Football season is right around the corner (Thank god, I'm getting really sick of all this Olympic coverage). Over the new few weeks, I'll be previewing each division in the league and giving my thoughts how I think each team will do this season starting today with the AFC East. Feel free to leave comments, I am open to having discussion with anyone about the upcoming football season.
Buffalo Bills: Buffalo surprised a lot of people last season (myself included) by coming storming out of the gates last season with a 5-2 start. After that though they stumbled to a 1-8 finish in their last 9 games. This season could end up being a pretty decent one for Buffalo if they play like they did in the first portion of last season or a pretty disastrous one if they play like they did in the second half of last season. Personally, I think they will be right in the middle. The plus side of things is Fred Jackson and Ryan Fitzpatrick (He was playing with broken ribs for the second half of the season last year which is definitely part of why they did so poorly at the end of the year) are back at full health. Having Jackson back is especially key. He was having the best year of his career last year before he got hurt and if comes back with a vengeance this year, He could potentially have a 1,500 yard season. Defensively, they made some huge free-agent signings with Mario Williams and Mark Anderson. Mario Williams is a monster and will single-handily improve their pass rush. Mark Anderson is streaky, but when he's on his game, he's a damn good pass-rusher and the combination of him and Williams could be lethal. The thing that keeps Buffalo from being a playoff contender is their inconsistent play on both sides of the ball and lack of receiving threats outside of Stevie Johnson. Buffalo is definitely the most confusing team in the AFC outside of the AFC West and it really comes down to what Bills team decides to show up this year. They could be a dark horse or they could be a joke, The jury's still out.
Miami Dolphins:The story of the Miami Dolphins offseason was sell, sell, sell. They are clearly in rebuilding mode bringing in a new head coach, trading Pro Bowl wide receiver Brandon Marshall to the Bears, and releasing veterans Yerimah Bell and Phillip Merling. There is a lot of uncertainty with the Dolphins right now and that should lead to a long year in Miami. They have a three-way quarterback battle going on right now between last year's starter Matt Moore (who did a decent job closing out the year), veteran David Garrard, and coveted rookie Ryan Tannehill. All three of these guys aren't bad at all, but they aren't going to lead them anywhere right now (Tannehill might have his day at some point in time, but that moment is not right now). Another big problem is the lack of receiving options. Unless Chad Johnson has a huge resurgence (which is highly unlikely considering how bad he was for the Patriots last year), they have pretty much no one to throw to and that will cause their offense to be very one-dimensional. The good news for Miami is that Reggie Bush is coming off the best year of his career and he is primed for another big year considering the shakiness of their quarterback/receiver situation and they still have a pretty solid defense anchored by linebackers Cameron Wake and Karlos Dansby. With a weak roster and stiff competition, Miami is pretty much a lock for last-place in this division.
New England Patriots: If you follow football at all I don't need to tell you how dominating the Patriots offense is. The amount of weapons they have in the passing attack is unfair and Tom Brady hasn't lost a step at the quarterback position. They added another weapon this offseason in Brandon Lloyd He isn't as dangerous as Rob Gronkowski, Wes Welker, or Aaron Hernandez, but he will add yet another deep threat for the Patriots and concern for opposing defenses. Despite their dominating pass offense, everything else is a concern. They lost starting running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis this offseason which is going to mean a return to the famous Belicheck mediocre running back by-committee system with Danny Woodhead and second year backs Stevan Ridley and Shane Vereen. If Woodhead performs like he did in his breakout 2010 season, they should be fine. If not, they could have a huge problem. Their biggest problem though is still on defense. Their two first-round draft picks Chandler Jones and Don'ta Hightower have a lot of potential and should help their awful pass rush, but they ignored their biggest problem which is their secondary. They allowed at least 300 passing yards in almost every game last season and they still have the same guys as projected starters for this season. Even with these problems, The Patriots will be fine this season. Their dominant passing offense, excellent coaching, and incredibly easy schedule cancel out their flaws and all but guarantees at least 13 wins this year.
New York Jets: The Jets got cocky last year promising a Super Bowl after making it to the past two AFC championship games. The results were pretty poor finishing 8-8 and failing to makes the playoffs for the first time since Rex Ryan took over as coach. This year the Jets seems to be way more focused and humble. Mark Sanchez isn't a game-changing, elite quarterback, but when he's on his game the Jets tend to win games. The addition of Tim Tebow could end up paying off big time. He might be a terrible quarterback, but he is a tremendous athlete and having him at your disposal for wildcat/option plays gives them a really dangerous threat in the running game. Their defense is also elite. They were still great last year in a down season and the addition of hard-hitting safety Laron Landry only makes them scarier. They also didn't have any huge losses which is also a huge plus. They do have their question marks at running back (if Shonn Greene doesn't step up) and receiver depth, but I honestly think the Jets can make the playoffs this year. They might be a year or two off from making it back to the AFC championship game, but they have the talent to make the playoffs for sure.
Predictions for the AFC East Standings:
1.New England Patriots (14-2)
2.New York Jets (10-6)
3.Buffalo Bills (8-8)
4.Miami Dolphins (4-12)
No comments:
Post a Comment