Top 5 rosters in the NFL ahead of the 2021-22 season
To win the Super Bowl, you don't just need a strong team or the best quarterback. You also need a well-balanced roster to mitigate the inevitable losses throughout the season in a sport like football.
Those who're lucky with injuries are more likely to play in January, but nothing beats talent at the end of the day. Check out the five best NFL rosters of 2021.
Five most talented rosters in the NFL ahead of the 2021 NFL season
#1 - Tampa Bay Buccaneers
How can any team be listed ahead of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers? The defending champions have retained all 22 Super Bowl starters, and with Tom Brady at quarterback, they're the favorites to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl once again.
Brady is the driving force, but the entire offense is loaded. Leonard Fournette and Ronald Jones will be in the backfield. The wide receiver group is impressive with Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Antonio Brown and Scotty Miller. Rob Gronkowski leads the tight end group, and the offensive line is incredible as well.
On defense, they have even more talent. The front-seven has incredible players in Ndamukong Suh, Shaquil Barrett, Jason Pierre-Paul, and Vita Vea. Lavonte David and Devin White do a formidable job defending the pass as linebackers. The secondary, although young, was dominant against potent offenses in the playoffs.
The Buccaneers have talent in basically every roster area and will fight for the Lombardi trophy again in 2021.
#2 - Cleveland Browns
The Browns have gone through a massive rebuild in recent years, and 2020 was the year they reaped the rewards. The franchise won its first playoff game since returning to the league in 1999.
The offense doesn't have the same individual talent as, say, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or Kansas City Chiefs, but Cleveland further maximizes its roster with a great offensive system designed by Kevin Stefanski. Baker Mayfield was efficient in 2020 and was helped by one of the best offensive lines in the league and a versatile group of receivers.
On defense, Myles Garrett is good enough to terrify opposing defensive lines on his own. Together with Jadeveon Clowney, the duo will cause problems aplenty for opposing offensive lines. The secondary, which was the team's Achilles heel last year, got better in free agency. The addition of John Johnson and Troy Hill to the roster will make one of their weaknesses in 2020 a position of strength in 2021.
#3 - Kansas City Chiefs
After making it to the Super Bowl last year, the Chiefs improved their roster even further this offseason, especially the offense. But there are still question marks about Kansas City's defense, especially the linebackers group and the secondary. That prevented this team from being in the top two positions in this ranking.
Of course, the presence of Patrick Mahomes may be enough to mitigate all these problems. Weapons like Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce and Clyde Edwards-Helaire only help the unit be even more powerful. The offensive line will make this group even more threatening after adding Orlando Brown and Joe Thuney.
#4 - Green Bay Packers
The Packers have a big question mark in 2021 named Aaron Rodgers. Whatever the resolution may be, the rest of the offense is perfect, featuring the NFL's best receiver in Davante Adams, an incredible running back in Aaron Jones, and a solid offensive line.
The secondary and the pass rush are both exceptional. Jaire Alexander, Adrian Amos, Za'Darius Smith, Kenny Clark, Darnell Savage and Preston Smith are all above-average players in their positions, with the potential to be stars. On the other side of the ball, the amount of individual talent creates high expectations for the unit, and a change from Mike Pettine to Joe Barry could help the roster soar even higher in 2021.
#5 - Buffalo Bills
The Bills did a good job preventing some of their stars from hitting the market and strengthening other roster areas. Their pass rush was disappointing in 2020, but the unit got better via the draft. They will also get Star Lotulelei back this season. He was an opt-out last season and his return this year will improve the defensive line.
On offense, Josh Allen's improvement and the arrival of Stefon Diggs were critical for the unit's breakout season in 2020. They also have a solid running game and an excellent offensive line. Although the tight end group needs reinforcements, the other wide receivers on their roster, alongside Diggs, will mitigate the problem.