Never has one man done more for a team than Ray Lewis has done for the Baltimore Ravens.

Since his arrival in Baltimore in the 1996 NFL Draft, Forbes have stated that Lewis’ tenure in the city has likely accounted for a $100-125 million increase in the franchise’s value, which according to a 2012 survey, sits at a very respectable $1.16 billion.

The experienced linebacker has missed the majority of the season after suffering a torn triceps injury in the Ravens’ Week 6 clash with the Dallas Cowboys. For most this would be a season-ending injury, but it should be evident to all NFL fans by now that Lewis is not just your average football player.

His dramatic return at the beginning of the playoffs, coupled with the momentous announcement that this would be his ‘last ride’ has been suggested by many to be the key reason behind Baltimore’s timely return to form.

It is hard to imagine anything more motivating for his teammates than helping Lewis go out on the best possible note. At this point of the season, one solitary mistake can mean the end of the journey, and to borrow a phrase from Bill Belichick, the Head Coach of the Ravens upcoming AFC Championship opponents, the New England Patriots, ‘Do your job’.

Let me put it another way. Would you want to be the person culpable for the end of Lewis’ last ride? The kind of determination, focus and concentration that this breeds can be just as important, if not more so, than any of the intangibles we regularly judge football players by.

Beyond the emotional and mental contributions that the return of Lewis brings the team, let us not forget, he can still play.

The traditional strength of the Ravens has always been their unforgiving defense, but unfortunately for the Baltimore fans, this has not been the case for much of the season, with the unit being far from dominant.

There are several reasons for this, not least so the fact that defensive standouts Terrell Suggs and Lewis were not on the field together at any point this season until Baltimore’s win over the Indianapolis Colts in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. Throw into the mix the fact that both Haloti Ngata and Ed Reed have been playing hurt all season and the disruption that losing Defensive Coordinator Chuck Pagano undoubtedly caused, it is perhaps not too surprising that the Ravens defense has faltered.

This all changed two weeks ago however when Baltimore won their Wild Card round match against the Colts. The defense has finally started to get healthy with Suggs and Lewis both on the field together, as well as players such as Paul Kruger and Corey Graham continuing the form they were showing in the second half of the regular season. The Ravens’ defense is beginning to look vintage once more.

One factor which has been critical for Baltimore in both of their playoff victories so far has been the performance of their new-look offensive line. If the revival in the Ravens’ form could be attributed to one person, and one person alone (and that person cannot be named Ray Lewis), it could be Bryant McKinnie.

Michael Oher is a Pro Bowl-caliber offensive tackle. It is just that he is a Pro Bowl-caliber right tackle, not the left tackle position he has been playing at all season. Given time at the position I’m sure he would flourish, but the form and fitness that McKinnie has found has allowed the veteran to retake his spot at left tackle, pushing Oher back to his favored right tackle position. This in turn has pushed rookie Kelechi Osemele from his position at tackle to guard, and the young man from Iowa State has proven to be just as impressive in his new position as he was in his last.

This re-jigged offensive line has performed outstandingly, giving up just two sacks in their last two games (which includes facing the powerful defensive front of the Denver Broncos). If there is one pertinent criticism of the quarterback Joe Flacco, it is his lack of pocket awareness, and the improvements that the offensive line have made in pass protection have helped Flacco throw for five touchdowns and no interceptions in those two games.

Should Baltimore go on to beat Tom Brady and the Patriots in a rematch of last year’s AFC Championship game, undoubtedly the vast majority of the praise will go to Lewis and the impact his return has had on the team. Given that he even now has me believing in fate, I will probably be adding my voice to that praise, but that being said, keep your eyes on the Ravens’ offensive line this Sunday, they are primed to continue their good form and I think a big night for Flacco could be on the cards.

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Candlestick Park was silenced after second year quarterback Collin Kaepernick dropped back on the fourth play of the game and threw an interception to Packers cornerback Sam Shields, who returned it for a touchdown.

