2013 Offseason Needs: AFC East

Today through Friday, I will be looking at what teams in each AFC division need to address this offseason. Next week, Tuesday through Friday, I will do the same for the NFC divisions.

I won’t pretend to know every detail of what each team needs, but am open to comments from those who may know better what their teams need.

Buffalo Bills

The Bills have already gone under severe changes. They have a brand new coaching staff and a new team president. There are also rumors that Buddy Nix, Buffalo’s GM, may be on the hot seat.

Buffalo had several bright spots on offense this season. After a very poor second half of the 2011 season, Ryan Fitzpatrick performed well enough to keep analysts from attacking him too much in 2012. But the real splendor of their offense was at running back. Fred Jackson, when healthy, was as good as ever. When he wasn’t, CJ Spiller stepped into the starting role and was consistently one of the best backs in the league, earning him about half the team’s carries when Jackson was available.

Buffalo’s defense is the biggest area of concern. Certainly they need to shore up some offensive positions, but the defensive unit forced the offense into a lot of tough spots. Mike Pettine, the former defensive coordinator for the Jets, is now filling the same position in Buffalo. New York’s defenses have consistently ranked highly in the NFL, and compete in the same division as Buffalo. If they can keep some of their younger players, and add some depth, especially at linebacker and in the secondary, the Bills will be much more competitive in 2013 than they were this year.

Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins are already on the way up. They were in the thick of the playoff race until a few weaknesses were exposed in the latter weeks of the season. They have a very good, young quarterback in Ryan Tannehill. Brian Hartline is a free agent, but the Dolphins need to keep him. He is one of the fastest receivers in the NFL and is the kind of playmaker that will aid in Tannehill’s development.

Reggie Bush also came out strong this season, finally playing like the draft pick he was touted to be coming out of college.

The Dolphins need to hold on to Hartline and add some other quality receivers. Beyond that, it’s tough to tell where to start with Miami. They have some good players on the defensive line and in the secondary, but not nearly enough depth. They also don’t have a big name besides Cameron Wake on defense. Big names aren’t crucial, but they’re a good way to get started on improving because they can help pull in other good players.

New England Patriots

New England finally had a good defensive showing in 2012. They had one of the league’s premier defenses during the first several years of Bill Belichick’s tenure, but really fell off the map around the time they stopped experiencing the postseason success they got used to. This year, they were the best in the league at creating turnovers, so despite giving up lots of yards, they limited scoring for opponents.

They also seem to be in a good place at running back, and locking up Tom Brady through his age-40 season is huge. There isn’t too much I can say about what the Patriots need this offseason. Keeping Wes Welker would be huge, adding some other talent at receiver would be big, and they could use some more depth on the line and secondary on defense. But the Patriots should be a contender in the AFC whether they fulfill all or none of these things.

New York Jets

As easy as it is to say, the Jets are not hopeless. Rex Ryan seemed to waiver as the season closed on his conviction that Mark Sanchez is his man at QB. However, it looks right now like they will be staying with Sanchez.

If that holds true, they need to add a more versatile running back. Shonn Greene showed some flashes of being what New York needs, but he isn’t consistent enough. The Jets need someone who can really open up the passing game, make the corners and safeties freeze for a half a second so Sanchez has some clear throwing lanes to hit his receivers.

New York also needs receivers who know how to take advantage of those holes. They have some guys who may have a bright future, but they need a veteran to come in who can make an immediate impact.

Tomorrow I will go through the AFC North, looking at each team’s offseason outlook just like I did for the AFC East today. Keep up with new posts as I publish them by ‘liking’ my Facebook page and by following me on Twitter, @cpuffnfl.