AFC East:
Buffalo Bills: Wide Receiver
The Bills have showed something early in the season, but are 2-4 since Week eight. Their offense has struggled and it has not been due to the running games performance. The Passing game has been weak and although Nathan Peterman and Tyrod Taylor don’t have the highest pedigree, he has not been helped by his receiving core.
Miami Dolphins: Offensive Line
Now the Miami Dolphins have not been helped by quarterback injuries. They started the year with Jay Cutler after Ryan Tannehill had a season ending injury. However, the Dolphins Achilles heal is their offensive line. They have solid playmakers Jarvis Landry and Kenny Stills, but that has not made up for their weakness at offensive line.
New England Patriots: Edge Rusher
The Patriots have had a good season as expected and they seem to have at least adequate talent at each position. The area of weakness is the edge defenders. They could really improve their pass rush with better defensive ends.
New York Jets: Cornerback
The Jets drafted safeties early in the draft last year and that has paid off but they still need to upgrade their corners to have the pass defense that they want. You can make a good argument for quarterback as well but Josh McCown has exceeded expectations. He is not the quarterback of the future for the Jets.
AFC North
Baltimore Ravens: Tight End
Benjamin Watson is one of the good guys of the NFL, but he is getting up there in age. The Ravens could really benefit from a pass catching tight end that would make the game easier for Joe Flacco.
Cincinnati Bengals: Offensive Line
The Bengals are last in the NFL in total offense and that could be attributed to a poor offensive line. The Bengals have playmakers in AJ Green and Joe Mixon, but that can’t be masked by a weak offensive line.
Cleveland Browns: Quarterback
The Browns have needed a quarterback for the past decade and their potential early draft pick and a strong quarterback class could fix that problem.
Pittsburgh Steelers: Inside Linebacker
The Steelers lost Ryan Shazier to a scary back injury against the Bengals. It is hard to tell for sure, but it looks like Shazier’s football career is behind him. Along with that sad story, inside linebacker Vince Williams is also a free agent. The Steelers weakness on the defensive side of the ball is run defense.
AFC West
Denver Broncos: Quarterback
The Broncos have tried to go with Trevor Siemien the past two years as he has won the job in the preseason. The Broncos also drafted Paxton Lynch, but he seems to be a bust at this point in time. The Broncos could get back to a competive situation quickly if they find a quarterback to lead them.
Kansas City Chiefs: Edge Rusher
The Chiefs were off to a hot start but then cooled off after week seven. Their defense is towards the bottom of the league in both pass defense and run defense. An edge rusher on the other side of Justin Houston could turn things around for the Chiefs defense.
Los Angeles Chargers: Offensive Line
The Chargers are probably the league’s most underrated team as they could very well win the AFC West despite their mediocre record. One area that they have improved is their offensive line, but they could still get better in the run blocking game. They will get Forrest Lamp back from injury but they still could use either a center or a right tackle to solidify their offensive line.
Oakland Raiders: Inside Linebacker
The Raiders are very average this year and near the league average in both offense and defense. There is one area where they could improve on the defense and that is getting another linebacker next to Navarro Bowman.
AFC South
Houston Texans: Offensive Line
The Texans are a below average offense but their biggest weakness on that side of the ball is offensive line. They will need redo their whole offensive line in time as Watson cannot rely on his legs for his entire career.
Indianapolis Colts: Cornerback
The Colts have a lot of holes on their team and you could see then needing to upgrade in a lot of areas. Cornerback would be a start where they can develop a pass defense to start being competitive. You have to think their draft strategy will be best player available at this point.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Left Tackle
Cam Robinson has been somewhat of a bust and we are coming off a weak offensive line draft. It would be nice to see the Jaguars take the next step and get somebody to protect Blake Bortles’s blind-side. I know some are calling for a new quarterback but Bortles has been serviceable enough and I think we can’t pass judgement without seeing him with an upgraded offensive line.
Tennessee Titans: Wide Receiver
The Titans have succeeded this year and a lot of that success has been on the defensive side of the ball. It would be nice to see them upgrade their offense. The have a quarterback of the future in Marcus Mariota, but they need some more talent at the receiver position to give him options. I know they drafted Corey Davis, but he has been a bit of a disappointment this year.
