2013 Offseason Needs: NFC West

I began going through the NFL division-by-division last week, writing about what each team needs to address this offseason. I have covered the bases seven divisions, so today I move on to the last one, the NFC South.

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.

Arizona Cardinals

Players are already excited that they will get to play for Bruce Arians, who became the first interim head coach in NFL history to win Coach of the Year.

Arizona was my favorite spot for Alex Smith to land, but the 49ers didn’t want to keep him in the division, understandably. The Cardinals could go to the draft to find a new quarterback, but this year doesn’t have to offer at quarterback. They could make a play for Matt Flynn, but I haven’t seen so much as a thought about that from ESPN or NFL.com, so it probably won’t happen, which means Arizona will again struggle in 2013.

On the bright side, at least it might not be only the fault of the offense if this team struggles. Todd Bowles will take over as defensive coordinator after doing the impossible – making Philadelphia’s defense even worse than it was under Juan Castillo. Arizona has some playmakers on both sides of the ball, but they might not have the tools around them to enable them to perform as well as they could on a different team.

St. Louis Rams

The Rams have been on the up-and-up for a few years now, so when will their time be? With Steven Jackson officially out and both Danny Amendola and Brandon Gibson set to become free agents, a lot of focus needs to be on offense for the time being.

St. Louis lost just one game against a division opponent this season, a 7-point loss in Week 17 visiting Seattle. So this is undoubtedly a good team, but they couldn’t get it done against other opponents. Granted they had a tough schedule, but you have to beat the teams you play, no excuses.

What I would like to see from the Rams is some speed. Ever since the “Greatest Show on Turf” came to an end, St. Louis has taken on a ‘bruiser’ mentality. I want to see them get some players who can stretch the field on offense and get to the quarterback quickly on defense. If they can get that, I’ll give this team a shot at a wild card. Until then, I still can’t see the light at the end of their tunnel.

San Francisco 49ers

Secondary, secondary, secondary. That must be the 49ers’ main focus this offseason because they’re just about set everywhere else. They have one of the best front sevens in the NFL, a young quarterback with quick feet and an incredibly accurate cannon for an arm, a solid running game, and a great receiving corps. Their offensive line isn’t bad either.

So the focus needs to be on the secondary. Dashon Goldson might be out, and 49ers fans probably won’t mind based on the pre-Super Bowl feedback I got from many of them. If they get rid of him I’m not sure who they’ll go after to replace him, but they’ll need to do that in addition to improving depth throughout the rest of their secondary.

In no way am I saying San Francisco’s secondary is bad. It is a very good unit. But when every other aspect of your team is among the best in the league and you’re ‘only’ middle-of-the-pack, you get noticed.

Seattle Seahawks

Richard Sherman needs to focus on working out this offseason rather than telling everyone that he’s a better corner than Darrelle Revis. In my opinion, neither of them is the best active corner, but that’s another story for another day.

Aside from that, Seattle is in a good spot. Their front seven could use some depth, but they made some significant strides in the final weeks of the 2012 season.

On offense the plan is simple; build around Russell Wilson. Add wide receivers, tight ends and depth at offensive line. Seattle has the simplest remedy of any team in the NFL, and that’s why I’m expecting a deep playoff run from them in 2013.

Next week I will go back to what I did the first couple weeks of the offseason. Keep up with new posts as I publish them by ‘liking’ my Facebook page and by following me on Twitter, @cpuffnfl.

2013 Offseason Needs: NFC South

I began going through the NFL division-by-division last week, writing about what each team needs to address this offseason. I have covered the bases in all four AFC divisions and half of the NFC, so today I move on to the NFC South.

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.

Atlanta Falcons

Tony Gonzalez has been wavering in his resolution to retire this offseason. We know that if he returns, it won’t be any city other than Atlanta. The Falcons are being very patient with Gonzalez, but they can only do so much this offseason without knowing if they can count on him to return in 2013.

William Moore is another free agent the Falcons need back. Their secondary needs some work, but if they can hold on to Moore, that’s one less piece they have to add from outside the organization. There are also rumors that Atlanta is one of the teams looking at Darrelle Revis. If they can get him for the right price, and if he is healthy, Revis would be a huge addition to their secondary.

