After over 6 long months of waiting, football is finally back. Christmas wishes it was as exciting as this. As promised, before the preseason kicks off, I’ll be previewing both conferences, starting here with the AFC. Here, I’ll give a short preview of every team in the conference, and how I think they’ll perform. Hopefully injuries and other extraneous factors don’t come back to make me look stupid here, but at least I’ll have an excuse if they do. With that being said, let’s get into it!

AFC East

1st: Buffalo Bills (15-2)

In my opinion, this is the best team in the AFC. It almost doesn’t make sense, seeing as though there are some gaping holes in this roster, such as a nonexistent run game and a below average pass rush. But that didn’t stop them last year, as they were easily the NFL’s hottest team in the last 10 or so weeks. They were shut down in the AFC Championship Game by the Chiefs, but that was to be expected for a team that hadn’t been in that big of a spot in literal decades. Now, everyone is back, led by star QB Josh Allen, who is poised to prove that last season was no fluke. The Bills clearly have that faith in him, as he just signed a 6-year extension worth over $250 million. While I really like Allen, I thought that was a bit much, but he’ll have every opportunity to silence all the doubters again this year. As long as him and superstar WR Stefon Diggs are clicking on all cylinders again, this team will breeze through their ridiculously easy schedule. This is my 1 seed, and barring something drastic, I think that Buffalo will clinch that first round bye with their eyes closed.

2nd: New England Patriots (11-6)

Whether you like it or not, the Patriots will be back this year. To me, it doesn’t matter who starts at QB. Cam Newton will get the job done; it’s simply too hard to assume that he’ll be so bad again in his second year in this system. It’s even harder to fathom a Bill Belichick team miss the playoffs for a second consecutive year. If the reins do get passed to rookie Mac Jones at some point, then I believe in his ability to game-manage this team to the postseason. He’s old enough, and had plenty of experience in college. New England underwent a compete overhaul this offseason, and improved at many lacking positions. The passing game will be rejuvenated with the likes of Nelson Agholor at WR as well as Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry at TE. Their RB room isn’t the best, but the Patriots have proven to us plenty of times in the past that it doesn’t need to be for them to win games. Their defense obviously speaks for itself, being one of the better units in football, especially in the secondary. The Patriots just have the right pieces to be a solid wild card team, but not much more. But hey, that’s still plenty better than last year.

3rd: Miami Dolphins (10-7)

This year’s Dolphins team might be even weirder than last year’s. I truly think this is the best roster, from top to bottom, in this division. Heck, it’s one of the best in the whole league. I think Miami is a classic case of a sad truth we find far too often in this league: amazing team with the only lacking position being the most important one. I still cannot put my faith in QB Tua Tagovailoa. Maybe his rookie year was so shaky because he was a rookie. Sure. Surely he’ll be better now that he’s the only guy worth starting in that QB room. Fine. But something is simply holding me back from accepting that. I would truly love to see Tua figure it out and succeed, and if he does, then this team’s ceiling is remarkably high. Every other position is nothing short of stacked, especially on defense. Star CB Xavien Howard finally came to a compromise with the front office and got the extension he wanted, and the Dolphins are infinitely better off for it. Listen, this team didn’t have solid QB play all year last year and still won 10 games. That’s why I’m giving them that this year as well. If Tua does just enough in the right amount of games, then this is a guaranteed playoff team. But, the way I see it, they’ll be just on the outside looking in.

4th: New York Jets (2-15)

I mean… what can I say about this team. They are HORRIBLE. All caps, bold, italicized, all the above. Put it on a damn Times Square billboard. For what it’s worth, I don’t think the Jets had the worst offseason ever. But… it wasn’t very good either. The problem started last season when they needlessly threw away the #1 overall pick. So, with their shiny #2 pick, they took… Zach Wilson. Their QB of the future is the more than unproven white boy wonder out of BYU, and I couldn’t feel any worse about it. I didn’t do any draft coverage, but anyone that knows me knows how I felt about Wilson during the draft process. I felt he was the 5th best QB available, but alas, he went 2nd overall, and now has to lead this dumpster fire of a team. I did like their other first round move, trading up for OL Alijah Vera-Tucker out of USC. Along with the addition of Morgan Moses and the return of Mekhi Becton, this team’s best unit is easily its offensive line. Not like that matters when there are barely any other players of note at any other position. This team is putrid with a capital p and a capital u, and nothing will change that. 2 wins might be a generous estimate. Yeesh.

