Tim Graham over at ESPN's AFC East Blog wrote up a post about how the AFC could potentially be sending three teams to the playoffs this year. I'll leave you to guess which three he was talking about.
My question is, are those three teams really all that good? You can find arguments all over ESPN (including John Clayton's Most Improved Teams) article about how the Jets, Pats, and Phins are SB contenders. That may be true. But I have a few hunches. Keep in mind they are just that.I think the Dolphins have serious maturity/consistency issues. They repeatedly choked away winnable games last year that ultimately cost them the division. Have those gone away? Or have they gotten even worse? Add to that, I think Sparano is really a mediocre coach at best, and I could see them really struggling to put together a consistent season.
I think the Jets are due for a big disappointment. Sure, Sanchez finished the season well. His reward: enormous pressure. NYC isn't a kind place. I think he's due for a sophomore slump. And that defense? I think it looked a heck of a lot better last year than it was thanks to a dominating run game. I just don't see it. Sorry. I think it's overhyped.
I struggle the most with pegging the Pats. I think most people are calling it the "end of an era" much too soon. I think Brady is going to do everything he can to prove the general opinion wrong. But they have holes, and I think they'll struggle to win the division.
I'm not saying that the Bills are going to compete for the division. I'm just saying that none of these three teams really have me sold on them being championship caliber. Or to put it another way, I can see us going 3-3 in the division pretty easily...maybe finishing in third place. It just wouldn't surprise me, that's all.
So who's the most overhyped?
Poll
Which AFC East team is the most overhyped?
New York Jets (180 votes)
Miami Dolphins (52 votes)
New England Patriots (38 votes)
Buffalo Bills (8 votes)
278 total votes


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