Kaepernick quickly brushed off his lone mistake to have a career day to help lift the 49ers over the Packers 45-31.

Green Bay’s defense was non-existent and unable to contain the dual threat quarterback. Kaepernick set a quarterback rushing record, compiling 181 yards on 16 carries for two touchdowns. He also completed 17 of 31 passes for 263 yards and two touchdowns.

His favorite target was wideout Michael Crabtree, who caught nine passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns.

The Packers also had no answer for 49ers running back Frank Gore. Gore carried the ball 23 times for 119 yards and a touchdown. He also caught two passes for 48 yards.

After the Packers had a 14-7 lead going into the second quarter, momentum quickly shifted when Packers punt returner Jeremy Ross muffed the catch and the 49ers recovered the fumble. The 49ers responded with a touchdown to tie the game.

On Green Bay’s ensuing drive quarterback, Aaron Rodgers over threw wideout Jordy Nelson and was intercepted. Once again the 49ers turned a Packers mistake into a touchdown to retake the lead.

The Packers went into the half down 24-21 but did not make any halftime adjustments to get back into the game and were outscored 21-10 in the second half.

Rodgers finished the game, completing 26 of 39 passes for 257 yards two touchdowns and one interception. Rodgers connected with James Jones and Greg Jennings for touchdowns.

Jones finished the game with four receptions for 87 yards along with his touchdown. Jennings led the Packers with six receptions for 54 yards along with his late score.

The 49ers are now heading back to the NFC Championship game. They will either face the No.1 seed Atlanta Falcons or the No.5 seed Seattle Seahawks. If the Seahawks pull off the upset, San Francisco will host the Championship game at Candlestick Park.

As for the Packers, they will enter the offseason with many decisions to make regarding players and staff.

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The Green Bay Packers took care of business over NFC North rivals the Minnesota Vikings 24-10 at Lambeau Field to punch a ticket into the next round of the playoffs.

Minnesota, was without starting quarterback Christian Ponder. Ponder was ruled inactive in Saturday’s match-up because of an elbow injury. As a result, back-up Joe Webb got the nod and started in his first game of the season.

Webb, completed 11 of 30 passes for 180 yards one touchdown and one interception. He had success evading the pocket and scrambling seven times for 68 yards. The third-year quarterback from UAB, led the Vikings down the field on their first drive but settled for a Blair Walsh 33 yard field goal.

The Packers answered back towards the end of the first quarter to help swing momentum on their side. On Minnesota’s nine yard line, Green Bay’s starting running back DuJuan Harris punched in an nine yard run to give the Packers a 7-0 lead.

Green Bay was back on the board in the second quarter with a Mason Crosby 20 yard field goal. Right before the half, Packers full-back John Kuhn punched in a three yard run to give Green Bay a 17-3 lead into half.

On the first drive of the second half, Aaron Rodgers lead the Packers offense right down the field with ease. The Vikings gave the Packers another opportunity after committing a 12-men on the field penalty. On the ensuing play, Rodgers dropped back and connected with Kuhn for a score to give the Packers a 24-3 lead.

Kuhn, had one touchdown all season long and was able to be a leading factor scoring two touchdowns to help the Packers defeat the Vikings.

Webb threw his first touchdown pass with just under four minutes in the game to a wide open Michael Jenkins.

After torching Green Bay in the regular season, the Packers defense was able to contain Adrian Peterson. Peterson rushed 22 times for 99 yards.

Rodgers ended the game completing 23 of 33 passes for 274 yards and one touchdown. Rodgers was able to connect with 10 different wide receivers. Wideout Greg Jennings caught four passes for a team high 61 receiving yards.

With the victory, the Packers will travel to No.2 seed the San Francisco 49ers next week. The Packers lost to the 49ers in Week 1 at Lambeau 30-22 and will look to clinch a spot in the NFC Championship.