AFC North

1st: Baltimore Ravens (14-3)

The Ravens are inevitable. This is easily one of the league’s best teams from top to bottom. There are no two ways about any of it. I’m not sure what the problem was with this team last year, but whatever it was, I’m more than confident that it won’t be a factor this season. Could it have been their passing game? Well, they splashed a bit to upgrade that position, drafting WR Rashod Bateman out of Minnesota in the 1st round as well as signing Sammy Watkins. Superstar QB Lamar Jackson will have a plethora of options for seemingly the first time in his young career, and I can’t wait to see it. He’s easily one of the most explosive players in football, and with a team as stacked is this, the sky isn’t even a limit. It’s the floor. The defense is back and ready to wreak havoc once again, led by stars at every position. It was a poor offense that stopped this team from getting to an AFC title game last year, and I truly think that with a much improved offense this year, they can finally get over the hump. With that being said… I don’t think they will. More on that later.

2nd: Cleveland Browns (12-5)

Now this… this is interesting. I feel something with this team. I don’t really get it, but I feel it. If you know me, or even read my content last year, you know that I am typically very, VERY hard on the Browns. I gave them no respect last year at any point in time, but they continued to shut me up en route to being a few plays away from a potential AFCCG appearance. That same team is back and even better this season, and I have higher hopes for Cleveland than I’ve ever had before. While I still think QB is this team’s weakest position, Baker Mayfield did undeniably take massive strides forward last year and established himself as a proper, solid starting QB. And that was after star WR Odell Beckham Jr. was lost for the year with a torn ACL. It wouldn’t be asinine to say that the OBJ era in Cleveland has been a failure, but I still have hope that Baker and Odell can make things work with one another. And if they do, the AFC better watch out. Mayfield already has great connections with the various other weapons on offense, and the incredible backfield of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt needs no introduction. The Browns defense, which was a nice surprise last year, underwent a lot of turnover this offseason, but I still really like the unit as a whole. This roster is just really, really solid, and like I said before, I have a really strange but strong feeling about this team. You might be shocked how strong that feeling is.

3rd: Pittsburgh Steelers (9-8)

One word comes to my mind when I think about the Steelers: meh. This is just the most meh team in football. This is pretty much just last year’s team looking to run back more mediocrity. I’ll give Pittsburgh credit, they did address their gaping hole in the backfield by drafting RB Najee Harris, Alabama’s finest statistical back ever, with their first round pick. But, Harris is 23 and coming off 4 years of hard work at Alabama. I really like him, and hope he succeeds, but with that kind of milage on you, I’m not sure what kind of impact you can make right out of the gate in the NFL. The rest of the Steelers offense is the same old same old, and it inspires no confidence whatsoever. Ben Roethlisberger is back once again, and if I have to hear one more time about how much “different” he is after a long offseason of work, I will rip out my ears with my own hands. Ben has tricked you all for long enough, and it’s hilarious how many people fall for it. Yes, if you look at the stats alone, then I suppose he does his job just fine. But every year, when the calendars flip to October and November, he becomes the living embodiment of his nick-namesake. Even with WR Juju Smith-Schuster back, I just don’t see this offense doing much of anything. That’s a shame, because this defense is still stacked across the board. But if the end of last year was any indication, maybe that’s not the case anymore. I just don’t know how this team will be anything but average. We’ll have to wait and see.

4th: Cincinnati Bengals (5-12)

I am so, so, SO mad at this team. They really had one job. Just one. Okay, maybe they had a lot of jobs to fill a lot of holes on this team, but one area was lacking in particular: the offensive line. It’s the reason Joe Burrow was the most sacked QB in football before that same offensive line let his leg get folded in on itself, ending his rookie season months in advance. So, how do we address this issue Cincinnati? Surely you pick the generational LT prospect who has fallen into your laps with the #5 pick! But no, let’s roll with Jamarr Chase because he was Burrow’s favorite receiver in college. Don’t get me wrong, Chase is an amazing talent that will have a great career in this league, but one question remains. Will he even get out of his break before Joe Burrow is on the ground in the backfield? This offensive line is still absolutely abysmal, and it wont do Burrow any favors coming off last year’s horrible injury. I understand drafting Penei Sewell wouldn’t have magically made all those problems disappear, but it would have been a huge step in the right direction. This team already has very good WRs in Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins, so they didn’t even need Chase necessarily. But, this was the decision they made, and they have to live with it. In any case, the Bengals would not have been very good this year. The defense isn’t much to look at, and the offense will be sputtering thanks to a line that can’t stop a nosebleed. We can only hope that Joe Burrow lives to see the full season.

