2009 AFC East Preview: Where Do the New York Jets Stand?

The Jets’ chances of making the playoffs in 2009 are, of course, very dependent upon what happens with the rest of the AFC East.

Injuries, internal riffs, coaching changes and dozens of other things can ultimately turn an NFL team on its heels in a matter of moments.

But, here’s a prediction of how things might shake out in the AFC East.

1) New England Patriots

Tom Brady is returning from reconstructive ACL surgery and a year away from the game, while last year’s starter, Matt Cassell, has been traded to Kansas City.

This creates arguably the biggest question mark in the division, and probably the entire NFL, heading into the 2009 season.

How will Tom Brady perform upon his return to the Patriots?

Most experts estimate that it takes close to a year to recover from ACL surgery just enough to play again, and an additional year to get back to playing at 100 percent.

But, that’s certainly not to say that even at 80 percent, Brady cannot still be affective enough to lead the Patriots to their sixth AFC East title in seven years.

New England’s defense is another question mark.

The Patriots biggest weakness in 2008 was their pass defense. Although they have added Darius Butler and Patrick Chung to their secondary, it remains to be seen whether or not the pass defense can improve upon their 2008 performance.

The Patriot’s defense is also a combination of inexperienced youth and older players who are quickly approaching the end of their careers.

Will veterans such as Teddy Bruschi and Adalius Thomas be able to hold up for another season while younger players in the secondary such as Butler and Chung step up and stop the passing game?

With Brady unlikely to be the same dominant quarterback of the past, at least not yet, the defense can not rely on the offense to score 30 some-odd points every game.

Unlike 2007, which was Brady’s last full year at the controls of the Patriots’ offense, the defense will more than likely need to step up and win games in 2009.

Prediction: The Patriots reign of dominance in the AFC East will certainly come to an end one day, and probably sooner rather than later, but, it won’t happen in 2009.

The Patriots’ three toughest non-divisional games in 2009 are against the Ravens, Titans and Colts.  The Titans and Raven’s will each travel to Gillette Stadium to face the Patriots, which, needless to say, will swing the advantage in the Patriots’ direction.

The defense contains a worrying combination of age and inexperience, but in terms of personnel, they have improved from last season.

Even if Brady is not 100% percent upon his return, his leadership skills combined with his uncanny ability to flawlessly orchestrate the Patriots’ offense could be more than enough to lead the Patriots to yet another AFC East title.

2) Miami Dolphins

Coming off their first AFC East title in eight years, the Dolphins will surely be looking to build upon their 2008 success.

The Dolphins’ 2008 campaign was one of the most improbable NFL seasons in recent memory. Their resurrection from a 1-15 team in 2007 to an 11-5 team in 2008 was nothing short of miraculous.  

But, the way in which the Dolphins went about capturing the AFC East title was even more mind-boggling.

The key to the Dolphins’ 2008 success was the implementation of an offensive formation rarely seen in the NFL.

With their ‘Wildcat’ offensive formation, the Miami Dolphins looked more like a bunch of guys playing a pickup game in the schoolyard than an NFL football team.

Only this schoolyard football team baffled NFL defenses for the entire season and walked away with an AFC East title.

Defensive coordinators are now spending a lot of restless nights with visions of Ronnie Brown taking snaps with Rickey Williams off to the wing and Chad Pennington lined up as a wide out racing though their minds.  

Chad Pennington will be protected by an improved offensive line in 2009 with the addition of Jake Grove.

The biggest questions for the Dolphins’ offense will be how many new variations of the Wildcat they can continue throwing out there and whether or not their young receiving core can perform at a more consistent level, particularly in the Red Zone.

The Dolphin’s defensive unit is young and will need to continue their rapid development, particularly with Tom Brady once again taking the snaps for the Patriots’’ offense.

Rookie corner backs Vontae and Sean Smith will more than likely start this season alongside Will Allen, Yeremiah Bell and Gibril Wilson in a secondary that struggled from time-to-time last season.

Prediction: If the Dolphins’ Wildcat offense can remain effective in 2009, they will certainly put some points on the board just as they did last season.