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The Minnesota Vikings defeated NFC North rivals the Green Bay Packers 37-34 at Mall of America Field to earn themselves the final NFC Wild Card position.

All eyes were on Adrian Peterson, who entered the game 208 yards away from Eric Dickerson’s rushing record. Peterson had an extremely effective game but fell nine yards shy of the record. Peterson carried the ball for a career high – 34 times for 199 yards and one touchdown. Peterson also had one reception that was a touchdown.

Vikings quarterback, Christian Ponder played mistake free football to help Minnesota win a fourth straight game and clinch a spot in the playoffs. He completed 16 of 28 passes for 234 yards and three touchdowns. His three touchdown passes was a season high along with his 120.2 passer rating.

Rookie wideout Jarius Wright caught an eight yard touchdown pass with just over a minute left in the first half. Ponder connected with Wright again in the fourth quarter on a 65 yard bomb, that later resulted in a Michael Jenkins three yard touchdown catch.

Wright led the Vikings with three catches for 90 yards along with his touchdown. Also wideout Michael Jenkins had three catches for 37 yards along with his touchdown grab.

As for the Packers, they were unable to take a lead the entire game and found themselves fighting back until the final whistle.

Quarterback, Aaron Rodgers completed 28 of 40 passes for 365 yards and four touchdown passes. His 365 passing yards was a season best and it was the fourth time this season he threw at least four touchdown passes.

Rodgers favorite target was wideout Greg Jennings. Jennings caught eight passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns and his big performance helped the Packers stay competitive the entire game. Wideout, James Jones was the recipient of Rodgers second touchdown pass in the third quarter. Rodgers and wideout Jordy Nelson connected on a two yard back shoulder pass to tie the game 34-34 with less than three minutes to go.

Green Bay was led on the ground by back, DuJuan Harris. Harris had 14 carries for 70 yards. Although, having some success the Packers were forced to throw the ball because they were trailing the entire game.

With the loss the Vikings snapped Green Bay’s 12-game winning streak over the NFC North division.

The Packers are now the No. 3 seed in the NFC Playoffs and will face the No. 6 seed Vikings next week in the Wild Card Round.

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The Atlanta Falcons clinched a home-field advantage through out the playoffs after their 31-18 victory at Ford Field over the Detroit Lions.

Although losing, star wideout Calvin Johnson stole the show with a record breaking night. Johnson caught 11 passes for 225 yards. His performance, helped him surpass Hall-of-Famer Jerry Rice’s NFL receiving yards record. Johnson has accumulated 1,892 yards and will look to hit 2,000 in the season finale.

He also broke the record for most consecutive 100-yard games (8), tied the record for 100-yard games in a season (11), broke the record for consecutive 10-catch games (4) and he broke the record for most receptions in a month (44).

Detroit quarterback, Matthew Stafford finished the game 37 of 56 for 443 yards and one interception. Stafford, has attempted 685 pass attempts, just six away from breaking Drew Beldsoe’s NFL single season passing attempts record. Stafford is also 305 yards away from compiling 5,000 passing yards in consecutive seasons and becoming the first quarterback in NFL history to do so.

As for the Atlanta Falcons, quarterback Matt Ryan had an extremely efficient evening. Ryan completed 25 of 32 passes for 279 yards and four touchdowns. Ryan’s 142.6 passer rating tied his season best that he set last week.

Roddy White, was probable with a knee injury but performed exceptionally well. White lead the Falcons with eight catches for 153 yards and two touchdowns. Wide receiver, Julio Jones also caught seven passes for 71 yards and scored his 10th touchdown of the year.

The Falcons are 7-0 at home this season and 33-6 at the Georgia Dome in the regular season since the 2008 season. The last time the Falcons clinched the No.1 seed and home field advantage was in 2010 where they were demolished  by the Green Bay Packers 48-21.

Atlanta will look to end the season 8-0 at home and will face divisional rivals the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Detroit will look to continue to break and expand more records in their season finale against the divisional rivals the Chicago Bears.

