The Wild and Crazy AFC North

Oh those nutty teams in the AFC North. When will this crazy whirlwind of problems come to an end during a hectic 2006 offseason?

First the Bengals had to deal with Carson Palmer's injury and then the arrest of A.J. Nicholson and Chris Henry, who decided once wasn't enough so he got busted four times!

Not to be out done is the Pittsburgh Steelers, the defending world champions. Word out of Pittsburgh is that number one draft pick Santonio Holmes, the wideout from Ohio State, has been arrested for the second time in three weeks.

Holmes was charged early Monday with assaulting a woman in Columbus, Ohio. He was arrested at an apartment just after midnight and taken to the Franklin County jail, Sgt. Loucious Hollis said. The 22-year-old player is to remain in jail until his arraignment Tuesday on charges of domestic violence and simple assault, both misdemeanors.

Police received a call from a female who said the father of her child had assaulted her, police spokesman Sgt. Michael Woods said. While the officers were making their report at the apartment, Holmes returned and was arrested. Police would not release the woman's name or details about what Holmes was accused of doing.

Holmes was arrested on Memorial Day weekend in Miami Beach on a charge of disorderly conduct. Steelers coach Bill Cowher criticized Holmes after the incident, but said he wouldn't hold the matter against him.

How about now Bill? Will you hold it against him? Two arrests within three weeks is unbelievable. To top that off, Cowher had to deal with the Ben Roethlisberger incident last week. Distractions are what destroy Super Bowl champs trying to repeat and Pittsburgh has a handful of them.

The Cleveland Browns have problems on and off the field. Leading rusher Reuben Droughns was arrested for domestic battery, while head coach Romeo Crennel has put second-year signal caller Charlie Frye in charge of the offense. With Ken Dorsey as the backup, the Browns are actually trying to talk Vinny Testaverde out of retirement. Plus, 2005 top pick Braylon Edwards is recovering from a torn ACL. Can anyone say 5-11.

It seems the only team stable in the North is the Baltimore Ravens, a franchise very unstable last year after the Jamal Lewis incident and the slow development of Kyle Boller. With a solid defense, a power running game and now Steve McNair at the helm, the Ravens have set themselves up as legitimate Super Bowl contenders.

It's going to be a wild, wacky ride in the AFC North this season. It will be interesting to see who comes out on top when the smoke clears.

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