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More fan contributions from Philly.com Sports partner Bleacher Report
AFC EAST
Team: New England Patriots
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2008 record: 11-5
What's the story? They went 11-5 without Tom Brady, and they have him back, assuming his recent shoulder injury is a tweak, and not a tear. They'll have a mediocre defense and a weak pass rush; their pass-rush fix is former Eagles end Derrick Burgess, a holdout in Oakland for whom they traded. But Brady's back, and while that won't mean another run at perfection — he is coming off major knee surgery — it means remaining the class of the division.
Prediction: 11-5.
Team: New York Jets
2008 record: 9-7
What's the story? Once again, the focus won't be where it should be: on a team that could be quite good. Last year, it was Brett Favre's folly; this year, Rex in effect. Buddy Ryan's boisterous boy will steal the headlines and become more important than his team, with too much focus on his swarming defensive scheme than on, say, honest assessments of the progress made by rookie QB Mark Sanchez or the continued Pro Bowl play of RB Thomas Jones and spark plug RB/KR Leon Washington. Still, they'll make a wild-card run.
Prediction: 10-6.
Team: Miami Dolphins
2008 record: 11-5
What's the story? With the spotlight no longer on the Tuna or his sidekick, head coach Tony Sparano, teams will find a way to limit the Wildcat offense that Miami utilized devastatingly last season. They will entrust its progress to rookie QB Pat White, a scintillating running QB at West Virginia. Chad Pennington, after a second reinvention, returns as the regular QB. But Pennington was cut by the Jets for a reason, and running QBs usually equal turnovers. You betting against Bill Belichick not stopping this Wildcat fad? You're on.
Prediction: 7-9.
Team: Buffalo Bills
2008 record: 7-9
What's the story? One year, $6.5 million, a little bit of interest ... and a lot of misery. Terrell Owens' latest stop on his Please Hate Me NFL tour is a conservative, dying town known for losing the Big One and the best draft-beer side dish ever created. If T.O. didn't think Romo, McNabb and Garcia got him the ball enough, wait till he gets a load of Trent Edwards operating behind a totally reconstructed offensive line. Plus, he'll be playing for Dick Jauron, for whom defense comes first. This has all the makings of a fall worthy of the one just to the north of the city.
Prediction: 5-11.
AFC NORTH
Team: Pittsburgh Steelers
2008 record: 12-4
What's the story? Stability. Nineteen of 22 starters return. Two of the new starters, LB Lawrence Timmons and CB William Gay, might have beaten out the men they replaced, anyway. That's right: The Steelers might have gotten appreciably better. What's more, plenty of their premier players are coming into their prime, including WR Santonio Holmes and LB James Harrison. It is a versatile, deep, fearless, well-run team familiar with each other and its coaches. It is the league's best.
Prediction: 14-2.
Team: Baltimore Ravens
2008 record: 11-5
What's the story? Quarterback. Joe Flacco was gifted with a tenacious defense, a supportive offense led by RBs Willis McGahee and Le'Ron McLain, a spectacular rookie head coach in John Harbaugh, and nothing to lose. This year, with a full season under his belt and on film, Flacco will be a target. He will be blitzed and baited and forced to prove whether he was a flash or for real. When he got sacked — 32 times — it was for an average of 8.6 yards. That's too much. If he learns to use the league's QB protection rules, he could be lethal; if he doesn't, he could be poison.