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Adrian Peterson rushed for 212 yards and one touchdown to help earn the Minnesota Vikings a much needed 36-22 victory over the St. Louis Rams.

Peterson, cut through St. Louis’ defense in the second quarter for an 82-yard touchdown score tying his season long he set just two weeks ago against the Green Bay Packers. This is his eighth consecutive 100+ yard game for the NFL’s leading rusher. With two games to go, Peterson needs 294 yards to break Eric Dickerson’s 2,105 NFL single-season rushing record.

His success on the field not only has him in contention for comeback player of the year but also keeps him in the running for MVP.

Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder completed 17 of 24 passes for 131 yards. On his first offensive drive of the game on 3rd and 5, Ponder scrambled in for a 5-yard touchdown run giving the Vikings an early 7-0 lead. His favorite target was Jerome Simpson, who caught four catches for 27 yards.

Rams quarterback Sam Bradford completed 35 of 55 passes for 377 yards three touchdowns and one interception. Bradford’s first touchdown came in the second quarter when he connected on a 4-yard pass to wideout Brian Quick.

Bradford threw his lone interception in the second quarter to defensive end Everson Griffen, who returned it 29 yards for a touchdown.

Bradford and the Rams started to come back in the fourth quarter. First Bradford connected with wideout Danny Amendola on a 6-yard touchdown pass. The Rams defense was able to force the Vikings to punt  on the following drive. On the Rams ensuing offensive drive, Bradford lead his offense from their own 12-yard line. Bradford connected with tight-end Lance Kendricks for a score and converted a two-point conversion to cut the lead to 33-22.

The Vikings answered back with a 51-yard field goal from kicker Blair Walsh and preserved the lead, earning Minnesota their second consecutive win.

At 8-6, the Vikings are still in contention for a wildcard play-off position, but will need help. They will have a tough match-up on the road next week against the Houston Texans. As for the Rams, they will head to Raymond James Stadium to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

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The Atlanta Falcons demolished the New York Giants 34-0, to improve to 12-2 and 7-0 at the Georgia Dome.

Falcons quarterback, Matt Ryan completed 23 of 28 passes for 270 yards and three touchdowns. His 82.1 completion percentage and 142.6 quarterback rating were both season highs for the five-year starter. This was also Ryan’s sixth game this season throwing at least three touchdown passes.

Wide receiver Julio Jones was tied for a game-high six receptions for 74 yards and hauled in two touchdown catches. Jones has surpassed his eight touchdown rookie season, catching nine with for over 1,000 yards and still two games to go.

Veteran tight-end Tony Gonzalez also caught six receptions for 49 yards and one touchdown. Gonzalez leads the Falcons with 87 receptions.

As for the run game, Michael Turner carried the ball 16 times for 52 yards and punched in a one-yard run on the Falcons first offensive drive.

The Giants were out of sync from the start, opening their first drive with Eli Manning throwing an interception on 2 and 7 from their own 16 yard-line. Manning threw his second interception in the second quarter, resulting in a Falcons field goal.

Manning only completed 13 of 25 passes for 161 yards. His favorite target was wide receiver Domenik Hixon, who caught five passes for 80 yards.

The Giants were without running back Ahmad Bradshaw because of a foot-and-knee injury. Instead, rookie David Wilson got the nod for the start but was not nearly as explosive as last week. Wilson carried the ball 12 times for 55 yards.

With the loss, the Giants have fallen to 8-6 along with four other teams in the NFC. The Giants are currently third in the NFC East division at 8-6 behind the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins, who are all 8-6. However, the Giants still control their own destiny and by winning out they will earn a wildcard playoff position. As for the Falcons, they will head to Ford Field to take on the Detroit Lions and control their own destiny for the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs.

