Jets, Pats Look to Be AFC East's Beasts

Even though this is only the last weekend in May, I feel very confident in making the following statement right now.

The AFC East will be the most competitive division in the NFL for 2009.

Now read closely to what I just wrote. I didn't say that the AFC East will be the best division in football. Their NFC East counterparts may have a slight edge in that department. But as far as the gap from best-to-worst, the AFC East might have the slimmest margin of them all.

The Jets have put together a potential top-five defense with the acquisitions of LB Bart Scott, S Jim Leonhard, and CB Lito Sheppard to go with new head coach Rex Ryan. Buffalo came out of nowhere to snag WR Terrell Owens to pair up with resident speedster Lee Evans, giving them on of the best one-two receiving combo in the league. Down south, Miami may not boast of any marquee names, but head coach Tony Sparano and executive vice president Bill Parcells know how to put together a solid team and maximize its potential.

Oh, by the way, the New England Patriots have this guy, Tom Brady, who they claim to be a decent quarterback.

Now, I am not ready to proclaim who will be the best team in this division. After what happened to Brady and the Patriots in the first game of last season, any attempt at prognosticating an NFL season is borderline pointless.

What can be spoken for is how each team looks as of right now, while each squad's new draft picks and free agent signings still have that new-car gleam to them. So here we go.

New York Jets

Strengths: The Jets could have selected Peyton Manning and Barry Sanders in this year's draft, and the team's identity would still be rooted in its defense.

Before he herniated a disc, NT Kris Jenkins commanded double- and triple-teams in the trenches in 2008. That opened holes for DE Shaun Ellis and OLB Calvin Pace, who helped the "D" record 41 sacks.

S Kerry Rhodes and CB Darrelle Revis have also established themselves among the league's top defensive backs. Now with Scott, Leonhard, and Sheppard in the fold, things will get far worse for opponents.

On the other side of the ball, the offensive line is one of the best in the league, opening holes for their ninth-ranked rushing attack.

The left side is arguably the best in the NFL with D'Brickashaw Ferguson, Alan Faneca, and Nick Mangold mowing down defenders for Thomas Jones (1,313 yds; 13 TDs) and Leon Washington (448 yds; 6 TDs).

WR Jerricho Cotchery recorded his third-straight season with at least 70 receptions and TE Dustin Keller is emerging as a reliable target in the middle of the field for QBs.

Weaknesses: Washington is without a shadow of a doubt the most dynamic player on the Jets' roster; a true playmaker.

Unfortunately, his status with the team is in doubt as the two sides are embroiled in a messy contract dispute.

Washington is holding out of voluntary Organized Team Activities (OTAs) until he gets a new contract, while the Jets are notorious for taking hard lines against their players (see Kendall, Pete).

Having a happy Washington back in the fold is essential for any sustained success.

As far as talent goes, the Jets' receiving corps leaves much to be desired. Cotchery is the lone veteran of a group that is lacking in both experience and size (only one player, Marcus Henry, is over 6'2").

Expect opposing defenses routinely to dare the Jets to throw as they load up eight or nine players close to the line.

Speaking of throwing, the Jets' quarterback situation is murky. Kellen Clemens, talented but raw, saw limited action behind an aging and injured Brett Favre last year and now may have to take a seat behind first-round pick Mark Sanchez.

Despite being taken fifth overall, Sanchez is short on experience (only one year as a starter for USC) and has never played in a hostile, cold-weather environment like Giants Stadium.

New England Patriots

Strengths:  All the Patriots need is their "BoMB" to go off: Brady, Moss and Belichick. Everyone saw what happened two years ago when Brady and Moss were able to play together.

And the fact that Belichick is one of the best game-planners and motivators in the NFL is about as common knowledge as it takes 10 yards to get a first down. And when Moss gets double- or triple-covered, Wes Welker (he of two straight 100-reception seasons) and new arrival Joey Galloway will be more than happy to burn the opposition.

On defense, it always boils down to the front seven in every Belichick defense. The trio of Vince Wilfork, Richard Seymour, and Ty Warren are about as big and intimidating as you can get; all three of them are 6'2" or taller and weigh in excess of 300 pounds.

Behind them is one of the smartest and most cunning linebacking corps in the league, led by Tedy Bruschi and Mike Vrabel. ILB Jerod Mayo, their 2008 first-round selection, led the team with 128 tackles, 10th most in the NFL.

Weaknesses: In a league where success is largely predicated by a strong, if not dominant running back, the Patriots have been successful without one. New England did not have a 1,000-yard rusher last year as 2006 first-rounder Laurence Maroney fell out of favor with Belichick.

Their leading rusher, Sammy Morris (727 yds, 7 TDs) also just turned 32 in March. Then again, New England did finish the year sixth in the league in rushing (2,278 yds).

The secondary is also an area of concern for the Patriots. While New England finished 11th in passing yards allowed (3,222), it gave up 7.3 yards per-passing attempt, which tied them with Kansas City for eighth-worst in the NFL.

