pic.twitter.com/SOQ1qbpCed

— Øwehs Burner (@OwehsBurner) January 16, 2025

And he showed great signs of being recovered this season. While he was used very sparingly, it's likely we see him return to something more akin to his 2023 volume in 2025. And his ludicrous speed allows him to be highly efficient with his touches. He's an explosive play machine.

Keaton Mitchell's speed 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/vkTQg7Zt3m

— johnny ® (@immabaltimoron) May 17, 2024

And he's probably extremely cheap right now. The presence of Henry probably makes it tough for fantasy managers to envision Mitchell having an impact soon.

WR Tee Higgins

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins is ranked around WRs Tyreek Hill and Jaxon Smith-Njigba in DraftSharks Dynasty PPR Trade Value chart, but he's easily in a better position than both of them. He's more talented than JSN and far younger than Hill, and it may not matter whether he stays with the Bengals or goes to a new team.

Tee Higgins having perhaps the game of his career in what could be his final home game as a Bengal.

- 11 catches
- 131 yards
- 3 TDs (GW in OT)

Cincy might have to just back up the brinks truck.pic.twitter.com/pBpFVr4gkr

— Mike Kennedy (@MikeKennedyNFL) December 29, 2024

He is simply an elite pass-catcher, able to win consistently on all manner of routes and having fantastic body control, hands, flexibility, and catch radius. The problem has been his injury issues, and though his value rose throughout the 2024 season, he's had three seasons with 14 or fewer games in his career.

His market will likely be hot when the new league year begins. Teams such as the Washington Commanders, Los Angeles Chargers, and New England Patriots are desperate for extra WR help. The list of teams with their current WR1 better suited as a WR2 and without a legitimate WR1 at all is extensive.

You pay Tee Higgins WHATEVER HE WANTS @Patriots 😭
pic.twitter.com/MBKaVSjm5i

— Daniel (@TheDTSB) September 8, 2023

The presence of wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase on the Bengals shouldn't dissuade you from recognizing Higgins for what he is. If he lands on a team that makes him their undisputed WR1, he could produce at an elite level for years to come.

Cleveland Browns - Buy No One

We don't recommend buying anyone from the Cleveland Browns right now. They are a dumpster fire of an organization headed by one of the most incompetent and arrogant owners in football and are still tied to quarterback Deshaun Watson (Achilles), one of the worst signal-callers in the league.

The most guaranteed money in NFL history.

A war chest of draft picks.

A significant portion of the fanbase.

One of the best players in franchise history.

NO ONE has cost a team more in the history of sports than Deshaun Watson has cost the Browns. pic.twitter.com/oX7nAyB3vQ

— Nick Karns (@karnsies817) February 3, 2025

Owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam essentially poured gasoline all over the future prospects of their team and lit it on fire. It may take years for them to recover from the state they're in, and they will probably be awful next season, as Watson will be coming off a torn Achilles' tendon and continuing to play with zero effort while the team's biggest stars demand trades.

And they've completely lost the locker room as well. The team's morale is lower than the temperature of outer space. Good luck winning without defensive end Myles Garrett.

WR Calvin Austin III

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Calvin Austin III improved on his 2023 numbers with a better 2024 campaign, logging 36 receptions for 548 yards and four touchdowns. While he never lit up the stat sheets, it's always good to see improvement, and Dynasty fantasy managers could opt to add him as a depth piece.

The more I watch Calvin Austin make significant plays. The more you see him open. The more I think about Sauce Gardener saying he’s the hardest guy he’s ever had to cover in college.

Becoming a weapon for the Steelers. pic.twitter.com/7doGYwCUQr

— Kevin Adams (@KevinAdams26) December 3, 2024

It's important to remember that quarterback Russell Wilson didn't even play a full season for Pittsburgh, as he dealt with a calf injury that held him out of the team's first six games. And with Wilson intending to re-sign with Pittsburgh, the quarterback situation is fine for now.

Austin seemed underutilized, but from a value perspective, that's not always a bad thing. We should be focused on players that will go up in value in the 2025 season. That's not easy to predict, but Austin's play should earn him more opportunities moving forward.

If you start this video at 11:59:51 Calvin Austin passes the endzone from a DOT from Justin Fields pic.twitter.com/GXABK8TtHB

— Justin Fields Fan Club (@JustinFieldsFC_) January 1, 2025

Austin showed impressive separation skills on tape, and while he'll probably never be a WR1, he's significantly younger than fellow WR Mike Williams, who's at the tail-end of his career. A full-time slot role would do the speedster some good and give him more fantasy value.

Perhaps offensive coordinator Arthur Smith will consider utilizing him in a manner that gets him more fantasy points. We Austin will improve his game even further in 2025 as well.

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