1. Jacksonville Jaguars: What a difference a year can make. In 2021, they hired Urban Meyer. Urban was a fixture amongst college football because wherever he was, he always won. The Jaguars were hoping he’d bring some of that same magic to them, but it was the complete opposite. After firing him in season in ’21, Jacksonville decided to hire Doug Pederson, a man who isn’t too far removed from leading the Philadelphia Eagles to their first Super Bowl victory in franchise history. The saying is true: Coaching does indeed matter, but I like to add that experienced coaching makes all the difference. I saw a team that wanted to play for Doug, and I wish I could say the same about Urban. Trevor Lawrence took that next step. The Jaguars came out of left field and won the AFC South for the first time since 2017. The highlight of last season was erasing a 27-point deficit and beating the Los Angeles Charges in the Wild Card round.
2. Tennessee Titans: Everything was looking up for them at one-point last season. After an 0-2 start, the Titans reeled off six consecutive victories. After 10 games, they were 7-3 and appeared to be on their way to winning yet another AFC South division title. Tennessee would end up losing their final seven games of the season and finished with a 7-10 record. Being available and healthy makes all the difference and injuries just hampered this team left and right. Ryan Tannehill suffered an ankle injury in week seven and tried to come back only to reaggravate the injury and ended up being put on injury reserve. Taylor Lewan missed 15 games with knee injury and Harold Landry was out for the entire season. Another issue that hurt their Titans was the inconsistency at Wide Receiver. After trading A.J. Brown, the Titans struggled to generate any type of production with their receivers. The only shining light for this entire team right now is Derrick Henry.
3. Indianapolis Colts: Ever since Andrew Luck retired, they have started a total of six different Quarterbacks. Jacoby Brissett, Philip Rivers, Carson Wentz, Brian Hoyer, Sam Ehlinger and Matt Ryan. Only Rivers helped lead them to the playoffs. When they acquired Matt Ryan, I thought it was a good move because he had needed a change of scenery and he was coming into a situation where the Colts had a strong running game and played good defense. They could never get out of their own way and struggled throughout the year. Frank Reich was fired in the middle of the year and the Colts named Jeff Saturday their interim Head Coach. This year, the Colts named former Eagles Offensive Coordinator, Shane Steichen their new Head Coach and in the drafted, they selected Anthony Richardson, the standout Quarterback from Florida. A boost for this defense would be the return of Shaquille Leonard. Anthony will become the seventh starting Quarterback for the Colts in as many years.
4. Houston Texans: This franchise has been a mess the last few seasons. Everything that happened with Deshaun Watson, hiring David Culley who made the most of what he had around him considering all that was going on and he was fired after just one season. Next, the Texans turned to Lovie Smith to be their next Head Coach and he was also fired after one year. Now, the Texans have turned to a familiar face to be their next Head Coach. Former 49ers Defensive Coordinator and Texans Linebacker Demeco Ryans was hired to lead this team. In the Draft, Houston took Quarterback C.J. Stroud with the second overall pick. Next, they traded up with the Arizona Cardinals to draft EDGE rusher Will Anderson from Alabama. Two home run picks and Houston hasn’t had an impact defensive player since the J.J. Watt days. They are still a few years away from being competitive once again, but this draft has them headed in the right direction.
2023 Prediction
1. Jaguars (11-6)
2. Titans (7-10)
3. Colts (6-11)
4. Texans (4-13)
I like the Jacksonville Jaguars to win this division for the second consecutive year. Trevor Lawrence will pick up where he left off and the offense will have the services of Calvin Ridley as he returns from a year-long suspension. This is the most established team in the division and they are looking to climb that ladder a bit more. A division title, a playoff win and appearance in the divisional round of the playoffs. They want more. Look for this defense to improve in 2023. This was a young and fun group to watch last year and I expect the same this season.
