Almost all the NFL’s top free agents have been signed. The draft has come and gone. Barring trades and late preseason releases, anyone who is going to make a difference on a team’s run to Super Bowl 58 is already on their roster.
This doesn’t mean each franchise is complete; far from it. Every team in the NFL has remaining flaws opponents will look to exploit in order to gain an advantage. For 2023’s likely contenders, those flaws are pinholes in the mast of their boats. For rebuilding squads they could be the size of a Mercury Tracer, just waiting to drag their vessel to the bottom of the league’s ocean.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at each team’s remaining flaw — some significantly more concerning than others. We’ll run down each franchise in alphabetical order.
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Arizona Cardinals: Someone to consistently pressure quarterbacks
The Cardinals lost their two 2022 sack leaders when J.J. Watt retired and Zach Allen left to join the Denver Broncos. They took 50 percent of the team’s sack production with them. Factor in Markus Golden’s long slide through free agency and Arizona has to replace more than 52 percent of the team’s total quarterback pressures as well.
Arizona’s big move to fix that was to draft BJ Ojulari in the second round and … well, unless Kyzir White suddenly becomes a pass rushing threat as an off-ball linebacker (three career sacks in 64 games), that’s about it. The pressure will be on 2022 third-round picks Myjai Sanders and Cameron Thomas to step up after limited impacts in rotational roles last fall. But even if they don’t, that’s probably OK — 2023 looks like a clear rebuilding year in the desert.
Atlanta Falcons: Throwing the ball downfield
Atlanta spent money to bring veterans to the defensive side of the ball and draft picks to beef up its running attack, landing Bijan Robinson at eighth overall before adding Syracuse’s Matthew Bergeron in round two to play a major role at guard. But the Falcons are going to have to throw the ball at some point and it’s still unclear just how up to that task Desmond Ridder will be.
He was mostly inoffensive in four games as a rookie, completing 63 percent of his passes without an interception but also averaging just five air yards per caught ball and connecting on only two attempts (out of nine) of 20-plus yards downfield. Stacked boxes and a hopefully-healthy Kyle Pitts-Drake London combination will create opportunities to make hay downfield. Can Ridder step up and make those throws?
Baltimore Ravens: Cornerback depth
Lamar Jackson is locked in for five more years and has some live bodies to throw to — though a Odell Beckham Jr., Rashod Bateman, Zay Flowers top-three at wideout may look much better on paper than in practice. This year’s defensive upgrades took aim at the linebacker corps in very Ravens fashion, but the group behind them is a concern.
Marlon Humphrey is a great outside option. Rock Ya-Sin is a productive veteran, albeit one that hasn’t started more than nine games in any of the last three seasons. Brandon Stephens struggled as a rookie and had his snap count decrease in 2022 but now looks like the team’s third corner (or second should Ya-Sin get hurt again). Jalyn Armour-Davis, Damarion Williams and Kyu-Blu Kelly are all recent Day 3 draft picks. Someone from that group is going to have to step up and keep this cornerback room from being a one man show.
Buffalo Bills: A secondary that might not be what it once was
Stefon Diggs still needs a proper running mate to take the pressure off him as a target in big games, but first-round pick Dalton Kincaid will provide at least some relief. Buffalo’s defensive backfield, however, may be in for a downturn despite all its big names.
Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde are each on the wrong side of 30 years old and had 20 missed games between them last season. Tre’Davious White missed 11 games and was good, but not as great as he can be, in the six he played. Taron Johnson and Kaiir Elam gave up passer ratings of 100.1 and 96.5, respectively, when targeted. That helped turn 2021’s top-ranked passing defense 2022’s eighth-best. With minimal reinforcements on the way, further slippage could be coming.
Carolina Panthers: Targets for Bryce Young
Trading up to No. 1 to land a franchise quarterback meant trading away one of the steadiest young wideouts in the game. A D.J. Moore-less receiving room is now led by DJ Chark, Terrace Marshall Jr., 2023 second-round pick Jonathan Mingo and a 33-year-old Adam Thielen. Only one player in that lineup has had a season with more than 502 receiving yards since 2020, and it’s the oldest member of the crew.