John Braham is gone, which means the secondary is not the only area of concern for Atlanta. The Falcons played much better against the run during the postseason than during the regular season in 2012, but Abraham was a big part of that improvement. Without him, they need a new pass rusher, someone strong enough to stop running backs, including the bruisers who seem to be making a comeback, and versatile enough to contain the increased number of mobile quarterbacks, including Cam Newton.

On offense, the only real concern to address is in the run game.

Carolina Panthers

A lot of analysts keep talking about how much less confident they are in the Panthers heading into 2013 than they were heading into this past season. Cam Newton went through some sophomore growing pains, but played pretty well down the stretch. If he puts in good work this offseason, I can see the Panthers really making an improvement on offense. They question will be whether they can compete with three other good teams in their division.

Carolina found itself a fantastic young middle linebacker to build their defense around in Luke Kuechly. The defensive line and secondary need some work though and it may be a multi-offseason job to get this team into playoff contention in such a competitive division.

Depth at receiver is also an area that needs major attention. Steve Smith has enjoyed a couple of breakout seasons with Newton in town, but he isn’t getting any younger. Even while Smith is still around, the Panthers don’t have a decent second option for Newton to look to.

New Orleans Saints

Sean Payton is back, and that’s the most important thing New Orleans needed for this offseason. Even if they were to do nothing else this offseason, that would be enough for a major improvement on purely a mental level.

Rob Ryan is in town, so the defense will hopefully see an improvement. It would be hard for it to get any worse, but I’ll try not to jinx it.

The defense needs an almost compete overhaul, especially if Will Smith and Jonathan Vilma don’t take the pay cuts they’ve been asked to take. On offense, New Orleans may want to add some depth to their line and have to make decisions about what to do with their running backs.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

After seeing him pull what I consider to be cheap shots against the Giants and Cowboys this season, to say I am not a fan of Greg Schiano would be the understatement of the year. Still, he is a hell of a coach and showed this year that he can handle the task of leading a professional team. The Buccaneers finished the season 1-5, but that is still better than the 0-10 finish they had in 2011. They also won three more games, and I see more improvement to come in 2013.

Josh Freeman returned to form and is likely going to be considered Tampa Bay’s franchise quarterback from here on. They also found themselves an incredibly talented running back in Doug Martin. Offensively, I can’t think of a time when Tampa Bay has looked better, even going back to the Tony Dungy/Jon Gruden era.

Defensively, Tampa Bay was the best in the NFL against the run in 2012, but their pass defense was atrocious and the Bucs will have to put a lot of work into their secondary to avoid a duplicate performance in 2013.

Tomorrow I will cover the NFC West’s offseason needs, team-by-team. Keep up with new posts as I publish them by ‘liking’ my Facebook page and by following me on Twitter, @cpuffnfl.

2013 Offseason Needs: NFC North

I began going through the NFL division-by-division last week, writing about what each team needs to address this offseason. I have covered the bases in all four AFC divisions, and yesterday I covered the NFC East, so today I move on to the NFC North.

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.

Chicago Bears

Marc Trestman is a CFL coach in the NFL. It will be interesting to see how he adjusts to a completely different game. It will also be interesting to see what twists he brings to the game plan that will catch other teams off guard.

As usual, the Bears biggest problem on offense is the line. The Redskins had the same problem for years but finally seemed to have it fixed in 2012. The Bears need to fix theirs for 2013, or Marc Trestman’s team will look rather similar to Lovie Smith’s.

It’s hard to find what they really need on defense, because their defense is so good. But they don’t have very much depth to an aging secondary, specifically at corner.

Detroit Lions

The Lions broke out in 2011 as one of the NFL’s most dangerous teams. Matt Stafford was healthy for the whole season, Calvin Johnson tore it up in the end zone, and nobody wanted to play them. Then the offseason came, and with it off-the-field issues. They’ll need to really clean up their act this season to keep the focus on football and getting back to their 2011 form in 2013.

The Lions will put a lot of attention on keeping Cliff Avril. They’ve already lost one good defensive end and really can’t get away with losing another if they want to be competitive next season.