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The Baltimore Ravens gave their fans something to cheer about as they booked themselves a meeting with the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship game, after a hard fought victory over the Houston Texans. Baltimore, playing in their first home playoff game since 2006, won the game 20-13, and largely relied on their overpowering defense after scoring two touchdowns in the first quarter.

The Texans almost had the perfect start to the game when Danieal Manning looked as if he was going to break through the Ravens defense for a touchdown return from the opening kickoff, but was eventually bumped into touch after making 60 yards on the return. The return gave Houston good field position, but the Texans were unable to convert the field position into a touchdown, having to settle for a field goal to take the first lead of the game.

The Ravens then capitalized on a mistake by Jacoby Jones who, under immediate pressure from Cary Williams, attempted to collect a punt and fumbled the ball, allowing rookie Jimmy Smith to dive on the ball and give the Ravens a first and goal. Baltimore showed good composure in the red zone, with Joe Flacco finding Kris Wilson for a 1-yard touchdown pass and move Baltimore into the lead, which the home side would go on to maintain for the rest of the game.

Baltimore then extended their lead through wide receiver Anquan Boldin, who was on the end of a 10-yard touchdown pass to make the score 17-3 to the Ravens. Boldin proved to be the most effective receiver for Baltimore, finishing the game with one touchdown and 73 yards on four receptions.

Houston were determined to get back into the game however, and a field goal and an Arian Foster rushing touchdown in the second quarter brought them to within four points of Baltimore.

They looked as if they might retake the lead on several occasions, and were only kept at bay by the much vaunted Ravens defense, with Baltimore’s secondary in imperious form, Ladarius Webb picking up two interceptions and Ed Reed collecting one as well on a critical deep pass to Andre Johnson that would have certainly been a touchdown if the safety had not intervened. A late field goal in the fourth quarter then gave Baltimore a little more security and their defense saw out the game.

Although thoroughly disheartened to have lost a game which they seemed to be the more dominant team in, the Texans will be encouraged by their performance in their debut season in the playoffs. Foster was dominant in the running game, clocking up 132 yards on 27 carries, and Johnson was comfortably the most proficient receiver in the game, registering 111 yards on eight receptions.

Despite now being in contention for the AFC Championship, the Ravens will not be happy with their offensive performance, and will have to improve dramatically if they are to overcome the in-form Patriots away from home, who demolished the Denver Broncos in their divisional round match up.

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Once news broke that Josh McDaniels was re-hired as the Patriots’ offensive coordinator, most assumed that he would be joining the team next year, not next week in a divisional playoff matchup against the quarterback he once drafted, Tim Tebow.

Although current coordinator, Bill O’Brien, agreed to become the new head coach at Penn State last Saturday, it was determined that he would still retain the role of New England’s offensive coordinator throughout this postseason. McDaniels, who had previously held the position for the Pats from 2006-2008, was chosen as his replacement shortly after and will shockingly serve the coaching staff as an offensive assistant beginning Saturday night with a trip to the AFC title game on the line against the Broncos.

Adding a new coach right before a huge postseason showdown is already an interesting move to begin with, but considering the fact that McDaniels brought in Tebow and coached Denver from 2009-2010, it is raising even more eyebrows across the league. Many are outraged by the idea of McDaniels possibly being able to provide New England new information about Tebow specifically.

That concept should not be too large of a concern, though. New England did an excellent job of containing Tebow’s heroic antics, handily defeating Denver on the road 41-23 back in Week 15, without McDaniels’ assistance.  Tebow threw for just 194 yards that day, as the Pats were able to easily overcome an early deficit.

Still, that does not justify what New England has attempted to do coming into this crucial game. Hiring someone who once coached or played for your opponent is not a crime in sports. If anything, it is gamesmanship, as we have seen it occur countless times. However, the timing concept in this scenario is absolutely absurd.

Imagine if this happened to your team. With so much at stake in a do-or-die situation, would you not be livid knowing that the team you are battling against has inside information as to what you were trying to do – and that they were able to bring the informant in just days before?