Young’s efficiency was boosted by one of the most talented receiving corps in college football in 2021’s Heisman Trophy-winning campaign. He wasn’t quite as prolific or explosive in 2022 following Jameson Williams and John Metchie’s departures to the NFL. The idea a quarterback isn’t as good without elite receivers isn’t exactly a revelation, but it’s possible Young’s learning curve is steeper than expected with a wideout corps loaded with more supporting castmates than stars.
Chicago Bears: Who's gping to instill fear in opposing quarterbacks?
The Bears had 20 sacks in 2022 — 1.5 more than Nick Bosa had on his own. Their 15.9 percent pressure rate was second-worst in the NFL. But with other pressing needs to address this offseason (offensive line, wideout, backfield, linebacker secondary … pretty much everything), Chicago’s big pass rush acquisition was to add Rasheem Green (3.5 sacks in 2022) and add Day 2 interior line draft picks in Gervon Dexter and Zacch Pickens.
Those players are all solid complimentary pieces when it comes to shrinking pockets, but there’s no havoc engine up front for the Bears. That extended time in the pocket is going to allow opposing QBs to pick apart a young secondary.
Cincinnati Bengals: They've got to hope their young secondary is ready
It would have been nice to draft a high profile tight end or resolve the Jonah Williams situation, but Cincinnati addressed its biggest needs by adding a high-motor pass rusher (Myles Murphy) with its first round pick and bolstering a needy secondary on Day 2. But that secondary is replacing a lot of talent (and also Eli Apple).
That leaves the arduous task of shutting down Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Trevor Lawrence to guys like Dax Hill, Cam Taylor-Britt, D.J. Turner II and Jordan Battle. Sure there’s other help there — notably Chidobe Awuzie and Mike Hilton — but the guys opposing coordinators will be targeting will be the ones just starting to piece together their NFL game tapes.
Cleveland Browns: The linebackers need work (and so does the quarterback, maybe)
The young stud who was supposed to revamp the middle of the Cleveland defense, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, had a 10.3 missed tackle rate and allowed a 132.1 passer rating in coverage. Anthony Walker has played only 16 games the last two seasons. Sione Takitaki has been a solid gap-filler unable to prove himself worthy of a starring role. While the 2023 draft class was filled with great value, it didn’t add much in terms of linebacker help for the league’s 28th-ranked rushing defense.
While we’re here, we’ve also got to discuss Deshaun Watson, who returned to the field following more than 20 accusations of sexual misconduct and what the NFL itself described as “predatory behavior” to play like the league’s 32nd-best quarterback. Adding Cedric Tillman will give him another receiving option, but Owusu-Koramoah could rise to his potential and Walker could play like an All-Pro and it won’t matter if Watson is hot garbage again as a Brown.
Dallas Cowboys: Mike McCarthy, head coach
The Cowboys roster is extremely strong on paper. Dallas used the draft to plug obvious holes (defensive tackle, tight end) and a trade for Brandin Cooks utilized the team’s limited cap space to fill another need. Sure, Dak Prescott has plenty to prove after backsliding in 2022, but that can be at least partially explained by the throwing hand injury that took him off the field in Week 1 and may or may not have haunted him upon his return.
The unfortunate fact is that depth chart is in the hands of McCarthy, a capable regular season coach unable or unwilling to find the edges that can propel him back to playoff glory. McCarthy’s MO over the last decade has been that of a battleship captain, capable of cruising in a single direction and destroying whatever’s on that path but lost when asked to maneuver around unexpected challenges. He doesn’t fix exploitable problems with his teams, allowing opponents to tear at those gaps until they’re vortices of shame and frustration consuming all hope at the end of another too-early playoff disappointment. Maybe he’s fixed that in 2023, but fixing broken things isn’t exactly a selling point for Mike McCarthy.
Denver Broncos: Javonte Williams is still working his way back from ACL surgery
Sean Payton is supremely confident his young tailback will be back from a torn ACL in time for training camp. That’s great, because if he can’t go the top two options behind Williams are Samaje Perine (who hasn’t had more than 100 carries in a season since 2017) and either Damarea Crockett or Tony Jones Jr.
