Off Season Recap: AFC

It’s officially May, so it’s time to start looking ahead to the start of the NFL in a few months. Here is a recap so far of what all the teams have done to either improve or hinder their squads in the last three months. Unlike that dope Pete Prisco, I will not give a power ranking scale four months before the season begins. But, since most of the major free agents are off the market and the draft has concluded, it’s time to see which teams have raised expectations and which teams should start preparing for next year’s lottery. We’ll start with the AFC for now.

AFC East

Buffalo Bills
Free agency grade: C-
Draft grade: F
Have they improved: No
Why not: The Bills may be having one of the worst off seasons in recent memory. In free agency and trades, they’ve lost Eric Moulds, Sam Adams, Lawyer Milloy, Trey Teague and Mike Williams (who, despite his struggles, is still very young and has shown promising signs of getting his act together). The Bills lone addition worth noting is old receiver Peerless Price, who flamed out with the Cowboys and the receiver-desperate Falcons. They did not address their pressing need on the offensive or defensive line. They have a bunch of number two and three receivers for their below average quarterbacks to throw to. And their key offensive player, Willis McGahee, is only one hit away from tearing up his knee again. And if he goes down, the Bills are really screwed. Buffalo followed up their lackluster free agency period with a horrible draft. With the eighth pick, they took Donte Whitner, who some had going in the early second round as only the fourth best safety in the draft. The Bills then followed with John McCargo, a NC State defensive lineman who only excelled because teams paid more attention to his Wolfpack teammate Mario Williams. Like Whitner, the Bills took McCargo a full round, if not two full rounds, too early. To pass on Winston Justice (twice) and both Matt Leinart and Jay Cutler shows the incompetence of their front office. If it wasn’t for the Texans continuing ineptitude, the Bills may actually be the worst team in the NFL this season.

Miami Dolphins
Free agency grade: A
Draft grade: C+
Have they improved: Yes
Why: If Daunte Culpepper is healthy, the Dolphins will win this division hands down. What an addition for Miami. How often does a team get a potential Pro Bowl quarterback for nothing more than a couple of bad draft picks? Culpepper to Chris Chambers could become the new Culpepper to Moss, only the Dolphins have a running game to compliment their new quarterback unlike his old Vikings teams. It’s addition by subtraction without Ricky Williams, as Ronnie Brown now becomes the team’s primary ball carrier. He’ll have free agent and Pro Bowler Fred Beasley blocking for him. The Fins add L.J. Shelton to a solid offensive line. And their defense is still pretty good. By filling their quarterback position, and without a position in need of improvement, the Dolphins drafted for depth and did a decent job of it. All in all, the Fins had the best off season in the East, and will make a serious playoff run this year.

New England Patriots
Free agency grade: C+
Draft grade: B-
Have they improved: No, but they haven’t gotten worse either
Why: The Patriots, as usual, refused to sign most of their high priced free agents and looked for cheaper replacements. Willie McGinest may have lost a step, but he was the heart and soul of that defense and will be impossible to replace. The Pats also lost David Givens, Tom Ashworth, Christian Fauria and Tyrone Poole. Their biggest lost (I can’t believe I’m saying this) was their place kicker. Adam Vinatieri not only leaves Boston, but goes to rival Indianapolis. I’m sure that was a swift kick in the groin to Patriots fans to see their Super Bowl hero go to the Colts. The Pats did pick up Reche Caldwell and Tebucky Jones in free agency. Nothing special there, but solid pickups. Through the draft, the Pats made a nice selection for Laurence Maroney and stole Chad Jackson in the second round. Not that I think Jackson is anything special, but he definitely warranted a second round pick. The problem for New England is not what it did or didn’t do in the off-season, it is what Miami did in the off season. The Patriots seem to be standing still and the Dolphins appear to be passing them up the standings.