The fact that the NFL allows teams to add unnecessary pieces to their coaching staffs in the middle of the postseason is simply unbelievable. We have never seen anything like this take place in other major sports, so why does this league think that it is acceptable, especially when preparation plays a bigger role than it does in any other sport?

If a team has to have a strict playoff roster set before the end of the regular season, then it should go the same way for coaches as well. The role that they play for their teams needs to be more respected.

Unfortunately, we are not psychics, so we cannot outright proclaim that actions like these really do change the outcomes of games. Instead of giving the fans, players, and coaches alike something to strongly complain about, do not give them the opportunity at all by forcing coaching staffs to remain the same during the postseason.

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The NFL is back to business as usual with week one in the books. The League quarterbacks set an NFL record for any single week by throwing a combined 7,842 yards. Defenses have some catching up to do though. This week they will set another NFL record. Week two will not have a single divisional game for the first time in history.

Five games this week feature unbeaten teams going head to head. Teams who won are looking to stay on track, while the teams who lost are trying to get back on schedule. This is the set up for a great week two.

Oakland Raiders @ Buffalo Bills: Darren McFadden and the Raiders travel across country to face the Buffalo Bills. The Bills put a number on the Chiefs at Arrowhead. Bills should contain McFadden and win at home. Bills 28-24

Green Bay Packers @ Carolina Panthers: Green Bay looked unstoppable in the opener. Cam Newton opened people’s eyes with his 422 yard passing performance. Aaron Rodgers and company have had 10 days to prepare. Packers 31-13

Arizona Cardinals @ Washington Redskins: Arizona escaped with a seven point win in week one. Rex Grossman said the Redskins will win the division and he backed that up with a win against the Giants. Washington looks strong. Redskins 27-21

Baltimore Ravens @ Tennessee Titans: Ravens forced seven turnovers and made the Steelers look bad. Fantasy owners might want to sit CJ2K after his 24 yard rush performance and playing a stingy Ravens defense. Ravens 24-14

Seattle Seahawks @ Pittsburgh Steelers: Both teams lost week one. Seahawks let one get away with a couple of special teams touchdowns late. Coach Mike Tomlin is expected to have his Steelers ready after an embarrassing performance. Steelers 28-10

Jacksonville Jaguars @ N.Y. Jets: One of the five games of unbeaten teams. The Jags won their first game of the season with Luke McCown behind center. Jets look to get the running game going. Jets 24-13

Chicago Bears @ New Orleans Saints: Bears LB Brian Urlacher’s mother unexpectedly passed away. “He is the heart and soul of the team” says QB Jay Cutler. If he doesn’t play it’s going to be trouble for that defense. Saints will take advantage.  Saints 30-20

Kansas City Chiefs @ Detroit Lions: Kansas City looked down right awful after a 41-7 blowout home loss to the Bills. It doesn’t get any easier after they lost S Eric Berry for the season. That’s bad news when going up against Matthew Stafford and Megatron for Detroit. Lions 27-19

Cleveland Browns @ Indianapolis Colts: Browns couldn’t get out of their own last week — literally. Kerry Collins and the Colts can’t be as bad as they looked. One way or another a “Colt” will win. Browns 23-20

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Minnesota Vikings: Both teams who hung around in their own respective games but didn’t look too good. Buccs came back in the 4th quarter to make it a game against Detroit but fell short. Vikings quick start was halted by McNabb’s play. Buccaneers 24-21

Dallas Cowboys @ San Francisco 49ers: Tony Romo helped the Jets win last week with a couple turnovers late. Rob Ryan’s defensive schemes looks to be too much for Alex Smith. Cowboys 27-20

Cincinnati Bengals @ Denver Broncos: Andy Dalton is off to a good start for the Bengals after winning his first start — a divisional road game. Broncos gave up 170 yards on the ground and 150 to one player. Bengals feed Cedric Benson and the Tim Tebow chants get louder. Bengals 20-16