Titus Young is gone, and it’s for the best. However, that loss does mean the Lions don’t have a real second receiver behind Megatron. They need depth at that position.

Defense is also an area that must be addressed. The Lions have a decent line if they can keep Avril, but their linebacker corps and secondary are not very good.

Green Bay Packers

Greg Jennings is a free agent. As we’ve said for years, though, the Packers have unrealistic depth at receiver, so I’m not expecting Jennings to return in 2013.

Defense is the area of concern for the Packers, as it has been since their Super Bowl year. Despite having a lot of playmakers and big names on defense, they give up a lot of yards. It might be time to trade one or two of their big names for some draft picks, because I’m less and less convinced every season that these guys know how to play together.

Minnesota Vikings

The only ray of sunshine I see for the Vikings right now is Adrian Peterson.

Christian Ponder is an okay quarterback, but he will have to do a lot of improving this offseason if he is going to help take this team back to the playoffs, especially if the Vikings don’t keep Percy Harvin. They don’t have much other talent at receiver. As good as Adrian Peterson is, if the Vikings have no passing game, he won’t carry them far.

Minnesota also needs to put a lot of work into their defense. Their secondary is okay but rarely impressed me as anything more than mediocre. Linebacker is a clear area of concern and they need to pick up a good interior lineman.

Tomorrow I will cover the NFC South’s offseason needs, team-by-team. Keep up with new posts as I publish them by ‘liking’ my Facebook page and by following me on Twitter, @cpuffnfl.

2013 Offseason Needs: NFC East

I began going through the NFL division-by-division last week, writing about what each team needs to address this offseason. I have covered the bases in all four AFC divisions, so this week I move on to the NFC.

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.

Dallas Cowboys

I will say it one more time, Tony Romo is a very good quarterback and the Cowboys are right to stick by him. He has struggled at times in more important games, but he is not the only one on the team who has done so. He may not have the ‘clutch gene,’ but if they put the right team around him, he won’t have to.

Rob Ryan is gone at defensive coordinator. Monte Kiffin is in and will switch Dallas back to the 4-3 scheme that was largely developed by former Cowboys coach, Tom Landry. What this means, is that the Cowboys are putting less weight on the linebacker corps and more on the defensive line, so they will have to add some depth there.

The offensive line has also been a problem for several seasons, and there is no way that Tony Romo will ever be able to execute in the clutch if his linemen can’t protect him. They need to pick up a solid prospect in the draft and maybe a good, but affordable, free agent for immediate results.

We also saw how injuries impacted their defense in 2012, especially in the secondary. Depth at safety is a must, and it wouldn’t hurt to add another talented corner.

New York Giants

The Giants were very disappointing in 2012, missing the playoffs the year after winning the Super Bowl for the second time under Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning. The silver lining in that, though, is that they don’t have to lose too many pieces from a team chockfull of talent.

Ahmad Bradshaw is gone, but David Wilson is ready to step up. Even with Andre Brown on the roster, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Wilson getting 75% (or more) of the carries by Week 9.

The biggest loss New York stands to lose is Victor Cruz, who is a restricted free agent. I can think of several teams who would be willing to give up a second-rounder for Cruz, one of which is in the division. The Giants will need to step up and get Cruz the money he deserves.

The biggest issue for the Giants in 2012, as NFL.com described it, was consistency. The Giants rarely looked like the same team in consecutive weeks on either side of the ball and Eli Manning looked to be in a funk for much of the season, especially during one particular three-week stretch. The Giants will be one of the most talented teams in the NFL in 2013. They just have to show it.

Philadelphia Eagles

I’m excited to see what the Eagles do this year, not because I want them to do well, not because I think they can do well, but because I have no clue what to expect from them.

Nick Foles is a talented young quarterback, but he is still very raw. Of course, Michael Vick is back, but if he struggles to protect the ball, don’t expect their new coach to wait as long as Andy Reid did to make a change. Speaking of their new coach, Chip Kelly is an excellent college coach, but we’ve seen great college coaches crash and burn on the NFL level (see Steve Spurrier and Pete Carroll’s first tenure).

