The Two-Minute Drill: AFC Division Check-ins
By Brendan Nordstrom
In the family dynamic of the NFL, the AFC is the younger sibling. The NFC had its glory days when the 49ers, Packers and Buccaneers struck fear into the league, but as it ages, the AFC starts to attract all the love and attention of their parents. And why wouldn’t they? They have the vigor of young quarterback play, seven of the top 10 scoring offenses and arguably the two best teams in the league – the Bills and Chiefs.
While the AFC is more up-for-the-taking than in previous seasons, there are clear front-runners. Here is how all of the AFC divisions look after seven weeks.
AFC East
The AFC East is the most exciting division in the NFL. The Buffalo Bills are favored to bring upstate New York its first Super Bowl ring. Josh Allen expertly commands the fourth-most prolific offense in the league, with weapons such as Stefon Diggs, Gabriel Davis and Devin Singletary. Meanwhile, the defense ranks number one in the league with only 81 points allowed.
However, if the Bills thought they would run away with the division, they were sorely mistaken. New York Jets Head Coach Robert Saleh has made the team do a complete 180. With the development of Zach Wilson and a successful draft, the team has already surpassed their win total for last season at 5-2.
The Miami Dolphins are also a threat, despite their deceiving 4-3 record. However, the Dolphins’ Achilles Heel has been exposed – losing Tua Tagovailoa. Tagovailoa led the team to a hot 3-0 start. When on the bench due to concussion protocol, the Dolphins endured a three-game skid. Now that No. 1 is back behind center, the ‘Fins are picking up where they left off.
At the bottom of the division is the New England Patriots. As if the up-and-down start to the season was not enough, the 3-4 team is now dealing with a quarterback controversy following a 33-14 blowout to the Chicago Bears.
AFC North
The AFC North is the definition of a division cannibalizing itself. In the past few years, all four teams have been more or less on the same tier, beating each other up.
This season, however, the division is definitely a two-horse race. The Baltimore Ravens should be better, despite their 4-3 record. Every loss is by four or fewer points, and they boast an embarrassing -46 point differential in the fourth quarter. The Cincinnati Bengals are another team that should be better, despite also having a 4-3 record. They look far from the Super Bowl team from last season. However, they are starting to turn it around. After a rocky start, Burrow looked in prime form with 481 yards and three touchdowns against the Atlanta Falcons last weekend.
Rounding out the bottom of the division is the Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers, who each sit at 2-5. The Browns are just trying to tread water with Jacoby Brissett before the controversial return of Deshaun Watson in Week 12. Whether or not Watson will have lost a step, you can’t count the Browns out just yet. The Steelers, on the other hand, do not have a high-upside player walking through the door midway through the season. With rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett taking over after five games of Mitchell Trubisky, the Steelers are looking at a disappointing rebuild season, one of which Mike Tomlin has never experienced.
AFC South
One word comes to mind with the AFC South: Ugly. The Tennessee Titans are the only team with anything going for them in this division. After opening the year with back-to-back losses, they have gone on a four-game win streak. However, if you zoom in, their two losses were to the Bills and Giants, who combine for a .846 winning percentage. Meanwhile, their wins were against the Raiders, Commanders and Colts (twice), who hold a collective .421 winning percentage. In summary, the Titans can beat up bad teams, but can’t hold their own against good ones. Luckily, this is the only formula needed to win the South.
The Indianapolis Colts sit in second place and hold the sixth-worst offense in the league. This poor offensive performance deemed veteran quarterback Matt Ryan — who leads the league in interceptions — unfit to start, with Sam Ehlinger replacing him. After a Week 1 loss, the Jacksonville Jaguars looked strong, blanking the Colts and dominating the Los Angeles Chargers, but have petered out since then with a 2-5 record. Finally, there is not much to say about the Houston Texans. Houston beat the Jaguars and tied the Colts, but that’s about all they have going for them.
AFC West
The AFC West was touted as the best division in the league throughout the entire offseason, but the season has proved otherwise.
Despite the loss of Tyreek Hill, the Kansas City Chiefs haven’t lost a step. The offense is the most efficient in the league, and the passing game looks strong with Travis Kelce, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling spreading it out. Not to mention, Patrick Mahomes is still making ridiculous, outside-the-box plays week in and week out.
The Chargers are only a game behind at 4-3. However, five of their games have been against teams with two or fewer wins. The only “legitimate” games they have played were against the Chiefs and Seattle Seahawks, and they lost both. LA can make a run for the division, but KC seems much more established all around.
Through the first three weeks, the Las Vegas Raiders were the only team without a win or tie in the NFL. They have since bounced back with two wins, as well as a competitive one-point loss to the Chiefs. They have flashes of potential, but won’t cash it in this season.
Then there’s the Denver Broncos. The team added a new head coach, Nathaniel Hackett, and quarterback Russell Wilson to make the next jump, but ended up two steps backward. The Broncos just passed the century mark for points, which ranks last in the league, and, thankfully, we get to see them in prime time five times.