San Diego @ New England: This game features the NFL leader in passing yards last season, Phillip Rivers, and this year’s leader Tom Brady. Yes it’s only been one week but after 517 yards in the opener it’s worth mentioning. Chargers haven’t won in New England since Drew Brees was QB. Patriots 30-28

Houston Texans @ Miami Dolphins: Texans and defense coordinator Wade Phillips looked improved on defense after causing two fumbles and holding the Colts to one touchdown. They’ll have to do it again to make believers. Dolphins’ offense looked good also but the defense couldn’t stop a bus. Texans 28-21

Philadelphia Eagles @ Atlanta Falcons: Game of the week! Highlight this game and mark it down as a can’t miss. Eagles QB Michael Vick makes his first in Atlanta since his incarceration. Sunday night football and the crowd will be rocking. Let’s see what kind of ovation he gets. Vick will amaze again. Eagles 35-28

St. Louis Rams @ N.Y. Giants: Monday Night Football is a game riddled with injuries for both teams. The Rams had a league high eight injuries last week. QB Sam Bradford was one of the injuries but it looks like he’ll make the start.  Steven Jackson and Danny Amendola are more than likely out.

Giants add to the injury list with Hakeem Nicks (knee). He looks probable. Giants injuries hurt them last week. It could be more of the same this week.  St. Louis 21-17

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With the football season right around the corner and training camps starting to get into full swing I’m going to be taking a look at every team division by division over the next few weeks, breaking down off-season moves, making predictions about final records, and predicting who will be coming out of each division. I’m going to start with the AFC East.

New England Patriots: 2010 Record: 14-2 Divisional Finish: 1^st Playoff finish: Lost in Divisional Round to New York Jets

Key Off-season acquisitions:

WR Chad Ochocinco (Trade with Bengals)

DT Albert Haynesworth (Trade with Redskins)

G Logan Mankins (Franchise)

T Matt Light (Resign)

RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis(Resign)

DE Shaun Ellis (Free Agency)

Key Off-season Losses:

DE Ty Warren (Denver)

K Shayne Graham (Washington)

The Pats didn’t sign any top notch free agents this off-season, but leave it up to Bill Belichick and company to make a splash anyways. Trading for pro-bowlers WR Chad Ochocinco and DT Albert Haynesworth the Patriots were able to improve their roster.

Ochocinco represents a significant upgrade at WR and gives Tom Brady the big (much taller at 6’1” than Welker and Branch at 5’9”) number 1 target the Patriots have been missing since Randy Moss’s departure at the beginning of last season. Haynesworth, though unproductive recently is a pro-bowl caliber tackle that with Vince Wilfork will provide significant size in the middle of the D-line.

Add these to the resigning of key lineman Logan Mankins and Matt Light along with stealing Shaun Ellis from the Jets and the Patriots have had quite the off-season. The Patriots look well equipped to make another run at a Super Bowl.

Record Prediction: 12-4

New York Jets: 2010 Record: 11-5 Divisional Finish: 2^nd Playoff Finish: Lost in AFC Championship to Pittsburgh Steelers

Key Off-season acquisitions:

WR Santonio Holmes (Resign)

CB Antonio Cromartie (Resign)

WR Plaxico Burress (Free Agency)

S Eric Smith (Resign)

S Brodney Pool (Resign)

WR Derek Mason (Free Agency)

Key Off-season Losses:

WR Jerricho Cotchery (Released)

WR Braylon Edwards (San Francisco)

WR Brad Smith (Buffalo)

DE Shaun Ellis (New England)

CD Drew Coleman (Jacksonville)

The Jets started this off-season by resigning the best WR available Santonio Holmes. After the Nnamdi snub the Jets went to work resigning CB Antonio Cromartie, and Safeties Eric Smith and Brodney Pool to sure up there secondary behind ‘All-Universe’ corner Darrelle Revis.

