On Thursday night the Buffalo Bills beat the reigning Super Bowl Champions, the Los Angeles Rams in a shocking 31-10 season opener. This victory made the Bills an immediate favorite to win the Association Football Club Eastern title.
The AFC is separated into four teams within four divisions. The divisions are north, south, east, and west. Here are my predictions and reasoning on which team will be the champion of their respective division at the end of this season.
AFC East: Buffalo Bills
Since Tom Brady’s departure from the New England Patriots, the Bills have been the kings of the AFC East. Buffalo has won the division for two consecutive years in impressive fashion, finishing with a record of 13-3 and 11-6.
Why They Will Win
The Bills have been heavy favorites to win this division because of who their leaders are. Buffalo has Josh Allen under center, an MVP favorite and a player widely considered to be the best quarterback in football.
The Bills added depth by drafting James Cook from Georgia, bringing additional championship pedigree as well as an impressive receiving resume in averaging 10 yards per catch.
Rounding out the offense, Buffalo has a top-10 tight end in Dawson Knox. Their receiving core is just as impressive in the form of top 10 wide receiver in Stefon Diggs and a player built for a breakout season in Gabriel Davis, who at one point, caught five touchdowns in his last five quarters of action.
The Game Changer
The biggest off-season addition for Buffalo was bringing in future hall of fame linebacker Von Miller, who was acquired in the free agency market from the Rams.
As a leader in two different Super Bowl-winning locker rooms, Miller could be the change that gets Buffalo over the hump and to the top seed in the AFC.
AFC North: Baltimore Ravens
In the first three seasons of the Lamar Jackson era, the Baltimore Ravens have won the division twice and lost it by a single game once. The Jackson era has proven to be successful for Baltimore, having produced three separate 10-plus win seasons during this time period.
However, Jackson’s fourth year last season proved to be the most difficult for the squad as they missed the postseason. Despite the disappointment, a healthy Ravens team has the chance to come together and win the division.
No Injuries, No Problem
Baltimore’s biggest opponent last season was, in fact, off the field. The Ravens finished with the third highest amount of injuries to players for a team last season, and when healthy they have proven to be a competitive playoff team.
At one point last season, Baltimore boasted an 8-3 record and led the division. Jackson was in MVP talks being first in yards per completion and third in yards per carry throughout the NFL. Then Jackson was injured, and the season was essentially over.
However, this year the Ravens have an all-star cast returning from the injury report in the form of running backs Gus Edwards and JK Dobbins. On the offensive line they are returning all-pro left tackle Ronnie Stanley.
Factoring in a breakout wide receiver such as Rashod Bateman, and arguably the best tight end in football Mark Andrews, the Ravens offense is set to have an explosive season.
A Dangerous Secondary
On the defensive end, Baltimore is returning two Pro Bowl-level cornerbacks in Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters, both of whom were Ravens defense staples in previous seasons.
Adding into that mix is one of the most intriguing players from the draft. The Ravens first-round pick Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton. As a six-foot-four safety, Hamilton can see the field a lot clearer than others, making it that much easier for him to make an immediate impact for Baltimore.
AFC South: Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts have been in a drought for division titles as their last one was in 2014. However, this is the most talented group the Colts have put together since that season.
Breakout Season
Despite the Colts not winning the division last season, they still had an impressive season in 2021, finishing with nine wins. This was largely in part to breakout seasons from wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. and running back Jonathan Taylor.
Pittman Jr.’s production last season took a huge leap when he doubled his receiving yards from the previous season to finish with 1,082 total.
While Pittman Jr.’s production was impressive, Taylor’s is legendary. Taylor dominated the NFL leading the league in rushing yards and touchdowns.
Taylor had a great campaign, finishing with 1,811 yards and 18 rushing touchdowns. This comes as no surprise considering his freshman season at Wisconsin. When he was the featured back in an offense, he finished with over 1,800 yards, including last season. As a result, this production should be expected from Taylor this upcoming season.
Veteran Leadership
The Colts had a collapse last season, namely a lack of veteran leadership on their offensive end, that caused them to miss the postseason. This was solved by bringing in a quarterback with Super Bowl experience and a former MVP in the form of Matt Ryan.
Ryan shows that he is the right personality for this locker room and the right player to run Head Coach Frank Reich’s offense.
AFC West: Los Angeles Chargers
Normally when discussing a division winner, I would not mention their adversaries. However, it is no secret that the AFC west goes through Kansas City. Over the past six seasons, the Chiefs have dominated the division, winning it for six consecutive years.
That is exactly how many years superstar wide receiver Tyreek Hill was a member of the Chiefs organization. While Hill is not the sole reason the Chiefs have won the division every year, he has been a major factor.
With his departure this off-season to the Miami Dolphins, along with all-pro safety Tyrann Mathieu leaving for the New Orleans Saints, the Chiefs are now the most vulnerable they have been in years. This gives Los Angeles the perfect opportunity to take the crown.
J- Herbo and a loaded offense
Justin Herbert is one of the best young quarterbacks in the history of the NFL. At first, this statement might seem like an opinion, but this comes off as fact based on Herbert’s numbers.
Herbert has thrown for more yards (9,350) and touchdowns (69) in his first two seasons than any other quarterback in NFL history.
Herbert has the weapons around him to succeed with a loaded offense featuring top 10 running back Austin Ekeler, an elite deep threat wide receiver in Mike Williams and a top 10 wide receiver in Keenan Allen.
A Star-Studded Defense
Los Angeles brought in two of the biggest stars in football to their defense this off-season. The first was signing future Hall of Famer Khalil Mack from the Chicago Bears.
Mack will make an immediate impact on this defense as a former defensive player of the year and perennial pro bowler. Mack gives the Chargers the exact help they need at the linebacker position.
The second addition was all-pro defensive back J.C. Jackson. Jackson has been dealing with injuries while in Los Angeles. When healthy, Jackson is arguably the best deep threat protection corner in the NFL intercepting 11 passes over 20 yards in his career.
With the return of all-pro safety Derwin James and all-pro outside linebacker Joey Bosa, the Chargers are in a good position to be kings of the AFC west.