Williams is capable of handling RB1 duties, but we haven’t seen it on a consistent level yet. He split time with Melvin Gordon as a rookie and only played three games before wrecking his knee in Week 4 last fall. As it currently stands, he’ll be the unquestioned alpha in the Denver tailback rotation and a badly needed safety valve to keep pressure from Russell Wilson’s shoulders.
Detroit Lions: They really could have used another pass rusher with one of those first round picks
Lukas Van Ness, Calijah Kancey, Myles Murphy and Will McDonald IV were all on the board when the Lions made their first draft pick at No. 12. Kancey and Murphy were still available when they made their second selection at No. 18. But instead general manager Martin Mayhew opted for a running back and inside linebacker with those picks — and then held true to his avoidance of edge rushers or down linemen with pass rushing experience through the entire 2023 NFL Draft.
That’s not to say Detroit didn’t fill needs, particularly on defense where Jack Campbell and Brian Branch can be immediate difference makers. But Aidan Hutchinson needed a proper running mate up front and now he’ll rely on John Cominsky and Charles Harris to keep opposing quarterbacks from escaping. A rebuilt secondary could mean this is a superfluous concern. Even so, it was a curious move to pass up value at an expensive position by ignoring pass rushers at this year’s draft.
Green Bay Packers: The wideouts. Still.
The most accomplished wide receiver or tight end on the Packers’ depth chart is Romeo Doubs by virtue of 42 career receptions (one more than Christian Watson). Green Bay beefed up its target corps at this year’s draft but not with high-floor first round talent like Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Zay Flowers or Quentin Johnston. Instead, the team added Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft.
Forcing those guys to step into immediate roles — particularly Musgrave (injured for most of the 2022 season) and Kraft (moving up from FCS South Dakota State) — is a big ask. But that’s what Jordan Love needs to hit the ground running in 2023.
Houston Texans: The secondary remains a mess
The general vibe of the Texans right now is an old Taco Bell under renovation. They’re still open for business because they have no other choice, but while some things are sparkly and new and a considerable upgrade over the rest of the equipment there’s still a bunch of old chalupa shells and a broken quesadilla press and nothing really works together.
As such, Houston is a weird mix of veterans looking for redemption and young prospects looking for a breakthrough. There’s more talent on this year’s roster than last and an opportunity to win games in a dilapidated AFC South. Still, mixing good tools with bad means there’s going to be plenty of disappointment to go around in 2023, which is bad news for the Texans but great news for the Cardinals, who own their 2024 first and third-round draft picks. Anyway, Jalen Pitre and Derek Stingley Jr. have the potential to be great but, honestly, who knows how that will translate this fall.
Indianapolis Colts: This is the offensive line that's going to nurture Anthony Richardson's talent?
Indianapolis had long fielded one of the league’s best offensive lines in front of a smorgasbord of also-ran starting quarterbacks. But that group began to splinter and in 2022 the Colts ranked 27th in composite pass protection rankings, per The Athletic’s Ben Baldwin.
Final Official Pass Protection Rankings as measured by three independent data sources
— 3 teams lapping the field (GB, PHI, BAL)
— MIA/CIN ended up being somewhat disappointing given their investments in OL pic.twitter.com/KdWJddivjc— Computer Cowboy (@benbbaldwin) January 10, 2023
Now that group will turn left tackle duties over to either 2022 third-round pick Bernhard Raimann or 2023 fourth-rounder Blake Freeland, who are both athletic but raw talents. Presumptive right guard Will Fries, a 2021 seventh round selection, posted a PFF grade of 58.4 last season. It’s a good thing Richardson is one of the league’s fastest quarterbacks, because he might be scrambling a lot as a rookie.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Teams with deep receiving corps can carve up their shallow secondary
Jacksonville has plenty of talent at the top of their defensive back pecking order. Tyson Campbell allowed just a 78.0 passer rating in coverage last season. Darious Williams was even better, barely allowing more than half his targets to be completed. Rayshawn Jenkins was a steady leader at safety and Andre Cisco can grow into a larger role.
