AFC East Offseason Grades

New York Jets (Grade: A-)
The Jets had one of the busiest offseason in recent memory, which was even more surprising given the restrictions placed on the final eight teams with regards to free-agency. The team got rid of Thomas Jones, Alan Faneca and Leon Washington, and brought in Antonio Cromartie, LaDanian Tomlinson and Santonio Holmes. Tomlinson is a better fit than Jones in the backfield due to the emergence of Shonn Greene. Greene will pound the ball between the tackles whereas LT will get 8-10 carries a game and be used more on third down where he excels at catching the ball out of the backfield. Leon Washington’s injuries have stunted his career and USC’s Joe McKnight can fill his role as the change of pace back/kick-returner. On defense, Cromartie’s aggressive style of play fits perfectly with Rex Ryan’s scheme. Since he will always matchup against the opponents second receiver and get a lot of balls thrown his way (no one wants to throw on Darrel Revis) I believe he will have a Pro Bowl caliber season. The only move I didn’t like was releasing Alan Faneca. His veteran leadership is valuable as is his contribution to the run game. With no salary cap this season, I’m left scratching my head at this move. The Jets entire game plan is predicated on running the football. If rookie Vladimir Ducasse struggles to step in or the Jets suffer some injuries, the release of Faneca will be highly scrutinized. The Jets first round pick, CB Kyle Wilson is a physical man-to-man player who will step in as the nickel and will allow Rex Ryan the freedom to dial up his exotic blitzes.

Miami Dolphins (Grade: A-)

The big storyline here is obviously the trade for Brandon Marshall. The Dolphins had a serious void at receiver and filled it with arguably the best young receiver in the game. He single-handedly adds a dimension to this offence that they didn’t have before and Chad Henne should post career numbers this season. Sigining ILB Karlos Dansby improves the front seven considerably.  His speed and range will allow the edge defenders focus more on rushing the passer.  Bill Parcells traded down in the first round to accumulate more picks (since he lost a handful in the Marshall deal), and selected DE Jared Odrick from Penn State. Odrick was thought of highly by most teams that run the 3-4 defense and the ‘Fins needed help along their D-line. I also like Koa Misi and he will likely be used in a rotation at the start as he adapts to the OLB position. John Jerry is a powerful guard prospect who fits nicely in Miami’s straight ahead run offence.

New England Patriots (Grade: B+)

There are a lot of people out there who thought the Patriots should’ve selected Dez Bryant but consider this. Next year will be the year of the receiver in the NFL Draft with Julio Jones, AJ Green and Malcolm Floyd all projected to go in the top 10. None of those players have the character concerns that Bryant had and remember that the Patriots hold two first round picks next year (Oakland’s from the Seymour deal). Randy Moss is aging but the Patriots will not require a replacement for him until at least next season. As usual, Bill Belichick traded down and amassed a number of picks that he used to upgrade his team all over. The Patriots picked Devin McCourty, Jermaine Cunningham and Brandon Spikes in the first two rounds to help fix the problems they had last year on defense. Cunningham has potential to be an effective pass rusher off the edge but will require some time to adjust to the hybrid position. His college teammate Spikes is a player I really like and fits nicely in the middle as a compliment to Jerod Mayo. Belichick picked two excellent TE’s early in the draft. Rob Gronkowski could be the next Jason Witten if he can stay out of the training room whereas Aaron Hernandez is more of a receiving threat but will create matchup problems for opposing linebackers. Zoltan Mesko went early for a punter but is very talented. Belichick knows the value of good special teams. In a division full of tough defenses, a quality punter that can win field position battles is essential.

Buffalo Bills (Grade: D)

I haven’t liked anything about the Bills offseason to this point. I thought they reached on Torell Troup and Alex Carrington, although they needed personnel to help switch to the 3-4. CJ Spiller to me was a luxury pick and the Bills don’t have enough talent on the roster to make luxury picks. Anthony Davis, Jimmy Clausen or even Dez Bryant should’ve been considered here. Now they have a stable of running backs but no line to block for them or their quarterback (whoever ends up lining up behind centre). They added no one worth noting in free agency and lost T.O. In my opinion the Bills will bottom out this year and finish dead last in the NFL (I can’t see them winning a game in their division). The Bills should take a good hard look at what the Rams did with their first two picks because next year they should do the same thing and select Washington Huskies quarterback Jake Locker and the best available OT at the top of round 2.