2018 Season NFL Preview : AFC East
The 2018 NFL season is upon us in a few weeks. It is time to see the strength and weakness of each team. The first division to preview is the AFC East. The AFC East has for years been a one team show, with the mighty New England Patriots dominating this division. Tom Brady is getting older and defensive guru Matt Patricia has left the Patriots. Could this be the year another team takes over New England? I highly doubt it, but never say never.
New England Patriots
The Patriots best player Tom Brady is getting older with each year. There was no defensive coordinator hired by the Patriots to replace Matt Patricia. The Patriots best wide receiver is out for the start of the season. These stories sound normal for the Patriots. Another year with many questions and concerns, yet it will be tough for the other divisional teams to dethrone the Patriots.
Strengths: The strengths for the Patriots lie in the combo of Brady and Belichick. They both have been familiar faces for the Patriots for years. As a duo, they have represented the AFC 7 times and won 4 of those Super Bowls for the Patriots. Rob Gronkowski is still a highly skilled tight end as long as he stays healthy over the course of the season. Having Dwayne Allen as the second tight end will help the Patriots develop another dual threat for the red zone. The offensive architect Josh McDaniels is still with the Patriots and will be able to take Brady and the Patriots offence to the levels it needs to be successful. The backfield approach is a stable mixture of different types of backs. Sony Michel, James White and Rex Burkhead are just a few backs that the Patriots have. They provide different situational needs to the backfield. Adding pounding backs like Jeremy Hill and possibly Mike Gillisee provide the Patriots with different looks at all times.
Weakness: We could say that Tom Brady's age is a weakness, but year after year Brady proves us wrong. At the age Brady is at, most quarterbacks tend to decline at a rapid pace, and their body doesn't respond as it did earlier in their careers. Other teams will take advantage of the Patriots weak defence; most game days will require the Patriots to outscore opponents to win. The Patriots did not hire a defensive coordinator this year when Matt Patricia left to become a head coach. Linebackers coach Brian Flores will be calling the plays on defence for the Patriots this year. People will question the management of the Patriots if the protection struggles on why there is no defence coordinator. Wide receiver Julian Edelman is going to miss the first four games of the regular season due to a suspension. With Edelman losing the beginning of the season, who will take on the load. The Patriots will heavily rely on Chris Hogan while Edelman is out. After Hogan, the wide receivers have not shown enough that they are still useful in today's league. Eric Decker, Kenny Britt, Cordale Patterson, and Philip Dorsett round out a pretty average receiving core.
Players to Watch: Sony Michel (RB), James White (RB), Danny Shelton (DT), and Eric Decker (WR)