Secondary is an area that must be addressed. Philadelphia had very poor safety play in 2012 and word is that Nnamdi Asomugha may not be back in 2013 after two very underwhelming seasons.

Washington Redskins

7-0. That was the Redskins’ record over the final seven weeks of the 2012 regular season. It was a remarkable turnaround and they did it without Fred Davis who injured his Achilles early in the season and never returned. If he comes back and stays healthy both on and off the field, it will be a huge lift to an offense that will be tasked with picking up in Week 1 where they left off in Week 17.

Obviously, the biggest concern is getting Robert Griffin III to 100%. At this point, there is little doubt that it will happen. It is just a matter of when. But if he isn’t ready to go in Week 1, Redskins fans should feel confident that Kirk Cousins, who will spend this entire season as Washington’s #1 quarterback, can take care of the team during Griffin’s absence.

The only other real concern I have with this team is the defense. They ranked very high in stopping the run, and will be even better in 2013 with Brian Orakpo and Adam Carriker set to return. But their pass defense was atrocious. They don’t need to be a top-5 or even a top-10 team against the pass. But if they can be middle-of-the-pack, rather than nearly dead last, the rest of the team will be talented enough to pick up the slack.

Tomorrow I will cover the NFC North’s offseason needs, team-by-team. Keep up with new posts as I publish them by ‘liking’ my Facebook page and by following me on Twitter, @cpuffnfl.

2013 Offseason Needs: AFC West

This week and next, between Tuesday and Friday, I am going through the NFL division-by-division, writing about what each team needs to address this offseason. I have covered the bases in the AFC East, AFC North and AFC South, so today I move on to the AFC West.

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.

Denver Broncos

Denver’s offense doesn’t worry me. Manning will be healthier with an offseason to work at full strength. Knowshon Moreno also has an offseason to continue recovering from an injury that caused him to miss a lot of the middle part of the 2012 season. They have good depth at running back and receiver, their offensive line did a good job keeping Peyton on his feet, and unlike a lot of analysts, I’m a fan from what little I’ve seen of Brock Osweiler, their backup signal caller.

What Denver needs this offseason is defensive pieces, specifically in the secondary. A very weak schedule down the stretch hid some of their holes, but they were put on full display by a bizarre but effective offensive game plan by the Ravens in the divisional round. They need to add a good safety to help over the top. Denver has a few of the better corners in the league, but they’ll have off days like Champ Bailey did against Baltimore. Their safeties were unable to give help over top in that game, and that can’t be the case next year if Denver wants to be considered a legitimate Super Bowl contender.

Kansas City Chiefs

As soon as Kansas City picked up Andy Reid, I liked their chances for next season. Reid is still an excellent coach; it was just time for a change of scenery. Now they’ve picked up Alex Smith in what I consider a very fair trade with San Francisco. This team had the talent of a playoff team on a 2-14 team last season. Now they have a quarterback, and that could get them to the playoffs next season.

With the addition of Smith, I think there’s a better chance of keeping Dwayne Bowe, at the right price. Another thing that the trade gives them the ability to do is trade their #1 draft pick for more picks in this year’s draft, or to just take the best player available, which I guarantee you is not a quarterback.

Other than that, just add depth to the defensive unit and a wide receiver or two and this is a playoff caliber team.

Oakland Raiders

Oakland is a tough cookie to crack. Carson Palmer hasn’t panned out to this point, but it’s hard to say they should just get rid of him and go with Terrelle Pryor, who we haven’t seen much of since his days at Ohio State.

There is no doubt that this is a time of rebuilding in Oakland, and this project is going to take a few years. McFadden will likely be gone, if not this offseason then next; whenever the Raiders realize that they need more talent across the board rather than all their talent in one position.

After that, it will just be a matter of taken the best player available with each of their draft picks, because they don’t have much cap room to play with in free agency. Oakland is a mess and I think their 10-season run without a playoff appearance is going to increase by a few more years, especially with Denver a perennial contender for at least another three years and both Kansas City and San Diego likely on their way back up.

