NFL Training Camp: 10 Teams with the Most Work to Do Before Preseason

At last, the NFL preseason is upon us. A week of training camp has passed, and fans wait anxiously to see their teams' new toys hit the field against actual opponents for the first time, giving them a sense of excitement and hope. 

But excitement and hope can only generate so much buzz—at the end of the day, teams are made or broken on the football field. And, although preseason has barely begun, we can still identify which teams have further to travel on their roads to success than others.

A few criteria for the rankings you're bound to destroy in the comments section below: 

• The NFL is a quarterback-driven league, so teams with unproven quarterbacks or unsolved quarterback mysteries (i.e. the Tennessee Titans and the Cleveland Browns, respectively) will be listed as having the most work to do. 

• Winners are built in the months leading up to the regular season, so each of the following teams' offseasons will be scrutinized based on draft, free-agency and general offseason progression. 

• It may be a new season, but teams' records from 2014 still factor into the following rankings. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, for instance, finished with the league's worst record a season ago, putting them in the top-three when it comes to the amount of work needing to be put in before the preseason.

And with that, here we go. 

Closer Than the Others

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Jimmy Garoppolo is tasked with replacing Tom Brady for the first four games of the regular season. Will the Patriots make it work?

New England Patriots: Let's face it—without quarterback Tom Brady at the helm, the Patriots aren't the same football team. Second-year pro Jimmy Garoppolo looked iffy in New England's preseason opener on Thursday, going 20-of-30 with 159 yards and an interception after playing all four quarters. But the Patriots coaching staff will put him in position to succeed; the Patriots will survive and be contenders down the stretch.

Atlanta Falcons: Although starting quarterback Matt Ryan has a career playoff record of 1-4, he's been a steady force for the Falcons since being drafted third overall by the team in 2008. Defense—not Ryan—has been the problem for Atlanta in its past two sub-par seasons. Former Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn taking over as head coach and rookie pass-rusher Vic Beasley should help fortify a 2014 unit that ranked 27th in points allowed and dead last in yards allowed, according to Pro Football Reference. 

Houston Texans: Last year's Texans team shows how important the quarterback position really is. While solid play from three different starting quarterbacks (Ryan Fitzpatrick, Ryan Mallet and Case Keenum) led the Texans to a 9-7 finish, the team still missed the playoffs in 2014. With arguably the nastiest defensive front in football, which includes J.J. Watt, Vince Wilfork and former first-overall pick Jadeveon Clowney, the Texans are simply a franchise quarterback away from being a really good team. 

No. 10: Chicago Bears

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Quarterback Jay Cutler is one of the Bears' biggest problems.

The Bears received an upgrade at head coach during the offseason after bringing in Jon Fox from Denver. But as long as Jay Cutler remains the quarterback in Chicago, the team isn't going anywhere. He has had plenty of chances in the Windy City—six years with only two playoff games in 2010—and plenty of weapons to work with, including Brandon Marshall, Alshon Jeffery and tight end Greg Olsen.

Marshall is now a New York Jet and first-round pick Kevin White has missed all of training camp with a shin injury, according to Jeremy Stoltz of BearReport. 

But it's not all Cutler's fault, as indicated by last year's defensive ranks. The Bears were 31st in points allowed (442) and 30th with yards allowed (6033), according to Pro Football Focus. It's no wonder the team finished 5-11.

Protecting the guy might help, too, as Cutler was sacked a whopping 38 times in 2014. 

No. 9: New York Giants

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It's unclear when Giants pass-rusher Jason Pierre-Paul will return to the field after a July 4 fireworks accident.

The Giants have had an interesting offseason, to say the least. Most notably, Big Blue's star pass-rusher Jason Pierre-Paul seriously injured his hand in a fireworks accident on the Fourth of July.

Bad public relations aside, Pierre-Paul's injury is a huge loss for the Giants on the field. In five seasons in New York, Pierre-Paul has played in 75 games and compiled 42 sacks. The Giants gave up more than 6,000 total yards last season, ranking their defense 29th in that category. Head coach Tom Coughlin recently said at a press conference that JPP will return when he's ready, whenever that may be.

While the defense struggled mightily, the Giants offense was rather lackluster aside from receiver Odell Beckham Jr. bursting onto the NFL scene with 91 catches for 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns. Beckham accounted for nearly half of Eli Manning's 30 touchdown passes last season. In fact, Beckham was only 55 yards short of the combined rushing yardage of running backs Andre Williams (721) and Rashad Jennings (639).