AFC South

1st: Tennessee Titans (11-6)

Let me just start by saying this division will get eaten alive this year. It is going to be so ugly. The only hope outside of the Titans was Indianapolis, but I’ll get into their problems when it’s their time. Tennessee is the only team really worth a damn in the AFC South, but they’d be a playoff team in any division. They have all the offensive fire power in the world, led by last year’s Offensive Player of the Year, RB Derrick Henry. Trading for WR Julio Jones to go alongside fellow superstar A.J. Brown will make QB Ryan Tannehill’s life even nicer this year. This team does have many problems though, especially on the defensive end. Last year, the Titans had no pass rush whatsoever, and their secondary got abused on a weekly basis. Unfortunately for them, they did almost nothing to remedy either of those problems. They did draft CB Caleb Farley in the 1st round, but he has a nagging injury problem that caused him to slip in the draft and could very well hold him back in the pros. Other than that, there’s no one of note on that side of the football. I do think this team can win a lot of track meets, but that’s not a winning formula in this league, especially when you’re up against the elite defenses of the AFC. Tennessee has the benefit of being in arguably the worst division in football, but I think they’ll be a one-and-done team in January.

2nd: Indianapolis Colts (4-13)

Before you say anything, I’d like to establish from the jump that I have no earthly idea how to evaluate this team right now. As of today, both OG Quenton Nelson and newly acquired QB Carson Wentz are out for 5-12 weeks (I get the feeling it’ll be closer to 12 than 5) with foot injuries. So, that’s your starting QB and your best player out for, let’s face it, at least the first month of the season. Even if Wentz comes back early in the year, he will have missed training camp in its entirety, and he just feels like the type of guy who needs all those reps. Anyone would with their new team. So, the harsh reality for the Colts right now is that it’ll either be the second year man Jacob Eason out of UW or rookie Sam Ehlinger running the show for an indefinite period of time. That inspires little to no confidence. Indy obviously still has its blindingly bright spots, such as RB Jonathan Taylor, who looked like a bonafide stud in his rookie season in 2020. It helps when you’re running behind arguably the best offensive line in football, even without Quenton Nelson, although his absence will be felt. The defense is still as stacked as ever, headlined by names like DeForest Buckner and Darius Leonard. But without a QB and your generational offensive lineman, it just feels like this team will be headed for an early nosedive that could very well span the whole season. If everyone comes back in time, I don’t think this is a 4 win team. But if I’m evaluating them based on where they stand right now, then they are.

3rd: Jacksonville Jaguars (4-13)

The Jaguars might be the most exciting team on the come-up in the NFL right now. Feels like a fever dream. This is a completely different team after perhaps the biggest offseason in franchise history. Bringing in Urban Meyer, one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, to coach this football team is a very interesting move. If it goes well, then it’ll be heralded as genius, but if it doesn’t… that’ll be an interesting time in the media. Luckily for Meyer, the Jags were gifted the #1 pick in this year’s draft, and thus were gifted QB Trevor Lawrence out of Clemson, one of the best quarterback prospects we’ve ever seen. You know the deal with Lawrence by now. If he is even a fraction of the messiah that people have been making him out to be since he was 18 years old, then this team has a very good future ahead. Lawrence will have his college buddy behind him, as Jacksonville took RB Travis Etienne with their other first round selection this April. Pairing him with James Robinson, who was one of the more pleasant surprises of last year’s rookie crop, makes for one of the more dynamic RB duos in the NFL. The defense still has all of its nice young pieces as well, although there seems to be a rift between the front office and last year’s first round pick, CB C.J. Henderson. In any case, this team has all the makings of a future playoff team. This will be the “figure it out” year for them, but I have very high hopes for the Jags in the upcoming years.