New York Jets
Free agency grade: C+
Draft grade: B
Have they improved: Yes
Why: The Jets finally committed to building a winner through their offensive line. Realizing that they have two of the frailest quarterbacks in the league, the Jets drafted stud linemen D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold and signed Anthony Clement and Trey Teague. The loss of Kevin Mawae doesn’t seem so bad now. The Jets also picked up Kimo von Oelhoffen to help the defensive line. The loss of John Abraham could come back to haunt the Jets, but their linebacking core is solid and drop off on the d-line won’t be that dramatic. The loss of fullback Jerald Sowell will hurt the Jets. The drafting of Kellen Clemens is one I don’t understand. Do the Jets really need a third injury-prone quarterback? Overall, the Jets improved. But they were 4-12 last season. They certainly didn’t improve enough to sniff the playoffs.


I know, I can't believe the Jets made a smart, rational pick either.

AFC NORTH

Baltimore Ravens
Free agency grade: D-
Draft grade: D+
Have they improved: No
Why not: The Ravens did absolutely nothing to improve their anemic offense. Absolutely nothing. In fact, their offense appears to have gotten worse. I don’t know how Reigning Genius Brian Billick managed to pull that off, but he did. The lone addition to the Ravens offense was Mike Anderson. They lost up and coming running back Chester Taylor and decided to stick with oft-injured and felon Jamal Lewis. The o-line is still terrible. The receivers are still adequate at best. And Kyle Boller is still the starting quarterback. Even worse, the Ravens lost their half-decent backup Anthony Wright to Cincinnati. And instead of moving up in the draft to address their quarterback needs, or taking Justice, or Max Jean-Gillis for their line, the Ravens drafted more defense. By bending over and catering to Ray Lewis (Who knows that he’s nothing special without two defensive tackles. Someone has been a bit overrated for all these years), the Ravens have screwed themselves for at least another two seasons. And this lineman Haloti Ngata isn’t even that good. He struggled at Oregon and the Ducks weren’t exactly a good defensive team to begin with. Plus, their defense will suffer from the loss of Anthony Weaver and Will Demps. So their efforts to improve their defense failed. In Baltimore, the inmates are running the asylum and Billick seems thrilled to go down with the ship. He may not make it through the season. But this is the year that Boller will “turn things around”…right?

Cincinnati Bengals
Free agency grade: B-
Draft grade: B-
Have they improved: Not really
Why: It was a quiet off-season by the banks of the Ohio. The biggest free agent acquisition may be Carson Palmer’s surgeon. Without Palmer, the Bengals are going to be 6-10. With a healthy Palmer, they could easily win the AFC. In terms of free agency, Cincy didn’t really pick anyone up, but they didn’t really lose anyone either. In the draft, their late round steals of Frostee Rucker and A.J. Nicholson made up for their poor first round selection of Johnathan Joseph. Overall, not much happened for the Bengals the past three months. Their entire season hinges on Palmer’s rebuilt knee.


The Bengals can't afford to see Carson
Palmer like this next season.
(AP)







Cleveland Browns
Free agency grade: A-
Draft grade: C
Have they improved: Yes
Why: The free agent additions of LeCharles Bentley, Bob Hallen, Joe Jurevicius, Willie McGinest and Ted Washington all addressed needs for Cleveland. Their only real loss was L.J. Shelton to Miami, but Bentley and Hallen make up for his defection on the offensive line. The Browns realize the best way to help young Charlie Frye is upgrade the offensive line, not his offensive weapons. And Kellen Winslow Jr., if he manages to avoid joyriding with Jason Williams, is still a great security blanket for a young quarterback. Defensively, the Browns got better up front as they adjust to defensive guru Romeo Crennel’s new system. The one thing Cleveland did not do was improve their below average secondary. But a good front seven can make a below average secondary seem better. Kamerion Wimbley was a nice addition through the draft, but Cleveland didn’t get much else with their nine other picks. The Browns appear to be on the rise with Crennel at the helm and a bunch of key additions on both sides of the ball.

