AFC East: Who Will Win the Wide-Open Division?

When Tom Brady hit the ground against the Kansas City Chiefs Sunday, I knew that he wouldn't do as Matt Cassel said he usually does and "pop back up."

It was something about the hit that he took that was eerily similar to the infamous hit Carson Palmer took at the hands of Kimo Von Oelhoffen against the Steelers in the Cincinnati Bengals' last playoff appearance.

The way his knee buckled as he threw a deep ball, the way he cringed on the ground, and, sadly, the way his departure cost his team at the worst possible time.

Nobody—and I do mean nobody—expected to see "Golden Boy" Tom Brady go down for the entire season in week one. I obviously didn't see it coming, as I drafted Brady in my fantasy league.

What does all of this mean?

It means two things:

First, it means that we get to see the mettle of the Patriots and Bill Belichick, as this is the first injury to their star QB that will cause him to miss significant time. All of those arguments made by bloggers and analysts that suggested the Pats back Brady up with someone better than Matt Cassel shouldn't have fallen on the Pats' front office's deaf ears.

Secondly, the AFC East is now up for grabs, as the Patriots will seemingly release their chokehold on that division without their star QB and best player.

The New England Patriots have been the class of the AFC East since the departure of Bills legends Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas, and Andre Reed.

The Patriots have won the AFC East every year since Brady found his superstar stride in 2003. With the exception of the Jets leading the division in 2002, the Patriots have won the division six of the last seven years.

In the Tom Brady era, the Patriots have played in the Super Bowl four out of seven years.

Basically, we don't remember how it looks to see somebody other than No. 12 drop back in a Patriots uniform when it counts.

Matt Cassel, a fourth year QB out of USC, has rarely been used since his arrival in New England. Similar to the NFL's other iron QBs, Peyton Manning and Brett Favre, we don't know much about their backups.

In a season of change, in which we already are witnessing Aaron Rodgers and Jim Sorgi get more time due to injuries to Manning and the departure of Favre, we now get to see Cassel start for a shell-shocked Patriots team with aspirations of avenging last year's Super Bowl loss to the Giants.

There's no way that the Patriots could win, or even contend for, the AFC East crown without Tom Brady and after key defensive losses, right?

That question is yet to be answered, but perception tells us that the Patriots are in deep manure without Brady.

With that said, I'm ready to hand the reigns of the AFC East to either the Buffalo Bills or the New York Bretts—or Jets—whatever we call them now.

Which team is poised to make the run? I thought you'd never ask.

Buffalo Bills

2007 Record: 7-9

Key Offensive Players

QB Trent Edwards, RB Marshawn Lynch, WR Lee Evans

Key Defensive Players

LB Paul Posluszny, CB Terrance McGee, DE Aaron Schobel

2008 Week One

Buffalo 34, Seattle 10

The Buffalo Bills looked better Sunday than they've looked anytime since the '90s. Trent Edwards was making smart decisions with the football, the offensive line was creating holes, and Marshawn Lynch was running through them.

Defensively, they harassed Seahawks' QB Matt Hasselbeck all game and forced him to make all kinds of quick and bad decisions. Even the special teams got in on the act, with Punter Brian Moorman throwing a touchdown pass on a fake field goal attempt and WR Roscoe Parrish making the Seahawks look like Tecmo Bowl defenders on his way to a punt return TD.

Before Brady's injury, the consensus was that the Bills may still be one year away, but may contend with the Jets for second in the division, and maybe even land a Wild Card berth. After the injury, the Bills may just be the favorite to win the division.

Why?

Because of their always-good coaching from Dick Jauron, always high level of morale, their competitiveness, and their abilities on both sides of the ball. With Lynch healthy and looking as strong as ever, Edwards settling in and gaining confidence, Jason Peters back on the O-Line, and a healthy Paul Posluszny, this team is dangerous.

And with the exception of Jacksonville and San Diego, the Bills have a generous schedule that can have them at 5-2 heading into an AFC East showdown against the Jets on November 2.

If they play to their potential and don't suffer serious injuries to key players, the Bills may well be on their way to the playoffs.

New York Jets

2007 Record: 4-12

Key Offensive Players

OB Brett Favre, RB Thomas Jones, WR Jerricho Cotchery

Key Defensive Players

CB Darrelle Revis, DE Shaun Ellis, FS Kerry Rhodes

2008 Week One

New York 20, Miami 14

The arrival of Brett Favre gave the Jets a win Sunday against former Jets quarterback Chad Pennington and the Miami Dolphins. Neither team looked specifically impressive in the game, and the combined five-win total for both teams last season may be the reason why.

Nevertheless, everyone is hyped and sold on the possibility that the acquisition of former Packers future Hall-of-Fame QB Brett Favre will be enough to at least double the Jets' win total, if not more.

I believe that Favre is an obvious upgrade from Pennington, but I'm not sold on a double-win total for the Jets this season.

RB Thomas Jones looked solid in the win with a 22 carry, 101 yard performance including a touchdown. Brett Favre made some shaky throws, as usual, including his lucky gun slinging free-for-all throw to WR Chansi Stuckey.

Pennington's numbers were actually better than Favre's:

Chad Pennington: 26/43, 251 yards, 2 TD, INT

Brett Favre: 15/22, 194 yards, 2 TD

The glaring difference is the interception, which kills you in any game, but more so in a ball control battle like the game between these teams.

The only thing I learned about the Jets in this game is that they are better than the 1-15 Dolphins, and that isn't saying much. Favre is better than Pennington, and Ronnie Brown doesn't look ready yet. I expected a Jets win, and I need to see more.

Against teams with better defenses like the Bills or the Chargers, Brett will have to endure more punishment and make smarter throws. Jerricho Cotchery looked very good and ready to be the Jets No. 1 receiver, and that's about it.

Therefore, I still don't know where to put the Jets because I simply don't believe they are as good as everyone seems to think.

Their next two games are against the Patriots and the Chargers, and although the Pats are without Tom Brady, the defense should pressure Brett the Jet some and give him fits.

Because they too have a lighter early schedule, the Jets could also be 5-2 heading into the game with the Bills, and that game could end up being a battle of the eventual AFC East champions.

At this point I believe the AFC East is the Buffalo Bills' division to win, and the Jets have too many questions on both sides of the ball to answer. I have the Jets finishing at .500 with an 8-8 record, and I've seen nothing to convince me otherwise.

Meanwhile, the Buffalo Bills looked very impressive against a playoff team in Seattle and may reach 10 wins.

I'm picking the Bills to win the division until further notice, because who knows who will go down next in the "here today, gone tomorrow" nature of the NFL?