However, inexperience on the defensive side might be the Achilles' heel that holds them back from overtaking the Patriots in 2009. 

3) New York Jets

As training camp quickly approaches, the 2009 Jets will have a vastly different look and feel under new head coach Rex Ryan.

The good news for the Jets is that the missing pieces were easily identifiable after the 2008 season.

So, as would be expected of any general manager, Mike Tennenbaum went out and filled in those gaps during the offseason.

The Jets traded up with Cleveland for the fifth overall pick in the draft where they selected USC quarterback, Mark Sanchez, in the hopes of him developing into the team’s quarterback of the future.

Tennenbaum also signed two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Lito Sheppard as well as Ravens' safety Jim Leonhard. Combine these new acquisitions with players such as Darrell Revis and Dwight Lowery and the Jets might have the solid secondary they were in dire need of last year.

Sanchez started just 16 games while at USC, so it’s not too far fetched to believe that Killen Clemens could be the starter on opening day in an attempt to ease Sanchez into life in the NFL.

No matter who is taking the snaps from Nick Mangold come September, the Jets will have an inexperienced quarterback at the helm, which always raises a lot of questions and concerns about the offense.

How well either Clemens is able to step into the starting role or how quickly Sanchez is able to develop, combined with whether or not recent offseason additions to the secondary can finally put a plug in opponent’s ability to throw the ball around the field with ease will determine how successful the Jets will be in 2009.

Prediction: If Sanchez is able to step in and follow a similar path to that of Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco last season, the outlook for the Jets 2009 season could be vastly different.

However, the likelihood is that if Clemens is leading the offense, he just won’t bring enough fire power to lead the Jets to an AFC East title, and, if Sanchez is the opening day starter, he will more than likely require at least a little bit of time to develop.

The Jets secondary has been improved, but, it remains to be seen whether or not they’ll finally be able to squash opponent’s ability to throw the ball with ease in 2009.

The Jets have also undergone a changing of the guards in their coaching staff during the offseason.

Rex Ryan is a rookie head coach and has brought with him to New York many of his old colleagues from Baltimore.

How will Ryan do in his first season as head coach, and how will the Jets adapt to more or less a complete coaching staff change across the board?

If all the pieces fall into place for the Jets, they could contend for the AFC East title. But, it is more than likely that 2009 will be a year of adjustments for the Jets.

4) Buffalo Bills

Adding Terrell Owens to an offensive that was already struggling to maintain a level of cohesiveness in 2008 was a big risk to say the least.

As we have seen time and time again, there is no middle ground for Owens. He is either on-board with the team or he is not.

Owens could step in, keep his mouth shut and perform well, as was the case during his first couple of season in Dallas. Or he could drive a stake right through the middle of a Bills’ offense that was struggling to begin with.

Rarely has one man been able to have such a profound impact on a football team as Owens seems to have wherever he goes.

There is always so much attention surrounding Owen’s every move that his performance on the field combined with his words and actions off the field can literally make or break a football team.

Would you want to be in Trent Edwards shoes stuck in a huddle between Terrell Owens and Marshawn Lynch?

That probably depends on whether or not the Bills are winning.

The Bills’ defense could be considered one of the strongest in the AFC East.

Aaron Maybin, Aaron Schobel, and Marcus Stroud will make up a strong front on the defensive side and will be backed up by a hard-hitting linebacker core led by Paul Posluzny.

Prediction: The Bills have all the pieces for a successful 2009 season. But how well those pieces fall into place is the biggest question as training camp is fast approaching.

If Owens and Lynch keep their mouths shut, go out and perform the way they are capable of without driving a dagger through the heart of the Bills’ offense, 2009 could be a big year for Buffalo.

Politicians, business leaders and world leaders rarely learn a single thing from history, but, maybe we can at least refer to recent history to make an educated guess on how things will pan out for the Bills in 2009.

Unfortunately for the Bills though, the recent history surrounding Terrell Owens and Marshawn Lynch certainly does not paint a pretty picture for how things might transpire in the locker room, in the huddle and on the football field up in Buffalo this season.