5 2021 NFL playoff teams who will miss out in 2022
The 2021 NFL playoffs were full of twists and turns. Many teams NFL fans across the world didn’t expect certain teams to amount to much, let alone make it very far, such as the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals went 4-11-1 in 2020, before making it all the way to the Super Bowl in 2021. However, in contrast, we see plenty of teams that did excel in one season, only to fall off a cliff the next. Here are five teams who made the NFL playoffs in 2021 but will miss out in 2022.
5 2021 NFL playoff teams who will miss out in 2022
#5 - New England Patriots
Mac Jones and the New England Patriots snuck into the AFC playoffs in 2021, after finishing the year with a 10-7 record, coming second in the AFC East to the Buffalo Bills. However, they were trounced by the Bills once they reached the postseason, going down 47-17, in a match where head coach Bill Belichick was well and truly humbled.
2022 is only going to get tougher for the Patriots, as the Bills continue to look strong, and the Miami Dolphins made waves in free agency, bringing in Tyreek Hill and Terron Armstead. Even the New York Jets look like more of a threat in the division, having drafted Sauce Gardner, Garrett Wilson and Jermaine Johnson in the first-round of the 2022 NFL Draft. This increased competition will be a bridge too far for New England to make it back to the postseason.
#4 - Pittsburgh Steelers
Similarly to the Patriots, the Pittsburgh Steelers made it to the AFC playoffs in 2021 by the skin of their teeth after going 9-7-1 during the regular season. They were swiftly knocked out of the playoffs during Wild Card Weekend against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, 42-21.
Since that loss, long-time quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has announced his retirement, and head coach Mike Tomlin now has to choose between Mitchell Trubisky or rookie Kenny Pickett to lead the team in 2022. Despite having superstar T.J. Watt on the other side of the ball, the Steelers’ offense could hold the team back from contention in 2022.