4th: Houston Texans (1-16)

There are genuinely no words to describe the Texans, both as a franchise and as a football team. This is easily the worst of both of those things in this league. Even after firing HC/GM Bill O’Brien after his boneheaded decisions, everything this team has done has been mind-boggling. I could get into all of the awful front office decisions, but one story loomed all too large over Houston this offseason: Deshaun Watson. The young star QB was everyone’s favorite player to root for, and we couldn’t help but feel bad for him being on this dumpster fire of a team. This offseason turned that all upside down, as over 20 women came forward to accuse Watson of sexual misconduct. While nothing has come out of all of those accusations, it leaves such a sour taste in everyone’s mouths. Now that camp is underway, whether or not Watson practices is a coinflip, and nobody can get a reading on what the hell is going on. In the event that Watson doesn’t end up playing this year, which is what I think will happen, this team has approximately nothing to prove to me that they’re capable of winning even a single game. Even if Watson does play, he won’t be able to carry them to more than just a few wins. Just look at last year, when he had a fairly good season, but the team still finished 4-12. The only reason I’m giving this team a single win is because I truly believe it’s next to impossible to go 0-17. But if any team can prove me wrong, I promise you it’s this one.

AFC West

1st: Kansas City Chiefs (13-4)

It’s the Chiefs. It’s Patrick Mahomes, Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, Tyrann Mathieu, Chris Jones, do I need to go on? Yes, this team got absolutely smothered in the Super Bowl. Yes, their offensive line was shambolic. Yes, their defense could not stop a nosebleed against the Bucs. But that was then, and this is now. The aforementioned offensive line was easily this team’s biggest issue, but they went out and patched it up with some great moves. Trading for all-pro Orlando Brown and drafting star C Creed Humphrey out of Oklahoma, among several other moves, has this offensive line rejuvenated. Mahomes can only hope that he won’t be running for his life for 60 minutes every Sunday like last year. The defense is still a bit of a weak spot, especially now that they’ll be without DE Frank Clark, who was recently arrested. But no team in football is more suited to win a track meet than the Chiefs. As long as #15 is throwing the football to #10 and #87, this team will be fine. I don’t think they’ll be the most dominant team in the conference, and I even think they’ll struggle a bit within the division, but they will be just fine for the most part. If there’s anything I am sure of among all these predictions, it is that.

2nd: Los Angeles Chargers (11-6)

There aren’t many teams in football that I’m more excited to watch this year than the Chargers. This team had a phenomenal offseason after ending last year on 4 consecutive wins. There are upward trends everywhere with this team, and while it’s hard to ever put faith in them, that definitely inspires a ton of confidence. This team should have won a lot more than just 7 games last season, but when Anthony Lynn is your head coach, you can kiss any sensible late-game decision making out the window. Now, former Rams DC Brandon Staley runs the show, and I personally love the hire. That unit was elite under him, and this team has plenty of defensive studs, such as Joey Bosa, Derwin James, and Kenneth Murray, to potentially establish another stellar D in Los Angeles. QB Justin Herbert needs no introduction after last year’s stellar rookie campaign in which he shattered all of the rookie passing records en route to winning Offensive Rookie of the Year. It helps when you’re throwing the ball to the likes of star WR Keenan Allen, who catches literally everything. Herbert also has the benefit of a brand new offensive line, highlighted by OT Rashawn Slater, the team’s first round pick this year, and newly acquired all-pro C Corey Linsley. There are simply too many reasons to feel good about this team, and I have the utmost faith in them to reach the playoffs this year. I truly believe that if they don’t, it’s a complete failure.

3rd: Las Vegas Raiders (8-9)

This team is so strange. I feel like that has been the case for so long, and certainly has been the case for all of Jon Gruden’s tenure as head coach thus far. There is certainly a great deal of talent across the board on this roster, but it has never translated into something worthwhile. They have still yet to make the playoffs under Gruden, and it’s hard to foresee them doing it this year. Like I said, there are great pieces in Vegas; QB Derek Carr has been a solid starter for his entire career, Josh Jacobs is a stud out of the backfield, and Darren Waller has established himself as one of the best tight ends in all of football. The defense isn’t exactly great, but there are definitely some bright spots, such as Clelin Ferrell and the newly-acquired Casey Heyward. But it’s so hard to see the Raiders as anything but a middle-of-the-pack team in the AFC. It feels like this is the case way too often, and I get the feeling that after another season of complete mediocrity, we could see come changes coming in Vegas.

