Bobbyjim45's AFC East Breakdown
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by user Bobbyjim45
The NFL season is just around the corner and, personally, I just can’t wait. There are plenty of intriguing story lines leading up to the 2006 season. Many teams changed their look drastically in the off season. This is the beginning of an 8 part series to break down every NFL team, looking toward the upcoming year. We will look at the moves the teams made in the off season and what their strengths and weaknesses are. This is the first installment, previewing the AFC East.
Buffalo Bills
Key Additions:
Peerless Price, WR; Larry Tripplett, DT; Craig Nall, QB; Andre’ Davis, WR; Robert Royal, TE; Kiwaukee Thomas, DB; Donte Whitner (Draft), DB; John McCargo (Draft), DT
Key Losses:
Lawyer Milloy, DB; Eric Moulds, WR; Sam Adams, DT; Mike Williams, OL; Justin Bannan, DT
Strengths:
The Bills really don’t have many strengths right now. Their defense was their pride (if you consider 24th in the league in points allowed “pride”) last season, but the losses of Milloy and Adams certainly hurt that. The Buffalo linebackers are their heart and soul, led by Takeo Spikes and London Fletcher. The secondary is led by Nate Clements and Terrence McGee on the corners. The Bills’ first choice in the draft, Donte Whitner, will help aid Players Union president/15 year veteran Troy Vincent at the otherwise barren safety position. Willis McGahee should also be a strength as he looks to rebound from a down year in 2005, mostly caused by the inconsistent quarterback play of J.P. Losman.
Weaknesses:
The Buffalo receiving core doesn’t look too bad on paper (even though there isn’t an established number one), but it doesn’t matter if there isn’t anyone to throw them the ball. Clearly Buffalo’s biggest problem lies with J.P. Losman and Kelly Holcomb at quarterback. Neither has proven they can win in the NFL and they certainly don’t have what it takes to get guys like Lee Evans and Willis McGahee performing up to potential. Even with the addition of former Redskin Robert Royal, the tight end and o-line situations aren’t too promising either, so don’t look for much protection for whoever is under center in Buffalo.
Prediction:
4-12, last in the AFC East
This team is a wreck and Ralph Wilson better get moving if he wants to keep his fan base. Buffalo’s only shot at winning would be if Doug Flutie comes out of retirement to save them again.
Miami Dolphins
Key Additions:
Daunte Culpepper, QB; Will Allen, DB; Joey Harrington, QB; Fred Beasley, RB; Deke Cooper, DB; L.J. Shelton OT; Andre’ Goodman, DB; Renaldo Hill, DB; Kelly Campbell, WR; Mike Pearson, OT; Frank Murphy, WR; Keith Heinrich, TE; Keith Newman, LB; Jason Allen (Draft), DB; Marcus Vick (no impact on team…), QB, WR, KR
Key Losses:
Sam Madison, DB; Tebucky Jones, DB; Junior Seau, LB; Matt Turk, P; Sage Rosenfels, QB; Gus Frerotte, QB; Reggie Howard, DB; Kiwaukee Thomas, DB
Strengths:
Miami looks like they may actually have their first solid team in years. The addition of Daunte Culpepper could prove to be the biggest off season acquisition of the year if he fully recovers from a nasty knee injury he suffered last season. The offense looks like it will be their biggest strength, as Miami also should expect growth from second year back Ronnie Brown, and 27-year-old Chris Chambers, who will be playing with a proven star quarterback for the first time in his career. The o-line looks like they will also help Culpepper and the rest of the offense, especially with the addition of L.J. Shelton. Miami’s front seven on defense will be good as well, anchored by Jason Taylor and Kevin Carter on the ends and the tenacious Zach Thomas leading the linebacker core.
Weaknesses:
The secondary will definitely be an issue for Nick Saban’s Dolphins this year. The losses of Sam Madison and Tebucky Jones would be difficult for any team to overcome, never mind one who was already fairly shallow in the position. While they have added some solid defensive backs in the off season, they still lack a shut down corner and a prime time player. Right now it looks like Will Allen and Deke Cooper will lead the fairly young group with the help of some other off season acquisitions made by the team. Another weakness on the defensive side is linebacker. Even though this was listed as a strength as well because of Zach Thomas, the lack of depth at the position makes it a weakness. Outside of Thomas and Channing Crowder, the linebacker position isn’t so good in South Beach.
Prediction:
11-5, second in AFC East (wild card)
Miami looks like they’ll be a good team this year and it should be enough to get them back into the playoffs. They are lucky to have an easy schedule with only 4 games against playoff teams, outside of the two they must play against New England. If they can split their 6 difficult games, that leaves them two more possible losses to get them to 11-5, basically a lock for a wild card.