After that, things get dicey. Nickel back Tre Herndon has allowed a passer rating over 112.0 in each of the last three seasons. Chris Claybrooks, Antonio Johnson and Christian Braswell are all unproven entities. There’s an opportunity here for a loaded opponent to crush the Jaguars from the slot and force Trevor Lawrence to play catch-up all afternoon.
Kansas City Chiefs: Travis Kelce might be Patrick Mahomes' only reliable producer
The Chiefs offset the loss of Tyreek Hill by signing JuJu Smith-Schuster to a modest deal and went on to win a Super Bowl. Now they’re moving on from Smith-Schuster with a handful of unproven talent at wideout that stands to put an even greater strain on the soon-to-be 34-year-old Kelce.
That receiving corps is now in the hands of Kadarius Toney, Skyy Moore, Rashee Rice and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Together, that group combined for 80 NFL catches last season. Patrick Mahomes has earned the benefit of the doubt when it comes to just about anything. If he can turn that raw group of unmolded talent into a defensive coordinator’s nightmare, he’ll cement his place as a legend.
Las Vegas Raiders: Their defensive backs are mostly butt, per tradition
Las Vegas gave up a 98.8 passer rating in coverage last season. That was equivalent to an average Josh Allen game (96.6) and worst in the league. To fix that, the Raiders signed Marcus Epps (good) and replaced Rock Ya-Sin with two corners who played even less than him last fall in Brandon Facyson and David Long (… less good).
Tre’von Moehrig’s coverage backslid last season, but he and Epps can provide a viable safety net over the top. The focus now shifts to a grody veteran cornerback group that didn’t add anyone in this year’s draft prior to Day 3. New quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is built to play from ahead; his secondary could make that nearly impossible.
Los Angeles Chargers: One more offensive line injury and Justin Herbert's leap will have to wait
The 2022 season ended in a playoff berth for the Chargers, but it was a largely frustrating season. Losing Rashawn Slater to a torn bicep sent his blocking into flux and ended with a litany of short throws — his pressure rate rose while his average air yards per throw slunk to a career-worst 6.4 (third-lowest among starting quarterbacks). Adding Quentin Johnston to the receiving corps keeps his available targets stout, but it all could be a moot point if his protection doesn’t hold up.
Slater’s return will be huge and 2022 first rounder Zion Johnson should be better after a frustrating rookie campaign. But Trey Pipkins at right tackle could be a weak spot and another poorly timed injury could tear pages out of the Los Angeles playbook. Herbert remains on the precipice of a breakthrough; he’ll need to remain upright to do so.
Los Angeles Rams: Everything about the defense except Aaron Donald (and maybe Ernest Jones)
Donald and Jones? Those are the only two returning players to have started at least 10 games on defense last season. Aaron Donald was Aaron Donald. Jones played well enough to make his case for a larger role. Jordan Fuller returns at safety after missing the bulk of 2022 and Marquise Copeland was useful when forced into action last season.
It’s not like there’s veteran help on the way. The two biggest free agent additions to this cash-strapped roster were backups Brett Rypien and Hunter Long, who both play on the offensive side of the field. This means rookies like Kobie Turner and Byron Young will have an opportunity to immediately contribute on Sundays, but that there are going to be some significant growing pains along the way. Which is fine, because 2024 is shaping up to be the first season the Rams have a first round pick since 2016.
Miami Dolphins: Tua Tagovailoa's receiving corps is a two-man show
In fairness, this wasn’t a problem last fall. Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle combined for 194 catches and 3,066 receiving yards in 2022, or 64 percent of the team’s passing output. The next most productive duo, Mike Gesicki and Trent Sherfield, combined for 779 yards — 16 percent of that aerial attack. Gesicki and Sherfield both left as free agents, leaving any slack to be picked up by Durham Smythe, Cedrick Wilson, Erik Ezukanma and others.
Davon Achane’s presence in the backfield will add an addition option in the short range passing game and stopping Hill and Waddle is obviously easier said than done. But an injury to either player, both of whom play a position with a reasonably high injury rate to begin with, could seriously derail not just the Miami offense but Tua Tagovailoa’s emergence as a franchise quarterback. Tagovailoa led the league in passer rating last fall despite that two-man receiving corps. He’s liable to do it again, but not adding a viable third option could prove to be his undoing in 2023.
