The 2019 season is days away. If you haven’t heard, this is the 100th NFL season. As the league prepares to kick it off, a look at what divisions seem to have a sense of order and which ones could feature chaos.
8. AFC East
Would love to be contrarian here, but it is impossible to believe the Patriots will not continue their run of dominance in the AFC East. If any team had given a ray of light to show it could compete with New England, it would have been a pleasure to jump off the Belichick & Brady regime. However, the Jets are being run by Adam Gase who had no luck in Miami. The Dolphins dealt their left tackle to the Texans and have Ryan Fitzpatrick beating out Josh Rosen at QB and the Bill could be on the improve but nowhere near enough to topple the champs.
7. NFC West
This remains a two-horse race … and the second charge has to step it up to compete with the Los Angeles Rams. The Seattle Seahawks can be menacing and adding Jadeveon Clowney is a big plus. Russell Wilson has lost Doug Baldwin and that means Tyler Lockett must stay healthy. The San Francisco 49ers get Jimmy Garoppolo back and Nick Bosa will be intriguing once he is healthy enough to play. Kliff Kingsbury couldn’t win in the Big 12. Not gonna believe he can win in the NFL immediately.
6. AFC West
Another West Division that appears to be between two contenders. The Los Angeles Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs are both coming off 12-win seasons. Kind of weird how their high-powered offense both have some backfield issues. Kansas City’s is courtesy of it cutting Kareem Hunt last year after his off-field antics became public. Los Angeles is dealing with Melvin Gordon, who is on the way to becoming this season’s Le’Veon Bell. The rushing issues are not enough to bring them back to the Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders. Denver had a smart defense and gets Vic Fangio’s brain, which is a nice assist. However, it is banking on a Joe Flacco renaissance on the offensive side. Jon Gruden and the Raiders are young … way to young to be considered a threat this soon.
5. NFC South
The New Orleans Saints appear to be the class of this division. Drew Brees is still a great quarterback. Alvin Kamara and Michael Thomas are beyond potent and the Saints’ defense is solid. What will be fascinating is to see if Carolina or Atlanta can regain their form and threaten the Saints. This is a huge season for both Ron Rivera and Dan Quinn. Believe it is more likely Atlanta will step back up than Carolina. Bruce Arians was a smart hire in Tampa Bay. Question is does he want to be involved for as many years as it appears it will take to fix the Bucs?
4. NFC East
Hate to be redundant, but it is impossible to believe Washington or the New York Giants are in any position to bother Dallas or Philadelphia. Jay Gruden needs a big season and is going with Case Keenum. The death knell for his coaching tenure could be a slow start and move to rookie Dwayne Haskins. Pat Shurmur has s superstar in Saquon Barkley. That isn’t enough to make Big Blue a contender. Everything else is mediocre at best. The Giants are looking at a third straight 10-loss season and five of six. The Eagles will go as far as Carson Wentz’s health takes them. Like the Birds over the Cowboys in the race with plenty of space back to third.
3. NFC North
This is trickier than it appears. Other than Detroit, there is reason to believe the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings have what it takes to battle with the Chicago Bears. Matt LaFleur should give Aaron Rodgers all the space he needs to execute a sharp offense. And as middling as Minnesota was last year, there is talent and ability that could shape a contender for the title. The Bears, of course, are, um, ferocious and won’t be easy to knock off. That said, they have more competitive foes in their division than many other Super Bowl contenders. The Lions? Well, some teams simply can’t get it together.
2. AFC North
This is perpetually a tough division to figure. There should be a three-way battle to the finish between Baltimore, Cleveland and Pittsburgh. The Ravens need for continued growth from Lamar Jackson. They’ll get a boost from Mark Ingram and John Harbaugh is one of those coaches who makes a difference in many games. Mike Tomlin and the Steelers are always in the midst of the playoff debate and this year will not be any different. With all the internal issues from 2018 gone, expect a rugged Pittsburgh squad. Cleveland is the wild card. So much is expected after so many years of despair. The next step could simply be earning a wild card before an AFC North crown.
1. AFC South
What a difference 10 days makes. The Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans appeared to be in another duel for this division. Then, Lamar Miller is lost with an ACL, Andrew Luck retires, Jadaveon Clowney winds up in Seattle and AFC South is up for grabs. A true scramble. Mike Vrabel is a winner and it feels like he can overcome a quarterback situation that depends on Marcus Mariota’s week-to-week health to get the Titans to compete. And while the Jaguars were awful last year, they have a staunch defense and Nick Foles — not Blake Bortles — at quarterback. This all spells chaos and intrigue in the AFC South.
