Pick ‘Em Monday – AFC East

Pick ‘Em Mondays on BroncoTalk continue, and today I’m picking the winner of the AFC East. OK… let’s get that out of the way. The Patriots are Vegas’ favorite team to win it all this year, so who am I to try and argue they won’t even win the division? But what about ranks 2-4? Ranking the teams of the AFC East is my task today as I continue one of the many Segments I run each weekday.

1) New England Patriots

The Patriots are easily the best team in the division, and they could be the best in the league as well. No doubt Broncos fans can only hope that Jay Cutler has the same type of remarkable success as Tom Brady. The added weapons of Adalius Thomas, Randy Moss and Donte Stallworth will enhance both the defense and offense of the Patriots. Look for them to be a 14-win team when January comes around.

2) Buffalo Bills

Our Week 1 foes are more formidable than most think. Dick Jauron and Marv Levy have really turned this team around since 2005, and one of the biggest reasons behind the shift is the growth of J.P. Losman. For nearly 8 weeks at the end of last season, the young quarterback had a higher QB rating than any other quarterback in the division. And while the losses of Takeo Spikes and Nate Clements will hurt the Bills defense, I’m high enough on their offense to pick them 2nd in the division. They bounced back from losing Willis McGahee, the self-declared best runningback in the NFL, by drafting Marshawn Lynch in the first round. And Lee Evans had huge games to finish last year. Look for them to win 8-9 games, and if they’re lucky, enter the playoffs as the surprise 6th seed.

3) New York Jets

One of the big surprises from last year, I was THIS close to ranking the Jets 4th in the division. But I’m not 100% sure that the Dolphins’ players will buy into the system the way the Jets have with “The Mangenius,” so the Jets barely scrape by above the Phins. I don’t know if the Jets can win 8 games this year, and my reasons are many. First, I’m not a fan of their quarterback, healthy or not. I think their offensive line played admirably, but I just have this gut feeling that we could be seeing sophomore slumps out of their unit. Thomas Jones makes them legitimate at runningback, sure, but it’s the defense that I’m really concerned about. First, Eric Mangini‘s 3-4 defense doesn’t have the components it needs to succeed. No legitimate Nose Tackle, questions at linebacker (Johnathan Vilma‘s Pro Bowl caliber game fell off after the switch), and questions all through the secondary. Chad Pennington is a band-aid in my book, and I just can’t see Gang Green winning half their games this year.

4) Miami Dolphins

Trent Green, if healthy (meaning if his eggs stay unscrambled), is one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the league. He will lead this team to a few wins himself, but I’m not sure if everyone’s bought into Cam Cameron‘s system. Big questions remain along the offensive line and at runningback, and their wide receiver corps is one of the most inconsistent year to year. I think their already fearsome defense will improve with Joey Porter under the helm, but don’t expect more than 7 wins tops from the Phins this year.

The Pats are still the team to beat in this division – there’s no doubt it’ll be that way for a few years to come. The only team we play in the division during the regular season is the Bills, and we shouldn’t consider them lightly. The segment to replace the BroncoTalk Offseason Awards will be the season preview, going over each team on our schedule one at a time, and naturally the Bills will be the first on the list. Next Monday, the NFC South will be under debate, and I might be the only football fan out there who isn’t soaring high on the Saints. Until then…