Why the AFC East Will Be the NFL's Toughest Division in 2009

John by Correspondent Written on April 30, 2009
FOXBOROUGH, MA - DECEMBER 23: Randy Moss #81 and Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots stand on the sideline against the Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium on December 23, 2007 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Patriots won 28-7. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images) (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
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The Bills will be one of the toughest teams to play against (aside from the Patriots) in 2009 because of all their additions during the offseason and in the draft. The Bills have a good quarterback in Trent Edwards, but he still needs to mature in the offense.

With the addition of Terrell Owens during the offseason, Edwards should have plenty of targets to throw to. As of right now, the Bills have wide receivers Terrell Owens, Lee Evans, James Hardy, Josh Reed, and Roscoe Parrish, whom the Bills are trying to trade because of all the wide receivers they have.

The Bills also drafted tight end Shawn Nelson, who is the second-best blocking tight end in the draft behind Brandon Pettigrew. The Bills drafted Aaron Maybin in the first round, but it's unknown whether he can produce the numbers he did in college because of the speed of the NFL.

Marcus Stroud, Terrence McGee, Paul Posluszny, Donte Whitner, Kawika Mitchell, and Aaron Schobel are all good starters, and Maybin should become another sold starter.

With the return of Tom Brady from injury, the Patriots are yet again a favorite to make it to the Super Bowl. Brady will be throwing to Randy Moss and Wes Welker again, which will be scary to see if they can break their previous records from 2007.

During the offseason, the Patriots added speedster Joey Galloway. He may be up there in age, but he is still a speed burner and a deep threat.

The Patriots also traded for wide receiver Greg Lewis, and picked up tight end Chris Baker after the Jets had released him. Baker will most likely be the starting tight end, because he's more of a blocking tight end. This will let Benjamin Watson get more involved in the passing game.

The Patriots picked up running back Fred Taylor, who should play well for the Patriots, and should put up Corey Dillon-type numbers from his time with the Patriots. The Patriots' defense got a shot of youth in the draft when the Patriots selected Patrick Chung, Darius Butler, Ron Brace, and Tyrone McKenzie.

They also picked up cornerbacks Leigh Bodden and Shawn Springs, after they were released form their respective teams. Bodden is not a typical Patriots corner because he's not short. He should take the starting job, unless Butler or second-year cornerbacks Terrence Wheatley and Jonathan Wilhite progress more in training camp.

Chung should compete for the starting job against Brandon Meriweather and James Sanders, but if Chung doesn't start, he still adds talented depth to the secondary.

The Patriots defensive line received depth with the addition of Brace, who will play in a rotation with Vince Wilfork, Richard Seymour, Ty Warren, Mike Wright, and Jarvis Green.

Bill Belichick also brought back outside linebacker Tully Banta-Cain, who's a good pass rusher, but failed for the 49ers because they didn't have a coach like Belichick to maximize his skill.

It will be interesting to see how McKenzie plays, too, because the other outside linebacker position is still a question mark with Banta-Cain, Rosevelt Colvin, Pierre Woods, Shawn Crable, and Vince Redd.

In all, the AFC East in 2009 should be the most dangerous because all the teams have explosive offenses and talented defenses.

Vote Now! - Author Poll

Who will win the AFC East division in 2009?

  • New England Patriots
  • Buffalo Bills
  • Miami Dolphins
  • New York Jets
vote to see results
Results - Author Poll

Who will win the AFC East division in 2009?

  • New England Patriots

    84.7%
  • Buffalo Bills

    4.2%
  • Miami Dolphins

    9.7%
  • New York Jets

    1.4%
  • Total votes: 72
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written on April 30, 2009 Preview/Prediction

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