The Giants hope that a healthy Victor Cruz and free-agent running back Shane Vereen can restore balance this season as the team looks to improve on a 6-10 record from 2014.

No. 8: Buffalo Bills

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The Buffalo Bills have a solid defense in place but questions remain at quarterback.

Unlike the New York Giants, Rex Ryan's Buffalo Bills don't have an established quarterback. In fact, Ryan recently told ESPN's Mike Rodak that a decision on a starting quarterback likely won't be made until two games into the preseason. 

It doesn't bode well for a team with a loaded defense that ranked No. 4 in points and yards allowed last season while also leading the league in sacks.

On offense, new running back LeSean McCoy and receiver Percy Harvin bring excitement—but without a quarterback leading the charge, the Bills offense could quickly become predictable. Matt Cassel hasn't looked good since he was a Patriot, E.J. Manuel hasn't produced on the field yet and Tyrod Taylor had been limited to a backup role in Baltimore. 

The questions at quarterback rank the Bills at No. 8, despite finishing 2014 with a 9-7 record, because even the Bears know who their starter will be when the season starts. It's the game's most important position, and the Bills still don't have a clear-cut favorite going into preseason action.

No. 7: New York Jets

Frank Franklin II/Associated Press

Ryan Fitzpatrick will take the reins for the Jets' offense after presumed starter Geno Smith was sucker punched, leaving him with a broken jaw.

Even with former head coach Rex Ryan gone, the Jets have still managed to make headlines for all of the wrong reasons early on in training camp. 

When your starting quarterback gets sucker-punched in the locker room before training camp gets underway, it's a bad start to the season. Luckily for the Jets, Ryan Fitzpatrick isn't much of a downgrade from Geno Smith—considering what we've seen in Smith's short career thus far. 

Aside from an unstable quarterback position, the Jets look pretty good on paper. Brandon Marshall comes to the Jets as a legitimate weapon on offense and the team's front office went all-in on getting cornerback Darrelle Revis to return to New York, signing him to a five-year, $70 million deal in March.

But it's worrisome that a locker room fight left a starting quarterback with a broken jaw, and new head coach Todd Bowles' control over his team must be put into question because of it. Welcome to the Big Apple, Todd. 

No. 6: San Francisco 49ers

Jeff Chiu/Associated Press

Jim Tomsula replaces Jim Harbaugh as the 49ers head coach and has been dealt one of the toughest offseasons in recent NFL history.

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Just a few years ago, the San Francisco 49ers looked as if they could become the league's next great dynasty. 

Jump to 2015, and you find a roster depleted by unexpected retirements, players leaving in free agency and legal troubles. Yahoo Sports believes the 49ers have had the worst offseason in NFL history. Take that for what you will, but it's hard to ignore the circus-like spring and summer the 49ers have had.

While quarterback Colin Kaepernick returns as a familiar face, his supporting cast isn't so familiar—workhorse running back Frank Gore is an Indianapolis Colt, and wide receiver Michael Crabtree crossed the bay after being signed by the Oakland Raiders.

On defense, new head coach Jim Tomsula has to bring together a unit that lost linebackers Chris Borland and Patrick Willis to retirement and pass-rusher Aldon Smith because of an arrest for hit-and-run, DUI and vandalism. Tomsula's only immediate advantage comes from him formerly being the team's defensive line coach, so at least the 49ers have a coach familiar with how the franchise operates.

Still, though, it's apparent that San Francisco has a lot of work to do going into the preseason.  

No. 5: Jacksonville Jaguars

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Blake Bortles was drafted third overall by the Jaguars in 2014 and must take big strides in 2015 to show he's worth his high draft stock.

Let's be blunt—the Jacksonville Jaguars offense was simply awful in 2014. It ranked last in points scored and 31st in total yardage. 

Quarterback Blake Bortles was taken in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft by the Jaguars in hopes he could become the franchise passer the team desperately needs. His rookie year was less-than-inspiring, as he threw 11 touchdowns to 17 interceptions in 13 games. It's too early to write him off, though, especially after the team acquired tight end Julius Thomas through free-agency.

While it's only camp talk, Bortles has been the talk of Jaguars camp so far—only time will tell if the excitement lives up to expectations.

Head coach Gus Bradley is defense-oriented, so losing 2015 first-round pick Dante Fowler to an ACL tear is a crushing blow. The good news is that, even though the Jaguars were 3-13 last season, the defense totaled 45 sacks. The bad news is that the defense gave up more than 5,900 yards, ranking them No. 26 in that category. The Jaguars have some serious work to put in on both sides of the ball if they plan on competing with the Indianapolis Colts in 2015. 

