The 2022 NFL offseason has been wild. It’s been the backdrop to blockbuster trades and record-setting contracts, all taking place with more than a month to go before this year’s draft.
Russell Wilson left the Seahawks. Matt Ryan said goodbye to the Falcons. Davante Adams traded in Aaron Rodgers for Derek Carr as his quarterback. Von Miller signed a $120 million contract at age 33 to leave the Rams in his rear view.
These were all headline-worthy moves. And every one involved a superstar departing the NFC for the AFC.
The AFC has been the setting of an NFL spending spree that threatens to upend the conference’s standings. Almost every team in the AFC can point to at least one marquee addition who stands to improve its roster in 2022. Here’s a sampling, with some upgrades more worthy than others:
- Buffalo Bills: added Von Miller
- Miami Dolphins: added Tyreek Hill and Terron Armstead
- New York Jets: added Jordan Whitehead, DJ Reed, and Laken Tomlinson
- Cincinnati Bengals: spent $55 million to upgrade Joe Burrow’s blocking
- Cleveland Browns: added Deshaun Watson and Amari Cooper
- Baltimore Ravens: added Marcus Williams
- Pittsburgh Steelers: added Myles Jack, Levi Wallace, and James Daniels
- Tennessee Titans: added Robert Woods
- Indianapolis Colts: added Matt Ryan and Yannick Ngakoue
- Jacksonville Jaguars: spent more than $250 million on free agents
- Las Vegas Raiders: added Davante Adams
- Los Angeles Chargers: added JC Jackson and Khalil Mack
- Denver Broncos: added Russell Wilson and Randy Gregory
Those are 13 teams that arguably got better this offseason, leaving the poor Chiefs, Patriots, and Texans in the lurch. The AFC West, ruled by Kansas City the past six seasons, is now open to whichever team can tread water in its shark tank long enough. The Bills extended their claim to the East by signing Miller but now have to hope he’s capable of getting around Armstead and ruining Tua Tagovailoa’s day before he can hit up Hill or Jaylen Waddle.
The North now has to deal with Burrow’s now-competent group of blockers and a reality where the team most of us predict will finish last in 2022 — the Steelers — could field a top five defense. The South will see a healthy Derrick Henry return to the Titans lineup in hopes of fending off a rejuvenated Matt Ryan for the division crown.
Meanwhile, the current non-Tom Brady quarterbacks in the NFC South are Jameis Winston, Sam Darnold, and Marcus Mariota. The Vikings’ big play to unseat a vulnerable Packers team in the North was to lock human uncooked hot dog Kirk Cousins in for another $35 million in guaranteed money. Dak Prescott could be the only quarterback in the East with a passer rating over 90.0. The West no longer has to worry about Seattle and Kliff Kingsbury remains the coach in Arizona, where he plots his next late-season collapse.
So while Patriots and Chiefs fans have reason to be nervous, there’s never been a better time to sneak into the postseason and wreck havoc if you’re an NFC team. That 16-team conference is down to four bonafide superstar quarterbacks (Prescott, Brady, Aaron Rodgers, and Matthew Stafford) spread neatly across the four divisions. That leaves plenty of room for usurpers to stake their claim and chip away at weakened empires.
2022 has been a struggle in the AFC as teams jockey for position in a crowded field. There aren’t nearly as many horses on the other side of the league, however — and that could lead to some exciting, unexpected runs from the NFC teams we’ve overlooked.