New England Patriots
Key Additions:
Reche Caldwell, WR; Eric Warfield, DB; Tebucky Jones, DB; Martin Gramatica, K; Johnathan Sullivan, DT; Laurence Maroney (Draft), RB; Chad Jackson (Draft), WR; Stephen Gostkowski (Draft), K
Key Losses:
Adam Vinatieri, K; Willie McGinest, LB; David Givens, WR; Christian Fauria, TE; Bethel Johnson, WR; Doug Flutie, QB; Duane Starks, DB; Tyrone Poole, DB; Andre’ Davis, WR; Tim Dwight, WR; Tom Ashworth, OT
Strengths:
New England had another typical off season. They didn’t make many major moves, but did enough to keep the team fresh. They strengthened the offense in the draft with their first two picks, Laurence Maroney and Chad Jackson. Maroney is the heir-apparent to Corey Dillon as Dillon will reach the ripe old age of 32 this season, usually around the age NFL backs start to break down. Jackson is a big target for Brady and will make a formidable pair of wideouts when lining up alongside Deion Branch. New England’s o-line should be solid this season with the return of Matt Light and the maturity of their younger guys, Kaczur and Mankins. The defense is also improved with the return of Rodney Harrison and the addition of Tebucky Jones leading the secondary. The line will also be solid again.
Weaknesses:
New England’s biggest weaknesses right now are kicker and cornerback. The loss of Adam Vinatieri will certainly hurt both special teams and the overall psyche of the team, as Vinatieri provided a lot of security. The veteran Martin Gramatica is the likely replacement this season, but fourth round draft pick Stephen Gostkowski will be the long-term solution. The addition of Eric Warfield will help the cornerback situation, but the Pats still lack a shutdown corner. The loss of defensive coordinator Eric Mangini could also hurt the team, as he was Belichick’s right hand man. Dean Pees will be his replacement.
Prediction:
12-4, first in AFC East The Pats look like they will be very solid again this year. They still have Tom Brady and Bill Belichick and, quite frankly, what else do you need? They had a solid draft to improve their offense and should once again take the AFC East.
New York Jets
Key Additions:
Kimo von Oelhoffen, DE; Patrick Ramsey, QB; Andre Dyson, DB; Tim Dwight, WR; Brad Kassell, LB; Ray Mickens, DB; D’Brickshaw Ferguson (Draft), OT; Nick Mangold (Draft), C; Kellen Clemens (Draft), QB
Key Losses:
Kevin Mawae, C; John Abraham, DE; Jason Fabini, OT
Strengths:
The Jets don’t look all that great this year. Even with two major losses on the o-line, it looks like that will be the most solid part of the offense, IF D’Brickshaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold can come in and play well right away. This o-line will be paving the way for a running attack that lacks a great number 1 back. However, even without that solid number 1, Curtis Martin, Derrick Blaylock, and Cedric Houston should make a formidable trio. Martin is the wily ol’ vet, Blaylock is the guy used to playing second fiddle, and Cedric Houston is the young guy looking to prove himself. With the addition of Dwight, who gives the Jets a nice deep threat, they also have a decent (but certainly not great) receiving core. On defense they are led by linebacker Jonathan Vilma and newly added von Oelhoffen and Dyson.
Weaknesses:
The Jets most obvious weakness is at the quarterback position. Chad Pennington has been the guy for a few years, but has been riddled with injuries and there have been many questions surrounding his arm strength. They brought in Patrick Ramsey through a trade with Washington and drafted Kellen Clemens. New head coach Eric Mangini said that Brooks Bollinger would also be in the race for the starting spot, but it will likely come down to Pennington and Ramsey, with Clemens being the guy in the future. The Jets defense doesn’t look good. The front seven have a couple bright spots as mentioned before, but outside of that, there isn’t much for their opponents to worry about. The secondary will be pretty weak with Andre Dyson being the only guy capable of covering any sort of star receiver.
Prediction:
6-10, third in AFC East Eric Mangini steps into a tough position in his first year and, like Romeo Crennel before him, he likely won’t be the first Belichick student to find success in his first season as an NFL head coach. There are too many question marks surrounding this team to predict a winning record this year, but they did make a couple steps in the right direction during the off season.
Stay tuned for the upcoming AFC North preview…
(Note: This article was originally written for http://TheBetDoctor.com)
Date
Mon 07/03/06, 2:48 pm EST
