AFC Playoff Teams

Hello Smash Fans and welcome back. As the NFL season quickly approaches I thought it would be a good idea to give my prediction for the AFC standings. If you want to find out my NFC predictions go watch my podcast or come back next week. I hope you all enjoy!

7. Miami Dolphins

I really like this Miami Dolphins team. I think that this team was really good last year, and I believe that Tua Tagovailoa is going to be able to progress and become even better next season both with his mental game and physical performance. Additionally, I believe the talent they added in the off-season allowed them to get faster and better on the offense of side of the ball, especially at the wide receiver position. Furthermore, I really like Brian Flores as a head coach, and I think he’ll be able to pull his team together and I believe they’ll be able to finish with around 11 to 12 wins allowing them to clinch the 7th seed in the playoffs.

6. New England Patriots

I really liked all the moves that New England made in the off-season. I think they got better across the board on the offensive end. And I believe that the addition of Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry are going to be huge come regular season and playoff time as the way Bill Belichick runs his offenses heavily involves his tight ends. Also, I believe the addition of Nelson Agholor gives this team speed on the outside and a deep threat. I hear a lot of people saying that they don’t necessarily have a good number one wide receiver and Nelson Agholor is only a good number two and then after that, they don’t really have a good number three receiver. However, I believe that Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry can make up for the lack of wide receiver talent in the passing game so that the offense can be tread water and be average. If the Patriot's offense is just decent, I believe that the coaching and the defense of New England will be able to carry this team to the playoffs. With this in mind, I have them finishing with either 11 or 12 wins and edging out the Miami Dolphins for the 6th seed.

5. Cleveland Browns

Cleveland was really good last year, and they only got better this off-season. I believe that the progression of Nick Chubb is going to be decent, I believe that the progression of Baker Mayfield is going to be nice, and I believe that the addition of OBJ is going to help this team offensively. Additionally, the defense has gotten better over this off-season. With all this in mind, I have the Browns winning 12 to 13 games, and clenching the fifth seed in the AFC playoff picture.

4. Tennessee Titans

I love love love the addition of Julio Jones to this roster. I think that Julio Jones catapults this team to a serious championship contender and definite playoff lock. I think that Derrick Henry, Julio Jones, Ryan Tannehill, and AJ Brown as a combination will be one of if not the most high powered offenses in the NFL next season. The only trouble I see with this roster is the defensive line. For that reason, I don’t believe they are the best team in the AFC, and will finish as the fourth seed with 13 wins and 4 losses.

3. Buffalo Bills

I really like this roster. I think Josh Allen is only going to progress, I think Stefon Diggs may be the best receiver in football next year, I like their head coach a lot, and I believe their defense is one of the most opportunistic in the league. Additionally, I see them being able to keep pace with the top offenses of the league while also being able to grind out low scoring games. The only knock on this team is their lack of running game, and it’s the running game that’s going to come in crucial come playoff time. For that reason, I have them as the third best team in the AFC finishing with a record of 13 and 4.

2. Baltimore Ravens

I’m really high on Lamar. I think that he’s gotten better each and every season, and I believe that with the addition of Sammy Watkins and the progression of Marquise Brown, Jackson is going to have a lot more to work with next season. Additionally, when healthy, that run game is absolutely deadly, and no one in the league can really stop it. Additionally, the thing that has undone the Ravens in the past during the playoffs has been rookie mistakes. However I believe that every year Lamar and the team as a whole are limiting their mistakes more and more, so I see them being even more secure with the football next year. However, with that said, there’s still one team in the league that, even if the Ravens don’t make mistakes, I believe is better than them and will show it next year. For that reason, I have the Ravens in the number two seed as the second best team in the AFC with a record of 14 and 3.

1. Kansas City Chiefs

I still believe that this team was the best team in football last year and just had an off game in the Super Bowl. This year I think this team is going to go on a revenge tour like nothing we’ve ever seen before. I would honestly not be surprised if this team won 17 games in the regular season. This team got cocky at the end of last season, we all saw it, and I believe that was their downfall come Super Bowl time. However, I believe the Super Bowl experience last year humbled this team. Additionally, I think this team wants to show that they are as good as advertised. It’s all those factors combined with the fact that Mahomes is only going to get better that leads me to believe this team will finish with the best record in the AFC and make their third consecutive trip to the Super Bowl with a record of 16 and 1.

Thank you Smash Fans for sticking with me until the end. If you want to talk about this topic or any other topic sports-related, please email me or text me using the information on the contact page. If you want to support me even more, please consider following my Spotify as well as subscribing to my youtube channel and blog for weekly podcasts and articles. Until next time, PD Smash signing off.