RAPID REACTION: AFC OFFSEASON MOVES

The drama of the National Football League never ends. Fans obsess over salary cap space, void years, signing bonuses, restructured contracts and gum ones. The rumors of visits, discussions, and filling needs to fuel a Super Bowl run have everyone refreshing every web page and social media platform consistently.

The Chiefs are coming off a Super Bowl title, their 2nd in 4 years and 3rd appearance in the same time period. The rest of the AFC is trying to find a way to prevent another trip. The Bills are at a crossroads, the Bengals are very close, the Dolphins are loading up, the Jaguars have a window, the Chargers have talent, the Broncos have a new coach and the Jets May or May not have a new quarterback. The AFC is loaded and everyone needs to decide if they’re all in or in rebuild mode.

The quarterback market started to take shape when Derek Carr signed with the Saints. It continued to escalate when Geno Smith resigned with the Seahawks, Daniel Jones re-signed with the G Men and Jimmy G took his talents to Vegas. These moves have narrowed the availability of serviceable options and the world now awaits final decisions on Aaron Rodgers and Lamar Jackson. I fully expect the Packers and Jets to come to a trade agreement within the next 7 days so that all parties can move forward. On the other hand, I think the Lamar situation will carry on for a long time and no other team will offer 2 first round picks plus a contract to him. He is the Face of the Ravens and if Baltimore wants to compete, they need to get this resolved quickly.

We’re barely a week into the 2023 league year, but there are quite a handful of winners and losers already.

AFC EAST:

WINNERS:

• MIAMI DOLPHINS: Trade for Ramsey, along with new DC Vic Fangio and their full compliment of running backs

LOSERS:

• BUFFALO BILLS: Not much losers, but more along the lines of seeing their stranglehold on the division loosening quickly. What move(s) will they make to strengthen their squad, will it be OBJ, Austin Ekeler or Dalvin Cook. If they didn’t re-sign Jordan Poyer, their situation would be more precarious.

MOST UNDERRATED MOVE:

• JuJu Smith Schuster and Mike Gesicki signing with the Patriots.

AFC NORTH:

WINNERS:

• NOBODY YET: The Bengals signing Orlando Brown Jr is the only significant move so far, but losing Jessie Bates, Samaje Perine, and Hayden Hurst will hurt.

LOSERS:

• BALTIMORE RAVENS: Stuck in a messy situation with the Face of your franchise. Will this drawn out business situation cause an uneasy setting to build the best team now and future success?

MOST UNDERRATED MOVE:

• The Steelers not parting ways with OC Matt Canada. This is a bad decision and will hold the Steelers back from being more than a .500 football team. They have a QB, RB, WR’s and a TE, but the play calling and philosophy will continue to limit their success.

AFC SOUTH:

WINNERS:

• JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS: The Jags are bringing back TE Evan Engram and made wise cap and depth related moves so far this year. The division is theirs for the taking and they have a chance to maximize their opportunities.

LOSERS:

• TENNESSEE TITANS: It would have been easy to say the Texans and Colts, but it appears the Titans are content with rebuilding. They have cut a slew of veterans, given Kevin Byard an ultimatum, rumored to be shopping franchise star Derrick Henry and have questions at quarterback.

MOST UNDERRATED MOVE:

• The Texans signed WR Robert Woods, DT Sheldon Rankins, Safety Jimmie Ward , DE Chase Vinonvich and traded for G Shaq Mason. Solid acquisitions for a rebuilding franchise.
  

AFC WEST:

WINNERS:

• DENVER BRONCOS: The Broncos started by trading for Head Coach Sean Payton. They followed that up by signing Offensive Tackle Mike McGlinchey and Guard Ben Powers. Payton knows he must protect Mr. (Un) Limited if they are going to finally win again. Sean basically has the exact same career as Mike McCarthy, but he’ll be held to a high standard in the Mile High City.

LOSERS:

• LA CHARGERS: The fact that star RB Austin Ekeler asked for and was granted permission to seek a trade is unsettling for a team trying to take the next step.

MOST UNDERRATED MOVE:

• The Chiefs basically trading Orlando Brown Jr for Juwan Taylor while also losing Andrew Wylie. This could lead to potential OLine issues down the line. A couple other moves that could hurt them was losing JuJu and Mercole Hardman.
• The Raiders choosing Jimmy G and not being overly aggressive to trade for Aaron Rodgers, as well as dealing Darren Waller to the Giants could prove to be moves of a team stuck in neutral.

The offseason is just getting started and the NFL Draft is about 40 days away. A lot will change in the coming weeks, but it is apparent that a bunch of teams think they can represent the AFC in Vegas for the Super Bowl.

AFC POWER POLL (AS OF MARCH 18TH):

1.). KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

2.). CINCINNATI BENGALS

3.). BUFFALO BILLS

4.). MIAMI DOLPHINS

5.). JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

6.). LA CHARGERS

7.). NEW YORK JETS

8.). PITTSBURGH STEELERS

9.). BALTIMORE RAVENS

10.). NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

11.). CLEVELAND BROWNS

12.). DENVER BRONCOS

13.). LAS VEGAS RAIDERS

14.). TENNESSEE TITANS

15.). HOUSTON TEXANS

16.). INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

The NFL is driven by quarterback play and the majority of the AFC is loaded with stability at the position. The Texans and Colts have a prime chance to draft their future Field Generals, but will they make the correct choice? Young quarterbacks also need talented support and coaching, so those coaching staffs and front offices must buy into the plan.

AFC QUARTERBACK RANKINGS (AS OF MARCH 18TH):

**Assuming Aaron Rodgers is a New York Jet

1.). PATRICK MAHOMES

2.). AARON RODGERS

3.). JOE BURROW

4.). JOSH ALLEN

5.). LAMAR JACKSON

6.). TREVOR LAWRENCE

7.). JUSTIN HERBERT

8.). DESHAUN WATSON

9.). RUSSELL WILSON

10.). TUA TAGOVAILOA

11.). JIMMY GAROPPOLO

12.). MAC JONES

13.). KENNY PICKETT

14.). RYAN TANNEHILL

15.). HOUSTON TEXANS QB ROOM

16.). INDIANAPOLIS COLTS QB ROOM

Be sure to subscribe to the Spinnable Sports YouTube Channel as well as The Irrational Confidence Podcast (@IRConfidencePOD on Twitter), available on every podcast platform. We have a ton of NFL Draft content coming in the next few weeks. In addition to that, our live 1st Round Mock Draft is coming soon.