NEW YORK (AP) – The Buccaneers are the reigning champions and the Packers have title aspirations.
But the rest of the NFC is very mediocre when compared to the AFC.
Just consider the Chiefs, Bills, Ravens, Browns, Steelers, Titans, Colts, Dolphins, Patriots and Chargers. They all make the Super Bowl nominations, with Kansas City, Buffalo, Baltimore and Cleveland one notch above the large squad.
On the other side, it is difficult to identify someone to take seriously in the NFC East or the North (except Green Bay). While the NFC West is strong and will have a close fight, its four members – Rams, Seahawks, 49ers and Cardinals – raise many questions. The opposite was the case with the Bucs, who kept their roster almost intact – something very rare for a Super Bowl champion, even with Tom Brady at quarterback – and the Packers.
“You want the route to the Super Bowl, the route we want to go to, to be as tough as possible,” Titans safety Kevin Byard said. “I think it’s something to be proud of, and to also keep us alert that there is a lot of competition for the AFC championship or just the Super Bowl. We will have to strip every day and not take any day lightly ”.
Browns safety John Johnson III, who skipped conferences this season by signing as a free agent with Cleveland after four years with the Rams, sees it this way:
“You have very strong candidates, even in our own division. You look at Buffalo and Kansas City and don’t know who else could make it out of the Kansas City division alive. Denver could come out alive, and I think it’s pretty competitive, and it’s a different game. “
A different game in every way, given that the COVID-19 pandemic has not gone away and will be a competitive factor in the first 17-game season in NFL history.
Vaccinated players have the freedom to continue their lives normally – at least for now – unlike the unvaccinated. More than 93% of the players have been inoculated, but an outbreak is very easy – as the Titans and Cowboys did during the preseason.
“A lot of people’s livelihoods are at stake in terms of jobs,” said Bills head coach Sean McDermott. Buffalo is one of the teams with one of the lowest vaccination records of the league’s 32. “Being able to have the staff is important, so when you have to sail a week – if this were a real week – and have players discarded as it happened to us, that complicates the task of winning games.”
Injuries, of course, will be a key factor. They always are. One of the most damaging last season was the one that affected Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott’s ankle. He’s had shoulder discomfort this summer, so the focus will be on him when the Cowboys kick off the season in the Tampa Bay fiefdom.
And, of course, the 44-year-old quarterback for the Buccaners, too.
Seven coaches make their debut in command of teams, Urban Meyer in Jacksonville as the highlight after his brilliant career at the college level. Four take over the reins on teams that are shaping up to be among the worst in the league: Nick Sirianni with the Eagles, Robert Saleh with the Jets, Dan Campbell with the Lions and David Culley with the Texans, and the only African-American who was signed to the open seven vacancies. Also, Arthur Smith takes the lead with the Falcons and Brandon Staley with the Chargers.
Meyer’s enthusiasm for the start of the campaign is palpable.
“This is almost the best because I don’t remember going out with all the talent and a young quarterback,” he said. “Certainly there is a lot involved, but I like our situation.”
The league plans to return to London for a couple of games this year after being absent last season: Jets vs. Falcons and Dolphins vs. Jaguars in October.
And another very notable detail on the calendar. The Super Bowl in Los Angeles will be played later than ever, on February 13 – in the middle of the Winter Olympics in Beijing.
By then, the AFC will have its representative cleared. He’s not surprised if the winner of that conference meets Brady and the Bucs or Aaron Rodgers and the Packers.