2013 Season Predictions: AFC East

The AFC East has been one of the most unbalanced divisions in the NFL for over a decade now, as the Patriots have taken 10 of the last 12 division titles while becoming one of the league's all time dynasties. This year, however, some people have been scared off the bandwagon with both of the Patriot's big tight-ends off the field currently (for very different reasons) and his old security blanket in Wes Welker now working for his biggest rival. Is this the year Brady and Belichick finally lose their iron grip on the division title to the Miami Dolphins, fresh off a multi-million dollar spending spree in free agency? Meanwhile, how do the Bills fare with rookie EJ Manuel at the helm this year? And is it possible to at least dampen the colossal dumpster fire once known as the New York Jets? (Hint: I think not)

1. New England Patriots : 11-5 (2012 Season : 12-4)

Well, another season, another division title for New England. As many losses as New England has suffered for their passing game, they still have one of the top quarterbacks in NFL history and one of the greatest coaches to ever design a game plan: they'll be fine. Brady has already demonstrated plenty of chemistry with some of his new receivers like Danny Amendola and undrafted rookie Kenbrell Thompkins, and their running game already looks like it'll be effective enough to take plenty of pressure off their passing game. Not to mention, they have some emerging talent on defense after being carried by their offense for the past few years. While Brady and co. may not coast through the regular season this year and may experience a few more bumps than we're used to from this squad, make no mistake: betting against the Patriots winning this division again is about as useful as playing AP in a preseason game.

2. Miami Dolphins : 8-8 (2012 Season : 7-9)

Miami's spending spree gets them a total of one extra win this season, but at least it keeps them from another losing season. While many of their offseason acquisitions are nice, Ryan Tannehill still may need some extra time to develop as a passer before he can be viewed as a legitimate franchise quarterback like some of the other quarterbacks from his draft class, and no amount of money can fix that. Also, for all the Dolphins' spending, they forgot to fix one of the most important positions in the game, as Jonathan Martin has looked absolutely brutal in training camp and preseason. The loss of tight end Dustin Keller for the entire year to multiple knee injuries isn't going to do this offense any favors either. The defense is set to be a solid unit again this year,  though the injury concerns for #3 overall pick Dion Jordan are a little troubling. Overall, the Dolphins do have plenty of young talent and did bring in some good players, but they're going to need time to mesh and their young quarterback needs more than a year to develop before dethroning Tom Brady.

3. Buffalo Bills : 6-10 (2012 Season : 7-9)

The Bills are getting a new look this season with new head coach Doug Marrone and rookie quarterback EJ Manuel at the helm. Marrone looks to try to direct an up-tempo attack with star running back CJ Spiller and remake a Buffalo defense that has plenty of talent invested in it but has been largely underwhelming, even with big free agent signing Mario Williams. There's plenty to get excited about with this roster, but with a rookie (and one that was considered especially raw) directing the show for this offense, it's only natural that there's going to be some growing pains as EJ adjusts to life in the NFL. Even more than that, EJ may or may not miss week 1 right now with a knee injury, meaning undrafted rookie Jeff Tuel may become the first undrafted rookie to start week one since 1960. Optimism should be rampant in Buffalo, but before breaking their league record playoff drought there's going to be some low points with an extremely unstable quarterback situation this year and a defense that still has to prove it can step up.

4. New York Jets : 4-12 (2012 Season : 6-10)

The Jets will most likely field a quality defense this year, but apparently no one told Rex Ryan there are two sides to football. The Jets have extremely little talent to speak of offensively, as their top receiver doesn't know if he'll see the field this year, and the running back they made a trade for is currently injured. Also injured is their hapless starter from last year, Mark Sanchez, which means 2nd round rookie quarterback Geno Smith may be forced to start at the beginning of the season, even though the body of work he's shown to this point seems to say that he's not quite NFL ready or simply a bad fit in new offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg system. The Jets may stop many teams from scoring this year, but if their offense turns the ball over and fails to consistently gain yards this team just doesn't have a chance at being successful. Rex Ryan has been telling the media that he's mainly been working with the defense this offseason and it shows on the field. Rex may still be one of the best defensive coordinators in the league, but apparently he still hasn't learned that to be an NFL head coach you need to pay attention to both sides of the ball in order to win games. It remains to be seen how patient owner Woody Johnson and new general manager John Idzik will be this season, but the odds are good both Rex and Sanchez don't survive past this season.