Minnesota Vikings: A defense filled with spare parts
Minnesota ranked 27th in overall defensive DVOA last year even with Za’Darius Smith playing at a high level as veteran contributors. Both departed this offseason, leaving their spots in the lineup to younger lottery pick free agents Marcus Davenport (0.5 sacks in 2022) and Byron Murphy (a 103.3 passer rating allowed). Those moves might not pan out, but even if they do that may not be enough to fix things.
New England Patriots: Mac Jones needs someone to whom he can throw
Replacing Matt Patricia with Bill O’Brien as offensive play caller will go a long way in restoring the hope a rookie Jones provided in 2021. The receiving corps around him, however, will dampen those spirits.
His huckleberry, Jakobi Meyers, is now a Las Vegas Raider. In his place is JuJu Smith-Schuster, who has worked best in a supporting role rather than the WR1 New England may need him to be. DeVante Parker still has some juice (four games with at least four catches last season) but has been inconsistent as a Patriot and in general as a pro. Kendrick Bourne was a big piece of Jones’ Pro Bowl debut but has been largely ignored by his offense since.
This means someone from the team’s young core of pass catchers will have to step up. Will that be 2022 second round surprise Tyquan Thornton? 2023 draft slider Kayshon Boutte? Fellow sixth round pick Demario Davis? The options aren’t great, which could push O’Brien to move free agent addition Mike Gesicki all across his offense.
New Orleans Saints: The biggest stars on this defense are approaching an age cliff
With due respect to Marshon Lattimore, the two most recognizable figures in the New Orleans starting defense are Cameron Jordan and Tyrann Mathieu. Each has borderline Hall of Fame credentials — 11 Pro Bowls between them. Each is on the wrong side of 30.
The Saints’ lack of depth means they need their stars to shine brighter than anyone else’s in the NFC South. The good news is both Jordan and Mathieu played at a high level last fall. The bad news is they’ll be a combined 65 years old this season and a decline is inevitable. With a limited offense (barring a Derek Carr/Michael Thomas revival), any gaps in that defense could prove fatal to the Saints’ playoff hopes.
New York Giants: The run defense
New York ranked 32nd in rush defense DVOA last season and gave up 5.2 yards per carry. That’s a problem for a 2023 schedule that features six games against top 10 run offenses. While it’s not a transparent stat — teams with the ball run more often to burn clock — the Giants went 2-5-1 in games where they gave up at least 150 yards on the ground last fall.
With pressing needs to fill elsewhere, bolstering the rush defense fell to the wayside. The two biggest front seven additions were Rakeem Nunez-Roches and Bobby Okereke, who should help but probably aren’t enough manpower to fix things. New York made the right decision to prioritize its secondary and offense this offseason and in the draft, but that may have left one last viable weakness for opponents to exploit.
New York Jets: The guys protecting Aaron Rodgers on the edges
New York’s top three offensive tackles are: Duane Brown, who turns 38 years old this season Mekhi Becton, who has played one game the past two seasons and Max Mitchell, who made five starts last season and earned a 55.5 PFF grade for his efforts. A full strength Becton could change the trajectory of this group, but the Jets’ protection is a legitimate question mark.
That’s an issue for Rodgers, a player whose passing has long been buoyed by his ability to escape pressure. The soon-to-be 40-year-old has seen diminishing returns from those runs as of late; his 13 scrambles last season were a career low. If he’s swamped in the pocket, his dreams of a Broadway revival may wind up grounded.
Philadelphia Eagles: Someone's got to step up at safety
Despite losing a ton of veteran talent this offseason, the Eagles are still well equipped with a savvy mix of trusted starters and high profile prospects ready to patch whatever holes have taken shape. That’ll be the case at safety, where Chauncey Gardner-Johnson and Marcus Epps have each departed after playing the bulk of Philly’s defensive snaps in 2022 (Epps, in fact, led the team by playing 99.1 percent of the regular season).