San Diego Chargers

I’m sure Denver would have liked to hold on to Mike McCoy as their offensive coordinator, but the way he’s carried himself over the past two seasons, getting the Broncos to the playoffs with Tim Tebow and then meeting Peyton Manning halfway in a brand new offense, he’s earned his job as head coach in San Diego. Believe it or not, Norv Turner has not put this team beyond repair. Philip Rivers is still a good quarterback and there’s a good shot that with McCoy’s help, we’ll see a little of the old Rivers in 2013.

I also liked McCoy’s hire at offensive coordinator, nabbing Ken Whisenhunt, who did good work in Arizona when he had decent quarterbacks leading his offenses.

The biggest areas of concern are the line on offense and the secondary on defense. Rivers was rarely given time in the pocket to go through more than a couple of his progressions, and their defense struggled mightily in the passing game. Depth in the backfield is also a concern with Ryan Mathews struggling to stay healthy.

On Monday I will recap the biggest news stories from the NFL of this week, then I will do what I’ve done for the past four days, but for the NFC divisions. Keep up with new posts as I publish them by ‘liking’ my Facebook page and by following me on Twitter, @cpuffnfl.

2013 Offseason Needs: AFC South

This week and next, between Tuesday and Friday, I am going through the NFL division-by-division, writing about what each team needs to address this offseason. I have covered the bases in the AFC East and AFC North, so today I move on to the AFC South.

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.

Houston Texans

I like Houston in 2013. J.J. Watt stepped up in a huge way this year and I expect more of the same. Brian Cushing will be back, too, so I have no doubts that the defense will be ready to carry this team at least as far as it went this year.

The offense is what concerns me. Arian Foster is a premier NFL back, and they have one of the best receivers in the NFL in Andre Johnson. Matt Schaub just does not look good when they go up against anything better than a mediocre defense. Cincinnati’s defense, which was little more than ‘up-and-coming’ this year, made him look incompetent in the postseason.

There is no expectation that Schaub could be out in Houston, but he needs to find his mojo, which he lost sometime around 2010, because this is a Super Bowl contender doomed for Divisional Round exits if he doesn’t step his game up.

Indianapolis Colts

The Colts underwent a total overhaul last offseason and found themselves in the playoffs, so they have to be feeling very good about what just a few changes could bring in 2013.

Bruce Arians is out as he takes over head coaching duties in Arizona, but the Colts were quick to bring in one of Andrew Luck’s coaching from Stanford, so we shouldn’t see the loss of Arians affect him too much next season.

The big name among Indy’s free agents is Dwight Freeney, but losing him won’t be as big a blow as fans want to think it will be. Freeney is getting older and isn’t what he was during the mid-2000’s when the Manning Era looked like it may never end.

The offense is just about set, all Indy needs is a lineman or two who can protect Luck better than the unit did in 2012. On defense, the pass rush was a weak point for Indianapolis this season, but mostly because receivers were getting open too quickly down the field. The top priority needs to be the secondary, then the Colts can look to add a linebacker and replace Freeney if he does, in fact, leave.

Jacksonville Jaguars

I’ll tell you right now, the Jaguars will not be turning any heads in 2013. This team looks hopeless right now, and teams that look like that don’t turn things around in one offseason. Nobody likes to hear this, but what Jacksonville needs to do is treat this process as a multi-season thing. If they look for a quick fix, not only will it fail but it will make the process of turning this team into a contender take much longer than it has to.

The Jaguars have the second pick in the draft, and they need players on defense. They need offensive weapons, too, but defense was their weaker point this season. Of course, drafting that pick could help more because then they can add players on both sides of the ball.

Gabbert needs to be Jacksonville’s man, and they need to get him the offseason work he needs. They have to make sure Maurice Jones-Drew is fully recovered and they might want to get a decent backup, because they didn’t have anything this season once he went down.

The defense needs a total overhaul, each part needs to be replaced or refurbished. If the Jaguars can do enough to notch six wins in 2013, then next offseason could hold brighter tidings in the crystal ball.

Tennessee Titans

Chris Johnson needs to get back in his groove next season to take the pressure of Jake Locker, who came on strong this year but is still too young to trust as much more than a game manager.

