NFL Teams That Will Regret the 2023 Off-Season

The NFL offseason may be a time for hope, but that can get quickly dashed once the campaign begins in earnest.

Right now, teams can justify nearly every signing and draft pick due to the potential they bring to the table, but it's simply impossible for all these moves to pan out the way a club had envisioned. It's common for veterans to fall off after inking big contracts and plenty of prized prospects bust out of the league without ever contributing anything of note.

It may be too early to say for sure which of the 2023 offseason transactions will be regrettable, but it's well worth taking a crack at predicting them with Week 1 still months away. Factoring in trades, draft selections and free-agent signings, here is a look at five NFL teams that may come to regret this offseason in the near future.

Denver Broncos

AP Photo/David Zalubowski

Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson, left, bumps fists with head coach Sean Payton during NFL football practice, Wednesday, June 14, 2023, in Centennial, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

The Denver Broncos went into the offseason downright desperate to orchestrate a quick turnaround following an ugly 2022 campaign. Their blockbuster trade to bring in Russell Wilson failed in epic fashion, resulting in the team's worst regular season winning percentage since 2010. To make matters worse, they were bereft of high draft picks after sending them over to the Seattle Seahawks to acquire the quarterback.

With Wilson's contract containing tremendous amounts of dead money that makes it basically impossible to move on from him until at least 2024, the Denver brass was forced to make other personnel adjustments around the aging signal-caller. The most notable was coaxing Sean Payton out of the broadcast booth, returning the former New Orleans Saints coach to the sidelines after a one-year hiatus.

While it would be difficult for Payton not to be an upgrade over Nathaniel Hackett, he cost the Broncos more draft capital and has yet to prove he can truly succeed in the league without Drew Brees. During the lone campaign that Payton coached following the future Hall of Famer's retirement, the Saints went 9-8 and missed the playoffs following four consecutive trips. He's now tasked with installing a system that will play to Wilson's strengths and minimize his weaknesses after a season in which the quarterback took a league-worst 55 sacks.

One of the main ways Payton is hoping to accomplish this is by improving the offensive line. Strong play in the offensive trenches was a hallmark of the head coach's New Orleans teams, but it will be tough with the current crop of talent in the Mile High. The team did make a splash by signing Mike McGlinchey in free agency, but overpaid the offensive tackle in the process. McGlinchey's five-year, $87.5 million could be an albatross if he doesn't improve upon the six sacks and 10 penalties he was flagged for in 2022. Ben Powers also signed a rather expensive four-year, $52 million deal to take over the starting left guard job.

If the protection doesn't improve, Wilson will have his work cut out for him trying to get back to his Pro Bowl form despite the scheme adjustments and coaching staff upgrades. While you can't fault the Broncos for trying to jump-start this offense after such a down year, they likely spent too much on middling reinforcements that won't make enough of a difference to push the team back into the postseason.

Detroit Lions

AP Photo/Paul Sancya

Detroit Lions linebacker Jack Campbell runs during an NFL football rookie minicamp practice in Allen Park, Mich., Saturday, May 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

The Detroit Lions were one of the most intriguing teams of the 2022 season. After stumbling to a 1-6 record out of the gate, they managed to orchestrate one of the most impressive midseason turnarounds ever to finish the year with a winning record. While that 9-8 showing wasn't good enough to get them into the playoffs, it provided fans with hope of contending in 2023 in beyond.

Unfortunately for the Lions, they may have botched some of their most important offseason decisions and set the franchise back yet again. Detroit's 2023 draft picks were suspect at best. While Jahmyr Gibbs was widely regarded as the second-best running back in the class, the team took him far too early at No. 12 overall. To put it in perspective, many analysts believed that consensus No. 1 back Bijan Robinson could have realistically come off the board at that spot or later in the first round.

To make matters worse, the Lions settled for Gibbs after trading back from their original position of No. 6 overall, punting on a chance to get potential defensive game-changers like Tyree Wilson or Jalen Carter. While the organization did receive the No. 34 pick as well in exchange for No. 6 and No. 81, it's hard to imagine Sam LaPorta—the tight end that Detroit scooped up with that extra second-rounder—will have the same type of impact for the Lions that those blue-chip defensive prospects would have had.

Detroit did make a Day 1 selection to bolster a defense that rated among the league's weakest in 2022, but the choice to expend the No. 18 overall selection on Jack Campbell wasn't a great one. Although Campbell projects to be a good off-ball linebacker in the pros, his position doesn't exactly equate to value in the middle portion of the first round. There have been plenty of elite off-ball linebackers taken on Day 2 or later, including arguably the three best active players at the position in Fred Warner (2018 third-rounder), Lavonte David (2012 second-rounder) and Demario Davis (2012 third-rounder).

If Gibbs and Campbell don't develop into game-changing talents early in their careers, it will make the decisions to draft them regrettable ones. The clock is ticking for Detroit to emerge as a contender following an extended period of rebuilding and it will be up to these two first-rounders to play a key role in that resurgence. Should they fail, this will be an offseason the Lions will want a mulligan on.

Kansas City Chiefs

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KANSAS CITY, MO - JANUARY 21: Jawaan Taylor #75 of the Jacksonville Jaguars defends against the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on January 21, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)

After winning their second Super Bowl title in four years, the Kansas City Chiefs went into the 2023 offseason with a chance to solidify their roster and push to become the first repeat champions since the New England Patriots accomplished the feat in 2004-05. While they still have the key pieces to make another run happen in players like Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, they made some suspect free-agent decisions in the offensive trenches that could hamstring the club's chance of raising another banner.