There’s a contingency in place. Reed Blankenship filled in for an injured Gardner-Johnson last fall and held his own. Terrell Edmunds signed after five useful, if underwhelming, seasons in Pittsburgh. Third-round pick Sydney Brown has some Brian Dawkins in his game and could make an immediate impact. But none of these guys are a tried-and-true sure thing answer at a depleted position.
Pittsburgh Steelers: Off-ball linebacker
Pittsburgh signed a pair of stop-gap veteran solutions to man the middle of the field this season. Cole Holcomb and Elandon Roberts bring experience to the position, but they join Myles Jack, Joe Schobert and Robert Spillane (sort of) as the latest in a string of underwhelming veteran solutions to a problem.
That’s not the only reason why a once great defense was merely good the past two seasons, but it’s certainly a factor. Spillane, Jack and former first round pick Devin Bush all gave up a passer rating of 107 or higher when targeted last season as opposing tight ends averaged nearly 11 yards per catch against them. Now in comes Holcomb (125.6 rating against) and Roberts (121.9). Minkah Fitzpatrick’s gonna have a lot of ground to cover this fall.
San Francisco 49ers: The right side of that offensive line looks mighty suspect
At the moment, San Francisco’s center-right guard-right tackle combination appears to be Jake Brendel, Spencer Burford and Colton McKivitz. Brendel proved to be a roughly average anchor in the middle of the line last fall, but Burford earned a 51.8 PFF grade last season (potential replacement Jon Feliciano clocked in at 57.4) and McKivitz has five NFL starts on his three year resume.
McKivitz may be capable of replacing Mike McGlinchey, but if he’s not it’ll put even more strain on an offense attempting to build around a tangled nest of quarterback solutions. Kyle Shanahan’s attack insulates his QBs with a litany of short passes and runs, but only half that equation will work behind a subpar offensive line. Someone needs to step up up front and keep the 49ers’ blocking from being its Achilles heel.
Seattle Seahawks: Interior offensive line
Abe Lucas and Charles Cross look like foundational bookends for years to come. Things are much more unsettled in the middle, however. While Damien Lewis is a solid guard, center Evan Brown has historically been better off as a depth option and potential right guard Phil Haynes has only five starts in four NFL seasons.
That could unravel Pete Carroll’s plans to trample the turf between the hash marks with runs. It could put a strain on the Kenneth Walker III-Zach Charbonnet duo working out of his backfield. But the Seahawks also added Jaxon Smith-Njigba to a receiving corps that already featured DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, so it’s possible the pass blocking up front is more important than Seattle’s ground attack.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Bucs, your quarterbacks, woof.
Tampa’s current 1-2 combination behind center is Kyle Trask and Baker Mayfield, in some order. There are several other holes that need to be filled, but … yeah.
Tennessee Titans: The passing game
This is going to be a trying year for Ryan Tannehill. Or for Will Levis and Malik Willis, should that be how things unravel.
The Titans paved the way for a Tannehill revival with a run-first offense that played to his strengths and allowed him to thrive against single coverage with a lineup of risk-averse throws. But Derrick Henry may be starting to wind down; he’s 29 years old and his yards after contact averages the last two seasons (2.2 and 2.3, respectively) have been significantly below his career averages. That means more throws and, crucially, fewer easy play-action reads. Who’ll be catching those? Treylon Burks and Chigoziem Okonkwo have upside but are unproven talents. Behind them are Kyle Phillips, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Chris Moore and Josh Whyle. It’s not an especially uplifting group.
Washington Commanders: A bad offensive line protecting a shaky quarterback
Yep, this is a two-fer. Washington’s offensive line ranked 31st in composite pass blocking last fall. Signing Andrew Wylie and drafting Ricky Stromberg in the third round should help, but it’s not going to create a ton of space for a unit that ranked 26th in pressure rate allowed (24.6 percent).
That’s a problem, because the Commanders’ quarterbacks are likely to struggle even with a perfect situation in the pocket. Jacoby Brissett outplayed expectations last season but still struggled in high leverage situations, fading in big moments to keep Cleveland underwhelming. Sam Howell was a 2022 fifth round pick who only threw 19 regular season passes last season. That combination could lead to Ron Rivera’s ousting in D.C..
