2005 AFC East Football Preview
In the AFC East I expect to see the Patriots drop a bit, but not much, the reason for the projected drop is mainly due to the fact that the Patriots will be without the services of offensive coordinator Charlie Weis and defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel. , both went on to head coaching positions, Weis with Notre Dame and Crennel with the Cleveland Browns. Eric Mangini is the new defensive coordinator, while Bill Belichick will run the offensive plays himself.
The Patriots play seven games this season against 2004 playoff teams and four of those affairs will take place on the road, the Patriots also lost a lot of talent like WR David Patton, OG Joe Andruzzi and CB Ty Law through free agency and very might as well be without leading defensive LB Tedy Bruschi, whose status is uncertain following an offseason stroke, then there’s the matter of the Patriots having won three of the last four Super Bowls, meaning the Patriots have played nine postseason games above and beyond the normal sixteen game regular season schedule in the last four years and I’ve had to deal with all the off season commitments and the hoopla that comes with winning the big game plus don’t forget that the team that wins the Super Bowl is in the least-best position to arrive in the draft, which means the Patriots’ “Fresh Blood” talent pool has been depleted due to their success.
The saving grace for the Patriots in the AFC East comes from the fact that the Jets didn’t help themselves much in the draft, other than taking kicker Mike Nugent out of Ohio State with their top pick, just like the Patriots, the Jets also lost . plenty of talent via free agency with starting WR Santana Moss, TE Anthony Becht, RT Kareem McKenzie and DT Jason Ferguson departing, however the biggest loss in free agency to the Jets may turn out to be RB Lamont Jordan, who could have stepped in nicely if RB Cutis Martin, 32, is injured.
However, the Jets were smart enough to pick former Dolphin QB Jay Fiedler to back up starting QB Chad Pennington, who has been injury-prone of late. Jet HC Herm Edwards replaced his offensive coordinator Paul Hackett with former Titan offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger, which will be interesting because Heimerdinger likes to throw the ball deep, meanwhile Pennington just had shoulder surgery and is more suited to the style of short passes from the west coast.
Buffalo finished the 2004 season strong down the stretch winning 8 of 9 games before losing their final game of the season at home to the Steelers, however the late season loss to Pittsburgh was costly as it proved to be a deciding factor in deciding who. they went to the playoffs and stayed home the Bills are indeed a team on the rise with a very good defense and great special teams however they probably took quarterback Drew Bledsoe out of town a year early and will start the last few years. No. 1 draft pick JP Losman in his place, which of course means some growing pains this season for the young quarterback.
Miami finished the 2004 season with a sleazy 4-12 record, but with Buffalo looking to be a team on the rise in the AFC East, I won’t be rash enough to predict a playoff spot after a four-win season. , but I see big improvements for the Dolphins this season and I think a seven or eight win season is not out of the realm of possibility when you consider that the Dolphins now have Nick Saban in the lead as their new HC.
Unlike Steve Spurrier when he made his NFL debut with the Skins, Nick Saban was smart enough to go out and get experienced assistants in the NFL, Saban hired former Vikings offensive coordinator Scott Linehan to run the offense. and former Chargers coach Hudson Houck to run the defense. Saban also crafted one of the best drafts of any team in the league, looking to form Auburn RB Ronnie Brown to make an immediate impact.
In closing, the Patriots finished 2004 with an impressive 13-5-1 ATS mark after posting a 14-4-1 ATS mark in 2003, can New England dominate the spread wars once again in 2005? Probably so, but not to the extent of the past two seasons, my friend, “Joe Public” type punters will probably see the Patriots as a “Go Against” team in 2005 due to the loss of Weis and Crennel, however, Belichick is still the HC and Tom Brady is still the QB under center.
That being said, I would recommend making a play with the Patriots every time they get points in a puppy role, it won’t have much value this season with the Jets, meanwhile both Buffalo and Miami will be hit or miss for the first eight weeks of the season due to the Given that both teams will have new starting QBs under center and both teams have weaknesses up front on the offensive line, in Miami’s case their players have to learn new schemes on both sides of the ball due to new personal training.