One of the most questionable decisions Kansas City's brass made was letting star left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. walk before compounding the issue by splurging on a lesser offensive lineman in right tackle Jawaan Taylor. Taylor inked a four-year, $80 million deal that makes him the second-highest paid player at his position in the NFL. It's a puzzling price given Taylor only scored a 58.7 PFF grade after he conceded five sacks and was whistled for seven penalties with the Jacksonville Jaguars last year.

Brown would sign a more modest four-year, $64.1 million contract with the rival Cincinnati Bengals, perhaps the biggest threat Kansas City will face in the quest to defend its title in 2023. While the 27-year-old is two years older than Taylor, he was extremely consistent during his short stint in Kansas City, earning a 75.8 PFF grade in 2022 and a 75.4 mark in 2021.

While the Chiefs did scoop up Donovan Smith on a relatively cheap one-year deal in an attempt to shore up the left tackle spot, the 30-year-old veteran may not be a long-term answer. He's coming off a down 2022 campaign, a year in which he allowed six sacks and was flagged for 12 penalties, going on to earn an unsightly 58.1 PFF grade for his efforts.

Kansas City may still boast a decent offensive line on paper, but the team will struggle to replicate its successes from last season if Taylor and Smith don't have bounce-back performances with their new club. If they both continue to struggle, the Chiefs will want to take back this series of moves.

New York Jets

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FLORHAM PARK, NEW JERSEY - JUNE 9: Quarterback Aaron Rodgers #8 of the New York Jets talks to reporters after the teams OTAs at Atlantic Health Jets Training Center on June 9, 2023 in Florham Park, New Jersey. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)

The New York Jets clearly stated their intent to contend for and win a Super Bowl when they traded for Aaron Rodgers this offseason. The move represents one of the biggest upgrades at the quarterback position ever after the team floundered through the last two seasons with an inept Zach Wilson starting most of the contests.

While Rodgers is undoubtedly a boon for a Jets team that underwent a massive defensive transformation last year—going from the league's worst performer on that side of the ball to a top-five unit—his presence may not be enough to bring this title-starved organization its second Super Bowl. Acquiring Rodgers might help Gang Green reach the playoffs, but it's unlikely the relationship results in much more than a Wild Card or Divisional Round victory at best.

Rodgers is in the twilight stages of his career and was already showing significant signs of decline in 2022. The 39-year-old only completed 64.6 percent of his passes for 3,695 yards and 26 touchdowns against 12 interceptions while leading the Green Bay Packers to a middling 8-9 record. It was a noticeable regression from his back-to-back MVP campaigns of 2020-21, a stretch in which he connected on nearly 70 percent of his throws while averaging 4,207 yards and 42.5 touchdowns against a meager 4.5 interceptions while winning 13 games in each of those seasons.

Rodgers could be losing the battle against Father Time rapidly. Only a small handful of NFL quarterbacks have thrived in this late stage of their careers, with Tom Brady and Peyton Manning being the only ones to win a Super Bowl at the age of 39 or older. New York's failure to reinforce the offensive trenches this offseason won't help Rodgers' quest to add his name to that list of greats.

The team whiffed on a chance to bring in an offensive line anchor during the 2023 draft and was forced to settle on bringing back an aging Duane Brown and injury-prone Mekhi Becton to start at the two tackle spots. If Brown continues to regress and Becton can't regain his promising rookie form after a long layoff, it will be difficult for Rodgers to remain upright and unscathed.

Although the Jets didn't invest too much in terms of acquiring Rodgers, there is opportunity cost to factor in here. If Rodgers can't deliver a title to the Big Apple, the club will have wasted valuable time and conceded draft position it could have used to find a long-term franchise quarterback, setting this club back for years to come.

Tennessee Titans

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PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 04: Ryan Tannehill #17 of the Tennessee Titans hands the ball off to Derrick Henry #22 during the first half of the game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on December 4, 2022 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)

The Tennessee Titans had a chance to rebuild from the ground up this offseason, but opted against it and will suffer the consequences in 2023. The team seems to be rudderless heading into the upcoming campaign and has little chance of contending, but may still miss out on a coveted top draft pick due to the lingering veteran talent left on the roster.

Ran Carthon, the general manager who replaced Jon Robinson back in January, began his tenure by releasing several overpriced players. It made financial sense to part ways with Taylor Lewan, Bud Dupree and Robert Woods, but the team hasn't used that money to bring in the type of assets that will help it contend. The Titans also failed to release or find suitable trades for players like Ryan Tannehill and Derrick Henry despite them both entering the final year of their contracts in the twilight of their careers.

The team is missing pieces at several key offensive positions. Treylon Burks was inconsistent as a rookie, making A.J. Brown's departure even more noticeable. Signing DeAndre Hopkins may help, but the veteran wideout hasn't been an elite player since 2020 and missed 15 games over the last two seasons. The tight end spot is relying on the promising Chigoziem Okonkwo to pick up where he left off, but he's yet to show he can handle a full workload as the team's No. 1 option at the position. First-round pick Peter Skoronski may shore up one of the offensive tackle spots, but Andre Dillard doesn't inspire much confidence as Lewan's replacement on the left.

The Titans are at a crossroads but don't seem to have an idea which path they will take. The team could try to make another ill-fated run with Tannehill under center, but may try to thrust second-round rookie Will Levis into the lineup early in his career. Signing Hopkins indicates Tennessee plans to continue pushing for the playoffs, but missing out will just add another expensive piece it will have to find a way to get rid of if when it does embrace a full-blown rebuild.