2023 NFL Predictions: AFC
Photo by Tommy Gilligan from USA Today Sports
We are 8 days away from the beginning of the NFL season, and with the preseason finished and (hopefully) no more injuries, it’s time for predictions!
The best part of the year, where I get to be super smart with who I think is headed to the playoffs.
Here’s who makes it from the AFC.
1. Kansas City Chiefs
I said last year that I thought the Chiefs would still win the division, but the Broncos and Chargers being significantly better would make it harder for them and they wouldn’t be top dog in the AFC.
And, once again, the Chiefs were top dog in the AFC.
The Chiefs have hosted the AFC Championship game every single year since 2018.
Not just been in!
Hosted!
They’re top seed until proven otherwise.
2. Miami Dolphins
I think everyone agrees the Dolphins will be good if Tua can stay healthy, but I also think Tua will easily stay healthy this year, as I don’t think the Dolphins took his original concussion against Buffalo as seriously as they should have (which they should be chastised for).
Vic Fangio is going to make that defense even better as well, and if the rumors of them potentially getting Jonathan Taylor are true, this will be a dominant team.
3. Cincinnati Bengals
The winner of the AFC North is honestly a coin flip for me between the Bengals and the Ravens. I think both teams are really, really good.
But the Bengals have a little bit more consistency on offense while the Ravens have a new offensive coordinator and two new wide receivers.
So I’ll give Cincy the edge.
But it won’t be easy.
4. Jacksonville Jaguars
I think a lot of people are much higher on the Jags than they possibly should be.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m big on the Jags as well. Doug Pederson is an incredible coach and the last half of last year was exactly what we wanted to see from Trevor Lawrence.
But their 5 game winning streak from the end of last year involved two wins over the Titans with a backup QB, the Jets, and the Texans.
Not exactly murderers row.
They’ll still win the division though. They’re super young and are just going to keep getting better.
But let’s slow down on the elite talk.
5. Baltimore Ravens
Like I said earlier, the Ravens are neck and neck with the Bengals.
The defense will, as always, be excellent. Lamar has his new contract so everything is settled there, and Zay Flowers looks like a future stud in the making.
They will be very dangerous.
6. Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers are going to be the Chargers.
They have all the talent to be one of the elite teams in the AFC, but it falls to the shoulders of Justin Herbert.
When Herbert made his first ever start in 2020, I was in awe. He played well, but he made so many amazing throws that I said to myself that he was going to be one of the 5 best QBs in the league someday.
And since then Herbert has become…the same exact thing.
You watched Trevor Lawrence, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow go from “hey this guy has the skills” to “they are elite level quarterbacks.”
Herbert has yet to do that.
Until he does, the Chargers are simply a playoff team. Nothing more.
7. Pittsburgh Steelers
Great defense? Check.
Amazing coaching? Check.
The only thing holding the Steelers back has been an offense that is borderline unwatchable.
Preseason is a small sample size that we shouldn’t take much from, but Matt Canada seems to have changed the offensive philosophy, while Pickett and Pickens seems to be a great pairing in the making.
I don’t think Kenny Pickett will be an elite level QB, but the Steelers don’t need him to be. They just need him to be good enough.
I think he will be.
Missing The Cut
The AFC is a very, very hard conference. Some teams are going to miss that should easily make it.
And you may notice a very large omission on the list above…
We’ll get to them.
Tennessee Titans
Yep. I think the Titans will be the 8th seed and barely miss the postseason.
People forget, the Titans were 7-3 last year and running away with the AFC South, and then Ryan Tannehill and Derrick Henry got banged up.
I think people are seriously sleeping on them as a possible notch in these playoffs.
Buffalo Bills
The Bills are the shocker here.
But if you step back from the talent on the roster and peak into their offseason, it’s not so crazy.
Josh Allen and the offense got worse as the year went on with new offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey. That’s something to watch.
Leslie Frasier, the defensive coordinator, left the team. And nobody really knows why.
Von Miller, their best pass rusher, is starting the year on IR.
And Stefon Diggs is seemingly unhappy with something within the organization, as he did not show up to team workouts in the offseason. A development that head coach Sean McDermott said made him “very concerned.”
The worst thing a team can be is noisy, especially in a difficult conference like the AFC.
New York Jets
The Jets were a decent team last year with terrible quarterback play, and now they have Aaron Rodgers.
It could be great!
But Rodgers has difficulty meshing with new receivers, something that hurt him last year at Green Bay, and Jets offensive line is really not good.
Rodgers isn’t the age he used to be. He can’t escape as well as he has in the past.
It’s not going to be the year Jets fans expect it to be.
Then again, that’s exactly what happens every year for Jets fans…
Super Bowl Representative
I mean, it’d be stupid as all hell to pick against the Chiefs, right?
Mahomes is still Mahomes. Andy Reid is still Andy Reid. And the defense was full of rookies last year but still good enough to win a Super Bowl.
It’d be dumb!
But dumb is what I do best.
The Miami Dolphins win the AFC