Pittsburgh Steelers
Free agency grade: C+
Draft grade: B+
Have they improved: No
Why: Um, didn’t they just win the Super Bowl? It’s hard to improve on that. Even though they didn’t improve much in the off-season, the Steelers are still one of the favorites to come out of the AFC. But the loss of Jerome Bettis and Antwaan Randle-El will trickle down and affect Ben Roethlisberger and the offense. The loss of Kimo von Oelhoffen also stings a bit. The only free agent addition the Steelers signed is former Redskins safety Ryan Clark, who is a good, but not great player. What Pittsburgh didn’t do in free agency they did in the draft. Their selection of Santonio Holmes was pretty good, even though I think Sinorice Moss would have been a better fit. Both Anthony Smith and Willie Reid are solid mid-draft selections. And the Steelers are taking a chance with quarterback Omar Jacobs. Some question the pick, but look at the Steelers draft track record. It’s pretty good. I bet Jacobs becomes a productive player somewhere on the field for Pittsburgh. The Steelers are going to the playoffs again this season. The only question is whether they can duplicate last year’s run.

AFC South

Houston Texans
Free agency grade: B-
Draft grade: D-
Have they improved: No
Why not: It’s hard for a 2-14 team not to improve. But the Texans somehow managed not to do it. And it all started with these words: “With the first pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, the Houston Texans select Mario Williams…” I should have given the Texans a big fat “F” for the draft, but their later picks of DeMeco Ryans and Eric Winston saved them. It just boggles the mind how Charlie Casserly could pass on Reggie Bush. Apparently, ruining the Redskins in the mid-90’s wasn’t enough for Casserly. He’s back for seconds. Look, even if Bush is a bust, you can say to the fan base that he was the most exciting player in college football in the past two decades and we had to take him. What happens when Williams is a bust (notice how I say when, not if)? How do you go about explaining that to the people of Houston? I give Williams three years before the Texans release him. He has Courtney Brown written all over him. The Texans did a decent job in free agency. They added Eric Moulds to compliment Andre Johnson. They also added solid veterans in Mike Flanagan, Jeb Putzier and Anthony Weaver. And they didn’t lose much overall (not that anyone would want most of their players). So maybe the Texans did improve. Just not through the draft. They still need offensive line. They also need a decent running back. If only they had the chance to draft a running back…

Indianapolis Colts
Free agency grade: C
Draft grade: D
Have they improved: No
Why not: The loss of Edgerrin James was bad. The fact that Indy’s replacement for James is rookie Joseph Addai is worse. Dominic Rhodes and Addai can’t be expected to carry the load. Luckily for Indy, they still have some guy named Peyton Manning throwing the ball to some dudes named Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne. Still, the running game will drop off this season. Indy did a good job in retaining other free agents like Cato June and Robert Mathis. Along with James, the Colts lost Larry Tripplett via free agency. The interesting move was the one at kicker. The Colts refused to resign last year’s playoff goat Mike Vanderjagt and instead signed Adam Vinatieri. It seems to be a good move on the field and it’s also a cheap shot directed towards New England. The Colts did nearly nothing in the draft. They didn’t have many positions to fill, and I’m sure they thought either Maroney or DeAngelo Williams would fall to them, but Addai is not the answer. They won’t be as good as last season, but this is still a very dangerous team.

Jacksonville Jaguars
Free agency grade: B+
Draft grade: C
Have they improved: Yes and no
Huh?: Yes, the Jaguars improved their player personnel. However, the Jaguars cruised to a playoff birth last year on one of the easiest second half schedules in recent seasons. Because of their record and the annual rotation of opponents, the schedule is much tougher. So were the Jaguars a good team playing an easy schedule, or were they a bad team that took advantage of an easy schedule? I guess we’ll find out in 2006 (first four games: Dallas, Pittsburgh, at Indianapolis and at Washington…good luck). The Jags resigned most of their key players and didn’t lose anyone of note. The addition of Nick Greisen kind of flew under the radar, but is a very good pickup for the Jags defense. I didn’t like their first round selection of Marcedes Lewis, but their second round pick of Lewis’ underrated college teammate Maurice Drew was a great move. Drew is already a polished runner and will most likely see a lot of playing time behind the injury-prone Fred Taylor.


Luck or talent? I guess we'll find out this season.

