AFC East Capsules

1 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

• Last year: 16-0
• Coach: Bill Belichick (10th season, 103-39)
• Strength: Talent. With QB Tom Brady and WR Randy Moss leading the offense, everyone else on the field becomes better. Last season, the offense amassed 50 passing and 17 rushing touchdowns. On defense, the team is deep at defensive line and linebacker. 
• Weakness: Age. The Patriots’ core defenders aren’t getting younger. LBs Mike Vrabel and Tedy Buschi and SS Rodney Harrison are in the twilight of their careers, which prompted the team to draft LB Jarod Mayo out of Tennessee in the first round.
• Who’s driving the team? Brady. Give him legitimate receivers, and he’ll provide results. With Moss and slot receiver Wes Welker last season, Brady threw 50 TDs  against just 8 INTs for 4,806 yards and a 117.2 quarterback rating.

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A ride to the Super Bowl if: RB Laurence Maroney can take some pressure off the passing game. The Patriots could use a little more punch from the running game, particularly from the promising third-year runner, who rushed for 835 yards and six TDs last season.
A ride to disaster if: A key member goes down with an injury. The Patriots’ machine was a well-oiled, healthy one a year ago. Barring injury, it should be again.
Key number: 2 — Teams in NFL history that have won the Vince Lombardi Trophy a year after losing the Super Bowl. Dallas won Super Bowl VI in 1972 after falling in Super Bowl V, and Miami won Super Bowl VII and losing to Dallas in VI.

2 NEW YORK JETS

• Last year: 4-12
• Coach: Eric Mangini (third season, 14-18)
• Strength: Passing attack. With QB Brett Favre, the NFL’s all-time leading passer, the Jets will have a passing game. Favre should allow WRs Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery to flourish, which should improve last year’s unit that finishing 25th in passing offense.
• Weakness: Offensive line. A few years ago, the Jets backfield was playing behind a sieve. Now, through the draft, the Jets have focused on infusing the unit with young talent, led by LT D’Brickashaw Ferguson and C Nick Mangold. Last year, the team allowed 53 sacks —fourth-most in the NFL.
• Who’s driving the team? Favre. He may be new to town, but there’s no question who is the leader of this team. He’s started 253 consecutive games, throwing for a record 442 TDs and 61,655 yards.
• A ride to the Super Bowl if: RB Thomas Jones can stay healthy and produce as he did last year, when he rushed for 1,119 yards.
• A ride to disaster if: Run defense struggles. The Jets ranked 29th last season, allowing 134.8 yards per game on the ground. The team can’t allow opponents to average 331.9 yards of total offense per game as it did last year.
• Key number: 5 — Games in which the offense scored 10 or fewer points last year.

3 BUFFALO BILLS

• Last year: 7-9
• Coach: Dick Jauron (second season, 7-9)
• Strength: Offense. The Bills have talent in WR Lee Evans (839 yards, 5 TDs) and RB Marshawn Lynch (1,115, 7 TDs), who will propser if the team can find at least an average quarterback. The Bills should be much better than last year, when they scored 14 points or fewer nine times.
• Weakness: Defense. The Bills ranked in the bottom-third of the league in  pass defense and rush defense last season. Only Detroit allowed more total yards per game last season.
• Who’s driving the team? DE Aaron Schobel. The 6-foot-4, 243-pound pass-rusher enters the season with 67 career sacks. He had 6.5 last season, which must improve if the Bills are going to contend for the playoffs.
• A ride to the Super Bowl if: The run defense can take a gigantic step forward. The Bills gave up 124.6 yards per game and 15 touchdowns on the ground last year.
• A ride to disaster if: The quarterback situation remains cloudy. Trent Edwards threw for 1,630 yards and 7 TDs in 10 starts. J.P. Losman, though, has experience and isn’t far behind.
• Key number: 9 — Years it’s been since the Bills’ last playoff appearance, the longest drought in the AFC.

4 MIAMI DOLPHINS

• Last year: 1-15
• Coach: Tony Sparano (first season)
• Strength: Quarterback. A year ago, it was the team’s weakness, just as it’s been since Dan Marino retired. But this season, the addition of Chad Pennington is a significant upgrade to the passing game that produced just 12 touchdowns last season.
• Weakness: Run defense. The Dolphins have tons of holes, with one of the biggest being they allowed the opposition to rush for an NFL-high 153.5 yards per game last season.
• Who’s driving the team? Pennington. A year after trotting out such QB mainstays as Trent Green, John Beck and Cleo Lemon, the former Jet brings some presumed stability to the job.
• A ride to the Super Bowl if: All the other teams in the AFC fold by January. The Dolphins would need a miracle to go from 1-15 to the playoffs, let alone the Super Bowl. Five wins would be a good season.
• A ride to disaster if: Pennington is injured or plays poorly. The Dolphins will be bad this season, but injuries to key players could lead to another one-win season.
• Key number: 65.6 — Pennington’s career completion percentage, best in the NFL history.
• AFC NORTH