No. 4: Oakland Raiders

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Cornerback D.J. Hayden enters a make-or-break season with the Raiders after two disappointing years as the team's primary corner.

The Oakland Raiders have spent more than a decade trying to climb their way out of a black hole, going 12 straight seasons without a playoff appearance.

But young talent in quarterback Derek Carr and linebacker Khalil Mack have Raider Nation looking up for the first time in a long time.

Rookie wide out Amari Cooper and veteran Michael Crabtree add enticing firepower to what was one of the league's worst offenses in 2014. The defense's front-seven has been bolstered, and the interior of the defensive line has been dubbed "meat and potatoes" by Mack. Starting defensive tackles Dan Williams and Justin Ellis are a combined 649 pounds, which should help the Raiders be stout against the run in 2015. 

The team's secondary, however, is a primary concern. Oakland's three starting cornerbacks (D.J. Hayden, Keith McGill and T.J. Carrie) are all less than 27 years old. Hayden has the most experience and highest expectations surrounding him after being selected No. 12 overall in the 2013 NFL draft. If Hayden doesn't break out this season, not only will the defense suffer but he may also find himself out of a job at the end of the year. 

New head coach Jack Del Rio will do his best to turn the Raiders around, but we can't ignore last season's 0-10 start. There's much work to be done in Oak Town before the Silver and Black become relevant again.

No. 3: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Chris O'Meara/Associated Press

Quarterback Jameis Winston went first-overall in the 2015 NFL draft and looks to provide stability to a Buccaneers team that finished 2-14 last season.

While the Buccaneers were technically 2014's worst team, they've bounced back on paper with a nice offseason. 

The team selected former Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston to become the new face of the franchise, and reports out of training camp from Jeff Darlington on NFL.com have Winston receiving positive reviews. Besides that, though, the Bucs drafted two offensive linemen in the second round to protect their investment (take note, Carolina) and added a couple of wide receivers as well. In free-agency, the Bucs added middle linebacker Bruce Carter, safety Chris Conte and defensive tackle Henry Melton to give head coach Lovie Smith something to work with on defense.

Yes, the Buccaneers finished 2-14 last season. But after a solid offseason, they're closer to being relevant than the Browns or Titans because they play in a currently weak NFC South division.

No. 2: Cleveland Browns

Tony Dejak/Associated Press

Johnny Manziel will compete with a lackluster group of Browns quarterbacks for the starting job in 2015.

Cleveland played some pretty mean defense in 2014, as the unit ranked ninth in points allowed. But the offense never got going, and the result was a 7-9 finish to the season. 

Mike Pettine has the makings of a good head coach, but he'll only go as far as his quarterbacks take him. His current group includes Johnny Manziel, Josh McCown, Connor Shaw and Thaddeus Lewis, who have only shown flashes of being legitimate NFL QBs. McCown's veteran status pushes him to the top of the list, but the Browns relying on him to get to the playoffs is foolish at this point in his career. 

Of course, the Browns quarterbacks would benefit from having a weapon such as receiver Josh Gordon—if he could stay out of trouble. Another troubling figure last season, on and off the field, was 2014 first-round draft choice Justin Gilbert. These are the types of players that have held Cleveland back for years, and if Gilbert (and Manziel) don't blossom in 2015, the Browns won't be any better than they were last year, despite adding interior toughness through the draft. 

No. 1: Tennessee Titans

Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

Marcus Mariota holds promise for the future, but won't be enough to save the Titans in 2015.

After a lengthy holdout, quarterback Marcus Mariota finally joined the Titans in training camp and has been "essentially flawless," according to reports. 

We'll see how that holds up once games start counting. 

Regardless, the Titans roster is full of holes, and the rest of the team has been uninspiring in camp, according to Elliot Harrison of NFL Media: 

"

Since we're all tracking interceptions by the quarterback in training camp, it would be good to know how many holes running back Bishop Sankey has missed, how many two-hand-touch tackles Titans linebackers have whiffed on and how many deer-in-the-headlights looks the Tennessee secondary has delivered while lost in coverage. Otherwise, here's hoping Marcus Mariota is as prepared as advertised. 

"

Sankey led the team with 569 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns last season. Yikes. The team's offense and defense were almost equally bad in terms of league rankings—the offense was 30th and 29th for points scored and yards earned, respectively, and the defense was 29th and 27th in points and yards allowed, respectively.

To say the least, head coach Ken Whisenhunt faces a monumental task in improving on last year's 2-14 overall record.