Tennessee Titans
Free agency grade: B-
Draft grade: C+
Have they improved: Yes
Why: The Titans picked up a group of nice role players to help rebuild their team. Kevin Mawae is an excellent signing, as is David Givens and Chris Hope. The only important player Tennessee lost was tackle Tank Williams. The big question mark for Tennessee is what will become of their 2006 draft. Could Vince Young and Lendale White become the best 1-2 draft picks in the NFL for one team? I guess they could, but I don’t think so. Still, I applaud the Titans front office for taking a smart risk here. At least on paper, this draft looks pretty good even though they have several reach picks. But they’re taking what seems to be an educated chance, unlike the Bills and Texans. It’s not like Young and White are going to be worse than Steve McNair and Kris Brown were last season. How well their draft picks turn out will determine the next five years for this franchise.

AFC West

Denver Broncos
Free agency grade: C+
Draft grade: C
Have they improved: No
Why not: The only thing Denver managed to accomplish in the off-season was create a quarterback controversy where there didn’t need to be one. Didn’t Jake Plummer just lead this team to a 13-3 record and an appearance in the AFC Championship Game? I like Jay Cutler and I think he’ll be a star, but the Broncos didn’t need to draft him. Other than that, the Broncos continue their quest to assemble the 2004 Cleveland Browns defense with free agent additions of Amon Gordon and Kenard Lang (who join Courtney Brown and Gerard Warren). Why the Broncos are going down this path I can’t tell you. But the draft day trade for Javon Walker was crucial, and saved an otherwise horrible off season. The losses of Mike Anderson, Trevor Pryce and Jeb Putzier are all big knocks against Denver. Other than Cutler, the Broncos didn’t do much with their picks. But I like Cutler, so I guess the Broncos didn’t do so poorly in the draft. Now all Mike Shanahan has to do is create the two-quarterback formation for his offense.

Kansas City Chiefs
Free agency grade: D+
Draft grade: B
Have they improved: No
Why not: As usual, the Chiefs did little through free agency to improve their terrible defense. Herm Edwards is not a miracle-worker defensively, he needs some NFL-caliber players the defensive side of the ball. The Chiefs lost corner Eric Winfield, so their defense may have actually gotten worst through free agency. They also lost fullback Tony Richardson, who was usually the key blocker for Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson last season. That is an undervalued loss for Kansas City. The Chiefs did pick up Tamba Hali, who will be a nice addition to the d-line. The third round pick of Brodie Croyle was also a good move. Trent Green is approaching his 37th birthday, and Croyle, if healthy, could be a solid replacement down the road. I also liked their sixth round pick of guard Tre’ Stallings from Ole Miss.

Oakland Raiders
Free agency grade: C-
Draft grade: A-
Have they improved: Yes
Why: With the amount of talent at the skill positions, I think it is impossible for the Raiders to only be 4-12 again. The quarterback situation is still unsolved, and the Raiders missed a golden opportunity to improve it by not drafting Leinart or Cutler. However, the Raiders did pick up Lance Johnstone and Tyrone Poole to help their defense. Despite passing on a quarterback, the Raiders actually had a decent draft for the first time in years. The Michael Huff selection wasn’t all that great, but Thomas Howard and Darnell Bing were two great picks in the mid-rounds. Plus, the Raiders best move was getting rid of pseudo-coach Norv Turner and hired Art Shell. Shell’s not that great, but he can at least bring a bit of discipline to the nuthouse in Oakland.

San Diego Chargers
Free agency grade: F
Draft grade: C
Have they improved: No
Why not: Two words: Philip Rivers. It’s one thing for a team to start a young, unproven quarterback when they’re rebuilding and they possess no one better at that position. It’s another thing to allow this fraud to start when you had a PRO-BOWL quarterback on the roster and plenty of room under the salary cap to resign him. Instead, the Chargers allow Drew Brees to get away for nothing, and now they’re forced to start this sidearm-throwing nobody on a team that could otherwise contend for a Super Bowl. Make sense to anyone else? On top of that, in case Rivers’ release point and slow release times aren’t enough, the Chargers lost two of their best offensive linemen to free agency as well. San Diego went 9-7 last season, and even with this scrub at quarterback, they could easily improve. But that is because they played so poorly last season, and squandered so many games, that it is almost impossible for them to play that badly again. But I’m sure Marty will find a way, and I’m sure Rivers will help him.