The big question for the Jets is how big of a step will QB Mark Sanchez take and they’re taking a risk getting rid of WR’s Braylon Edwards and Jerricho Cotchery whom Sanchez has developed with over the past two years in favor of fresh out of prison Plaxico Burress who hasn’t played in two years and veteran Derek Mason from Baltimore. By not resigning Shaun Ellis they’re also putting a lot of pressure on 1^st round draft pick Muhammad Wilkerson to step up into a starting role instead of learning and developing behind a solid veteran.

The Jets are definitely taking a ‘win now’ approach and with most of the team that made it to the AFC Championship last year still in place they should be poised for another Super Bowl run. The question becomes whether newly named captain Mark Sanchez will step up and propel this team to the next level.

Record Prediction: 12-4

Miami Dolphins: 2010 Record: 7-9 Divisional Finish: 3^rd Playoff Finish: Did not make playoffs

Key Off-season acquisitions:

QB Matt Moore (Free Agency)

RB Reggie Bush (Trade)

T Marc Colombo (Free Agency)

OLB Jason Taylor (Free Agency)

Key Off-season Losses:

RB Ronnie Brown (Philadelphia)

ILB Channing Crowder (Released)

CB Al Harris (St.Louis)

RB Ricky Williams (Baltimore)

Miami hasn’t had the greatest off-season. With many key pieces leaving in free agency Miami let go of their RB’s Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams as well as ILB Channing Crowder.

Looking to upgrade at QB Miami struck out on the bigger name free agents, but were able to sign Matt Moore from Carolina which should represent an upgrade from Chad Henne. Miami was able to trade New Orleans for explosive yet injury prone RB Reggie Bush which should help fill the void left by Brown and Williams, but doesn’t offer a number one option at RB should they not sign anyone else.

Jason Taylor resigned with Miami after his one year hiatus with the nemesis New York Jets which should help Miami’s D and pass rush. There have been rumors about a possible Brett Farve return to the Dolphins but is simply speculation for now.

Overall the Dolphins have taken a step back this off-season, though a little one, but being in same division as the Patriots and Jets who always seem to be contending for a Super Bowl doesn’t help either. The Dolphins will more than likely miss the playoffs as there are just too many strong teams right now in the AFC.

Record Prediction: 8-8

Buffalo Bills: 2010 Record: 4-12 Divisional Finish: 4^th Playoff Finish: Did not make playoffs

Key Off-season acquisitions:

ILB Nick Barnett (Free Agency)

WR Brad Smith (Free Agency)

QB Tyler Thigpen (Free Agency)

ILB Sean Merrimen (Resign)

Key Off-season Losses:

DL Marcus Stroud (Released)

ILB Paul Posluszny (Jacksonville)

FS Donte Whitner (San Francisco)

The Bills have had a so-so off-season losing some pieces, but filling the voids with decent replacements. The signings of Nick Barnett and Sean Merrimen should help to fill Paul Posluszny’s spot, as he was lost a lot to injuries and now to free agency.

The big signing for the Bills comes with being able to pull away multifaceted WR Brad Smith from divisional rivals the New York Jets. The Bills haven’t really upgraded or lost anything from a team that was dead last in the AFC East and one of the worse teams in the league.

It’s already looking like another long season for Bills fans as being in one of the toughest if not the toughest division in football is not helping anything. The bills will again miss the playoffs and struggle to win games all season due to a tough schedule.

Record Prediction: 4-12

AFC East Prediction: The Patriots will defend their divisional title again this year slightly edging out the Jets again. With the Dolphins and the Bills being non factors the Patriots with their off-season moves as well as still having Belichick and Tom Brady should be able to beat out Mark Sanchez and the Jets.

Even if Sanchez improves greatly Brady should still be able to lead his team to another divisional title and potentially a 1 or 2 seed in the playoffs. Look for the Jets and the Patriots to potentially meet again in the playoffs for a repeat of last years divisional round showdown.

Stay tuned for my next preview as I will take a look at the AFC North.

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