CB Ellis Hobbs followed former teammate Asante Samuel to Philadelphia in a 2009 NFL Draft Day trade, while S Rodney Harrison is on his last legs.

Then again, Belichick has always been able to turn chicken scat into chicken salad when it comes to the secondary, so I won't be too quick to raise the red flag on that group.

Buffalo Bills

Strengths: Well, QB Trent Edwards certainly won't have to worry about having receivers to throw to, now will he?

In a swift and stunning move, the Bills were able to ink WR Terrell Owens to a one-year deal on March 7, three days after the Dallas Cowboys released him.

The huge target Owens provides is the perfect complement to the smaller, but fast and shifty Lee Evans. With these two options at his disposal, Edwards should improve from being just a capable quarterback to one who is among the league's better passers.

Owens' arrival also helps ease the burden on RB Marshawn Lynch, who appeared to get stronger as the season went on. Unfortunately due to his current legal troubles, Lynch was handed a three-game suspension from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

The Bills took out an insurance policy when they signed the very capable Dominic Rhodes to a two-year deal in April. Fred Jackson also is another weapon they have, especially after rushing for 136 yards on 27 carries in the season finale against New England.

Defensively, the addition of DE Aaron Maybin brings the Bills a sorely-needed pass-rushing threat. The 11th overall selection in this year's draft, Maybin will probably play along side of massive DT Marcus Stroud.

The secondary boasts of a strong combo of Terrence McGee and Leodis McKelvin, both of whom also double as some of the best return men in the conference.

Weaknesses:One of Buffalo's biggest flaws last year was its ability to get after the quarterback, a flaw they hope they have started to correct after drafting Maybin.

The Bills tied the Redskins for fourth-fewest sacks in the league with just 24 takedowns. That lack of pressure partially resulted in the Bills finishing in the middle-of-the-pack in yards-per-game allowed (326.1-14th) and points-per-game allowed (21.6-14th).

Their most glaring hole, though, is on their offensive line. Buffalo traded away unhappy All-Pro LT Jason Peters to Philadelphia for their 2009 first-round pick.

Between then and now, the Bills have made little effort to fill the void. Buffalo had two first-round picks (11 and 28, respectively) and eight draft selections overall, and not one was used on a left tackle.

They were also unable to sign free agent Orlando Pace, who ended up going to Chicago. It will be interesting to see who Buffalo uses to protect Edwards' blindside and how well he does.

Miami Dolphins

Strengths- Probably no team in the NFL was a bigger surprise last year than the 11-5, AFC East champion Dolphins. Head coach Tony Sparano helped turn around a defense that ranked third-to-last in 2007 (27.3 ppg) to one that ranked ninth (19.8 ppg) last year.

Instilling a smart, disciplined style of play common to Parcells-run teams, Miami finished with a +17 mark in the giveaway/takeaway category. The addition of 2009 first-round pick CB Vontae Davis should only improve those numbers.

Their linebacking corps was a big part of the turnaround, anchored by OLB sack-master Joey Porter and ILB Channing Crowder. Porter bounced back from a poor '07 showing by recording a career-best 17.5 sacks, while Crowder collected 113 tackles (six for a loss) and broke up six passes.

Meanwhile on offense, the 'Phins caught the league off-guard by implementing the "Wildcat" (aka, the single wing) offense, having running backs line up under center and QB Chad Pennington split wide, among other formations. Pennington remains one of the league's most efficient passers, as his 19/7 TD-INT ratio suggests, and he has found his go-to guy in TE Anthony Fasano, who broke out with seven TD catches.

Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams proved to be a highly effective one-two RB tandem, combining for 1,575 yards and 14 TDs.

Weaknesses: While the offense generated just enough points to win, the Dolphins finished 21st in scoring (21.6), relying on executing their plays perfectly. They are a jack-of-all-trades, master of none.

What Miami is lacking is their own "game-breaker" who can gain yards and points in situations where most teams would be stopped cold.

WRs Ted Ginn Jr. and Greg Camarillo are very good receiving options but neither are the type that you game-plan against, while RBs Brown and Williams are injury-prone.

A major theme to watch in 2009 is how opponents will fare against Wildcat plays now that they've had a full year to scout and prepare for it.

Sparano said that they only used a few of the plays from the entire Wildcat playbook, but you have to wonder how effective any new plays will be if opponents are expecting something fishy.

The defense has few concerns, but the status of NT Jason Ferguson bears watching. One of the keys to running a 3-4 defense is the play of the NT, and the 34-year-old Ferguson has lost some tread on his tires.

The 25-year-old Randy Starks did well in limited duty, collecting 29 tackles and three sacks while Tony McDaniel is a 6'7", 310-pound monster, but neither has been able to show what they can do in a starting role.

As for how all of this impacts the Jets, it all comes down to the offense. New York's "D" is expected to be better and more consistent this year, but the offense is a mystery due to the change in quarterback, the loss of Coles and the contract situation with Washington.

The Jets face two playoff-caliber defenses in their division with the Patriots and the Dolphins, so if New York hopes to make the transition from mediocrity to contender, it will be predicated by how well their new offense works.