AFC East preview...

New England Patriots: The Patriots get Tom Brady back but the question is how is he going to handle facing a live defense and is he going to still step into throws with a defender in his face. Its funny everybody is already anointing them the Super Bowl champs because Brady is back, but if that same injury happened to any other QB or team people would be weary of how good the team could really be but nope not New England. The receiving core is still in tact with Wes Welker and Randy Moss. The running game last year was lacking with injuries to Laurence Maroney and Lamont Jordan, but they picked up Fred Taylor and they are hoping that he can keep Maroney healthy. The Pats offensive line returns everybody from last year and they should be better because Nick Kazur won't be missing time due to a suspension like last year. On the defensive side of the ball New England has one of the best defensive lines with Vince Wilfork, Richard Seymour, and Ty Warren all having pro bowl caliber talents. The linebackers are lead by the ageless wonder Teddy Bruschi, Adalius Thomas, and second year player Jared Mayo. After those three they are pretty thin and not very talented so it will be interesting to see what happens if they get the injury bug. Once again the Patriots gather other teams scraps for secondary help and they got Leigh Bodden and Shawn Springs who many have written off over the last few years. Brandon Merriweather is a star in the making at the strong safety position but will he be able to help the aging Springs and the loss of the veteran leadership from Rodney Harrison. The Pats will make the playoffs but I'm not sure how good Brady will be at the start of the season and how long it will take for him to get comfortable again. Key Games: Home match ups with the Falcons in Week 3, the Ravens in Week 4, the Titans in Week6, and the Panthers in Week 14. They have road games at Indianapolis in Week 10 and New Orleans in Week 12. 2009 overall record: 11-5, Division winner, #4 seed

Buffalo Bills: The Bills big offseason acquisition was signing Terrell Owens which gives Trent Edwards his first legitimate #1 wide receiver in Buffalo. Owens on paper makes this offense that much better because he bumps Lee Evans to the #2 spot, where he belongs, he can mentor the young James Hardy, fat chance on that but hey you never know, and he should make things easier for Marshawn Lynch. But there is also the down side of Owens being a notorious locker room cancer and QB hater who is getting old, so who knows how the Bills will handle him. Marshawn Lynch is suspended for the first three games of the season so the team will have to hold the fort down until he returns. The big question on offense for the team is how are they going to replace Jason Peters? The Bills weak link on offense is the line, they lack quality and depth at every position up front. The defense should be pretty strong with the addition of pass rushing rookie Aaron Maybin to compliment the rock solid Aaron Schobel. The Bills interior is lead by Marcus Stroud who is in his second year with the Bills and they are hoping he can dominate like he did in Jacksonville. Paul Posluszny is an animal at linebacker and he should continue to flourish playing alongside Kawika Mitchell. The Bills secondary is usually their best group on the team and that trend continues this year. Buffalo is deep at the cornerback spot with Ashton Youboty, Leodis McKelvin, Terrence McGee, and Drayton Florence all being capable enough to start elsewhere. Donte Whitner and Ko Simpson add to the quality of the secondary but after them they lack depth. The T.O. experiment will be a success for Buffalo but they shouldn't get to excited because the AFC is deep and loaded. Key Games: Home contests with the Saints in Week 3 and Indianapolis to wrap up the regular the season. They travel to for road games at Carolina in Week 7, Tennessee in Week 9, and Atlanta in Week 16. 2009 overall record: 9-7

Miami Dolphins: The Dolphins are a talented team but they will face a tougher schedule than last year. Chad Pennington had something to prove last year with Jets casting him to the wayside, but I don't expect a repeat performance. Keep an eye out for Pat White, he should get used at many different positions and will make an immediate impact. The running game still has ronnie brown and Ricky Williams but both of them have injury problems. At the wide receiver position the Dolphins have some talented young players but none of them have experience and they don't scare defenses. Ted Ginn Jr. needs to step up but he is not a true #1 wideout and neither is Greg Camarillo, although he has put up big numbers over the last couple of years. The line is lead by the stellar Jake Long but their is not really a weak link on the line. On the defensive side the Dolphins got Jason Taylor back after a one year divorce and he should put up huge numbers rushing the passer opposite Joey Porter. Channing Crowder is the leader of the linebackers with Akin Ayodele, and Porter. The Fins drafted Vontae Davis to help out the secondary and he will eventually start opposite Will Allen but right now that spot is held by Jason Allen. Last year's free agent pick up of Gibril Wilson helped out immediately and the defense should only get better as he gets more comfortable with terminology and schemes. the Dolphins are a good team but the other teams in their division got significantly better and they face a tougher schedule. Key Games: The host home games with the Colts in Week 2, the Saints in Week 7, and the Steelers to conclude the regular season. They travel for road games at Atlanta in the season opener, San Diego in Week 3 and Carolina in Week 10. 2009 overall record: 9-7

New York Jets: The Jets were barely good with Brett Favre and Laverneous Coles and they don't have either of them anymore. The Jets drafted Mark Sanchez, too high if you ask me, and they still have Kellen Clemens but right now they are expecting the rookie to get the starting nod. The Jets also drafted Shonn Greene at running back because Thomas Jones is getting old and he is reportedly unhappy with his contract. Leon Washington is also unhappy with his current situation but I would think the Jets will try to do everything they can to keep the Mr. Everything back. The receiving core consists of Jerricho Cotchery and Chancey Stuckey but they were only good last year because of Favre and Coles, so whoever is the QB won't really have anyone to throw to. The Jets o-line is one of the best young group of guys in the league. Nick Mangold and D'Brickashaw Ferguson are the young studs of the group but they have veteran and Super Bowl leadership in Damien Woody and Alan Faneca. With Rex Ryan taking over the head coaching job the defense is in a state of fluctuation but they have a lot of talented players. The defensive line is lead by Kris Jenkins and Shaun Ellis but they will get a boost on third downs from Vernon Gholston rushing from the end. Bart Scott joined Ryan in their departure from Baltimore but they are shallow on depth across the linebacking board. Lito Sheppard came over from the Eagles, Jim Leonhard came from the Ravens and both will have to make a big impact right away if they want to shut down the likes of Randy Moss and Terrell Owens. Darrelle Revis and Kerry Rhodes are the only holdovers in the secondary from the Mangini regime. The Jets will have a hard time keeping up with the rest of the division because they don't have enough on offense to keep up. Key Games: The Jets have home games with the Titans in Week 3, the Panthers in Week 12, and the Falcons in Week 15. Road contests with New Orleans in Week 4 and Indianapolis in Week 16. 2009 overall record: 3-13