After week 1, the AFC East is the only division in football in which all 4 of the teams in the division opened their season 1-0. In a division that features the defending Super Bowl champion, New England Patriots, the AFC East has the potential to be one of the best in football. The Bills, Dolphins, and Jets all made significant upgrades to their roster this offseason and all four teams could make a run at the postseason. Here is my AFC East preview for the 2015 season.
The Bills brought in the likes of LeSean McCoy, Percy Harvin, Charles Clay, and of course the always entertaining Rex Ryan to be their head coach. They also have a new quarterback under center, former Virginia Tech standout Tyrod Taylor. Taylor has been the Ravens back-up quarterback the past 4 seasons, but got his first NFL start on Sunday leading the Bills to a statement victory over the Indianapolis Colts by a score of 27-14.
The Dolphins made the biggest signing of the offseason bringing in 6 foot 4 inch 320 lbs defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh. They also locked up quarterback Ryan Tannehill to a 6 year 95.272 million dollar deal. The Dolphins had an absolute makeover at the wide receiver position, bringing in first round draft pick DeVante Parker, Kenny Stills, as well as tight end Jordon Cameron. However, they lost Mike Wallace, Brandon Gibson, and Brian Hartline. The Dolphins opened the season with a 17-10 victory over the dreadful Washington Redskins.
J! E! T! S! JETS! JETS! JETS! With a completely different roster than they finished last season with, the Jets seem like they have their swagger back. They even got Fireman Ed back in the stands to get the crowd fired up for gang green. The Jets hired former Cardinals defensive coordinator, Todd Bowles to be their head coach. They made several additions on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie came back to the Jets after brief stints with the Patriots and the Cardinals respectively. They also traded for Brandon Marshall to compliment Eric Decker in the receiving corps. The Jets started the season strong by routing the Browns 31-10.
Much of the talk about the Patriots this offseason was about Tom Brady’s off the field issues. Now with that in the rear view mirror, they can finally focus on football. The Patriots lost 6 starters from last years Super Bowl team. Shut down corners Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner signed with the Jets and Saints respectively while the big man in the middle, Vince Wifork took his talents to Houston. The Patriots relied heavily on Super Bowl hero Malcom Butler in their week 1 victory over the Steelers. Butler was able to contain Pittsburgh’s stud receiver Antonio Brown and that was huge for this Patriots squad. Never count out Bill Belichick and Tom Brady.