Projecting AFC East Standings
Bills: 13-4
I don’t care how bold your hot takes are; it is ridiculous to predict anyone other than the Bills to win this division. Josh Allen continues to play at an MVP level, and I would sooner predict them making a Super Bowl than missing out on the AFC East crown. They boast the third-best offensive line in football, according to PFF, and benefit from a shockingly easy schedule ranked 23rd.
That said, this roster is not flawless. I do not love Khalil Shakir being asked to handle WR1 duties, and I am still not sold on Sean McDermott as the guy to push Buffalo over the top. Even with those concerns, the Bills remain the class of the division and one of the most dangerous teams in the AFC.
Patriots: 9-8
Ever since Brady left in 2019, this team has felt off. Bill Belichick clearly could not do it without Brady, and while fans were ready for the next chapter with Jerod Mayo, his tenure ended almost as soon as it began. Firing him after just one year was a surprise, but replacing him with Mike Vrabel is about as strong a head-coaching hire as you can make in free agency.
For the Patriots to succeed, it all comes down to Drake Maye. The sophomore has to prove he can be the franchise cornerstone, Stefon Diggs must return to his Buffalo form, and Will Campbell will need to elevate the entire offensive line. If those pieces click, New England can fight for a playoff spot, but without them, they could easily go back to mediocrity.
Jets: 7-10
Being a Jets fan has to be one of the toughest things in sports. This is a franchise with decades of heartbreak and no Super Bowl appearances in over fifty years, and it just keeps disappointing. Aaron Glenn is fine, but he is clearly the weaker of the former Lions coordinators to leave this offseason. The roster is below average in most areas, Sauce Gardner’s hype has cooled off, and there is not much to look forward to.
I like that they are finally investing heavily in the offensive line, but that spark from the 2022 season with the Offensive and Defensive Rookies of the Year feels gone. Justin Fields is a serviceable but average quarterback, and without more pieces around him, it is hard to see the Jets turning things around anytime soon.
Dolphins: 6-11
This is my sneaky “bad team” pick. Mike McDaniel is my choice for the fastest-fired coach this season, and Tyreek Hill has realized that even the flash of Miami is not enough when the team itself is dysfunctional. Unfortunately, he is part of that problem. Publicly saying multiple times that he wants to leave does not exactly help locker room unity. Tua Tagovailoa has ended up as the worst quarterback from the 2020 draft, and when he is not battling career-ending brain injuries, he is putting up mediocre numbers while being paid like a top-five player.
Terron Armstead was more influential than most people realize, and losing him only magnifies Miami’s biggest weakness. One of the worst things you can do is give Tua a weaker offensive line and expect him not only to play 17 games, but to thrive. The Dolphins are not a total dumpster fire, but they are a giant mess, and the problems start at the very top of the organization. For a team that hasnt won a playoff game in a quarter of a century, it doesnt look like its going to happen anytime soon.