4th: Denver Broncos (6-11)

Sometimes I feel like this team has no direction. It’s always one step forward, at least two steps back. This is genuinely a really good roster, but again, the biggest lack is the most important position. It has been two years now, and Drew Lock has still not established himself as a starting QB in this league. Sure, he shows flashes every now and then, but in between those flashes is nothing short of backup QB play. It’s not like he has no weapons offensively, as pieces like RB Melvin Gordon and WRs Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton are very good to have. Denver also has a great defense, as always, and it will keep them in almost any game. They even beefed up their secondary by taking DB Patrick Surtain II out of Alabama with their first round selection. But as long as this team doesn’t have serviceable QB play, they will not be going anywhere. I don’t have any faith in Drew Lock, and I can definitely see his time in Denver coming to a close this year.

Playoff Picture

1 – Bills (15-2)

2 – Ravens (14-3)

3 – Chiefs (13-4)

4 – Titans (11-6)

5 – Browns (12-5)

6 – Patriots (11-6)

7 – Chargers (11-6)

I feel very strongly about all of these teams making the playoffs this season. The only other team I think could sneak their way in is Miami, but again, I simply lack the faith in Tua Tagovailoa to get it done. With that being said, I’ll give my very brief playoff predictions based on this seeding:

Wild Card Weekend

In the 2v7 game, I’d easily take the Ravens to take down the Chargers. It would be the 1st ever playoff game for Justin Herbert against a far more experienced team in Baltimore, and being on the road wouldn’t help that at all.

The 3v6 game would be a revival of the Chiefs-Patriots rivalry, but without Tom Brady, it would likely be a Kansas City blowout. They have just been so good in the playoffs, and I don’t believe that Cam Newton or Mac Jones has what it takes to win a postseason game at Arrowhead.

The 4v5 game appears to be a rather ugly game on paper, but I think it could be a very fun shootout in Tennessee. In a game like that, I’d trust the better defense to win, and that is quite easily the Browns. There would be a lot of points scored, but when it comes down to needing a stop, I believe Cleveland could lock it up and move on. I certainly don’t believe the Titans can.

Divisional Round

The 1 seed Bills would get a matchup with the 5 seed Browns in a classic, old-school AFC playoff showdown. I told you earlier that you might be surprised with just how much faith I have in Cleveland, so don’t be too shocked when I say I’d pick them in this game. I think last year’s AFCCG set the blueprint on how to shut down the Bills in the playoffs: just make Josh Allen throw the ball every play. That is likely what will happen anyways, thanks to Buffalo’s nonexistent running game. On the other hand, Cleveland can run it all day long, and I think that run game, along with their defense, will get them to a title game.

The other divisional round game would be another matchup for the Chiefs with a nemesis, this time in the Ravens. While I would easily pick Baltimore strictly on paper, nobody has had Lamar Jackson’s number quite like the Chiefs. They have simply shut him down in every matchup with him, and I don’t think this would be any different, especially considering how well prepared Andy Reid is in the postseason.

AFC Championship Game

My prediction for this year’s title game is a rematch of last year’s divisional, where the Chiefs eeked out a win against the Browns after Patrick Mahomes was knocked out with a concussion. I can imagine Cleveland will be eager to get revenge, and considering my predicted trajectory for them, they’ll have all the momentum in the world on their side. In the playoffs, there are 2 major factors that I consider when deciding a winner: defense and run game. You know who dominates both of those factors in this matchup? The Browns. That’s right. I’m picking the Cleveland Browns to go to Super Bowl LVI. I just feel so strongly about them in so many aspects. Their roster is very deep, and if last year was any indication, this team has not even scratched the surface of their potential. I don’t know if they would dominate the Chiefs like Tampa Bay did in last year’s Super Bowl, but I certainly think they can defeat them, even on the road.

So, who will the Browns play in the Super Bowl? I’ll reveal that tomorrow with my NFC Preview, so stay tuned for that. As always, thanks for your time, and I’ll see you guys tomorrow.