Offensively, I like where Tennessee is going. They are slowly looking more and more like the Titans of the late 90’s, a team I thoroughly enjoyed watching.

Defensively, the Titans need work. The line and secondary are clearly the biggest areas in need of improvement, depth at linebacker is important, too. They lost Colin McCarthy, a very good young linebacker, to ankle and concussion injuries for most of the 2012 season and nobody was there to step into his role.

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

2013 Offseason Needs: AFC North

This week and next, between Tuesday and Friday, I am going through the NFL division-by-division, writing about what each team needs to address this offseason. Yesterday I covered the bases in the AFC East, today I move on to the AFC North. I will talk about the Alex Smith trade on Friday when I cover the AFC West.

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.

Baltimore Ravens

Jim Caldwell will stay on as offensive coordinator in 2013, so we will get a chance to analyze whether it really was the combination of him and Joe Flacco that led to so much offensive success in the playoffs. I still think it was just the fates of Ray Lewis, but that’s just my theory.

Joe Flacco is demanding big money, and no matter what his agent says, Tom Brady taking less than half of what Flacco is asking in his new deal affects what the Ravens will be willing to pay Joe Cool.

Not to mention, if Flacco gets the money he wants, they will lose some key pieces. With the fire of their defense gone, they need as many of their guys back as possible, but among the guys they could lose, Ed Reed, Paul Kruger, Dannell Ellerbe and Cary Williams stand out.

Anquan Boldin has already said he won’t play for another team, but that doesn’t mean he’ll play next year if the Ravens can’t afford him.

Ravens fans can hound me all they want for saying this, but what the Ravens need this offseason is consistency from what they had this past season. They need to keep as many of their players as possible, they need to add a talented young linebacker and one more wide receivers and add a little depth elsewhere. But the only way they can do that is if Flacco backs off and takes a little less money than what he’s asking.

Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals should be pretty content right? They are coming off consecutive winning seasons for the first time in three decades, right? So let’s move on.

Of course I’m kidding. I’m just sick of people always having to bring this kind of stuff up whenever they write about the team’s previous season. Seriously, as I researched what the Bengals need this offseason, every single article I read included some mention of that milestone. This is not the same team that it was 30 years ago, so stop being so impressed!

On to the Bengals, their defense really came along during the latter part of the season. Depth is what they really need on that side of the ball.

On offense, the Bengals have a very good running back in BenJarvus Green-Ellis but they don’t really have a good second guy to go to. Green-Ellis is used to being the workhorse, but with how short the average running back’s NFL career is, how many more years can that be the case?

Cincinnati also has one of the best receivers in the NFL in A.J. Green. Dalton was able to get it done this year with very little depth at the position but the Bengals will never get over the hump if they don’t get Green a right-hand man.

Cleveland Browns

The Browns have a new coaching staff and it is unlikely that Brandon Weeden will be the only quarterback they go through training camp expecting with who is expecting to start. I really like what they have with Greg Little, Josh Gordon, and Trent Richardson on offense.

On defense, there really isn’t much of anything that I like. The Browns have a lot of cap space, about $40 million. They haven’t been using that space the past couple years; maybe this is the year they try to get some actual talent.

Beyond that, the only thing I like about the Browns is Phil Dawson. They better make a serious splash in free agency and in the draft. I don’t see anything good coming out of Cleveland in 2013 if they don’t make some serious moves this offseason.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Mike Wallace is unlikely to return, and with Jonathan Dwyer turning heads this season, Rashard Mendenhall may not be back either.

The Steelers have a talented team. I never really understood why they weren’t able to win games. Yes, Ben Roethlisberger spent several weeks injured, but they’ve found ways to win when he’s hurt before. The only thing I’ve come up with is that they are lacking in depth across the board.

I’m not saying they don’t have good backups, but they have a lot of backups who aren’t really worth having who are eating up roster space that would be much better occupied by other guys. I’m not really sure what Pittsburgh needs, but they don’t have much cap space so expect them to part ways with a lot of players to make room for better depth.

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

Also, tune in to WMUC Sports Radio at 7pm today as I co-host The All-Sports Crew. We'll cover hockey, basketball, baseball and some offseason NFL news, as well.

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.