1 PITTSBURGH STEELERS

• Last year: 10-6
• Coach: Mike Tomlin (second season, 10-6)
• Strength: Defense. Pittsburgh allowed an NFL-low 266.4 yards per game last season. The defense ranked third in rushing yards against (89.9 per game) and passing yards against (176.5 per game).
• Weakness: Offensive line. Historically this position has been a Steelers’ staple. But turnover in starters has become an issue, especially Pro Bowler’s Alan Faneca’s departure to the Jets. QB Ben Roethlisberger was sacked a career-high 47 times last year.
• Who’s driving the team? Roethlisberger. He was signed to a franchise-record eight-year, $102 million contract in the offseason, making him the unquestioned face of the franchise.
• A ride to the Super Bowl if: Returning starter Willie Parker and first-round pick Rashard Mendenhall can create an inside-outside punch similar to the team used to win Super Bowl XL behind Parker and Jerome Bettis.
• A ride to disaster if: Roethlisberger gets beat up like he has been the past two seasons. Before being sacked 47 times last season, he was dropped 46 times in 2006. He won’t put up MVP-type numbers, but his consistency is the key to the offense.
• Key number: .598 — Last year’s winning percentage of the teams the Steelers face this year, giving them the league’s hardest schedule.

2 CINCINNATI BENGALS

• Last year: 7-9
• Coach: Marvin Lewis (sixth season, 42-38)
• Strength: The passing game. QB Carson Palmer threw for 4,131 yards and 26 TDs against a career-high 20 INTs last season.
• Weakness: Defense. The Bengals allowed 5,580 yards on the season — 12 more than its powerful offense accumulated.
• Who’s driving the team? WR Chad “Ocho Cinco” Johnson. If the outspoken receiver can replicate his 93-catch, 1,440-yard performance from last year, the offense will continue to soar. His unpredictable attitude, though, could bring it crashing down.
• A ride to the Super Bowl if: The defense can be respectable. If Lewis can field a defense that was half as good as the one he put together when he was the defensive coordinator with the Ravens, the Bengals will be very good.
• A ride to disaster if: Discipline problems resurface. Ten Bengals were arrested in a 16-month stretch the past two years, but the team’s players have improved their behavior — at least for now.
• Key number: 93 — catches by Chad Johnson last season, marking the fifth straight year he’s made at least 87 receptions.

3 CLEVELAND BROWNS

• Last year: 10-6
• Coach: Romeo Crennel (fourth season, 20-28)
• Strength: Passing game. The unit surprised last season behind former Raven QB Derek Anderson, who threw for 3,787 yards and 29 TDs, taking advantage of  WR Braylon Edwards and TE Kellen Winslow.
• Weakness: Defense. The Browns ranked 24th in passing defense (230.1 yards per game against) and 27th in rushing defense (129.5 yards per game). The defense needs to pressure the quarterback after recording just 28 sacks last season.
• Who’s driving the team? Anderson. The Browns signed the former Ravens practice squad member to three-year, $24 million contract. With last year’s first round pick Brady Quinn waiting in the wings, Anderson is on the hot seat from Day One.
• A ride to the Super Bowl if: Anderson and the passing game can replicate their output last season. They’ll also need some support from the defense, and a little luck. Getting out of the division will be a challenge.
• A ride to disaster if: Anderson has a sophomroe slump, and Edwarrds and Winslow get hurt. The Browns have little depth and a small margin for error.
• Key number: 4.4 — Yards per carry by RB Jamal Lewis, his highest since rushing for 2,066 yards for the Ravens in 2003.

4 BALTIMORE RAVENS

• Last year: 5-11
• Coach: John Harbaugh (first season)
• Strength: Defense. It’s the same story here, where the championship-caliber defense has waited on an offense for about nine years. The defense — namely LB Ray Lewis and CBs Chris McAllister and Samari Rolle — is aging, but still is the backbone of the franchise.
• Weakness: Quarterback. Rookie Joe Flacco’s won the starting job because Kyle Boller got hurt and Troy Smith got sick.
• Who’s driving the team? Lewis. The veteran is in the final year of his contract, and it may be his last chance to make a run to the postseason in Baltimore. At 33, he can still play a little, too, as he had 120 tackles, two sacks, 2 INTs last season.
• A ride to the Super Bowl if: RB Willis McGahee can open up the field for the passing game. McGahee rushed for 1,207 yards and 7 TDs in his first year in Baltimore.
• A ride to disaster if: Injuries hit the defense. The secondary was decimated by injuries to both starting corners last year, and without a stingy defense, the Ravens have nothing.
• Key number: 3 — Teams in the past 26 years that made the playoffs in a season in which they began the year with a rookie quarterback.
• AFC WEST

1 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS

• Last year: 11-5
• Coach: Norv Turner (second season, 11-5)
• Strength: Efficiency. The Chargers led the NFL with a plus-24 turnover ratio last season, after a plus-13 margin in 2006.
• Weakness: Run defense. The pass defense was adept at creating turnovers. But the front seven struggled to stuff the run. The Chargers were in the middle of the NFL pack last year, allowing 107 yards per game on the ground.
• Who’s driving the team? RB LaDanian Tomlinson. The NFL’s best all-around tailback rushed for 1,474 yards and 15 TDs and caught 60 passes for 475 yards and 3 TDs.
• A ride to Super Bowl if: The defensive production matches that of the offense. Last season, the Chargers ranked in the top-half of the league in stopping the pass. But the Chargers could control the clock by controlling the defensive line, which would give their offense more time on the field.
• A ride to disaster if: The passing game doesn’t keep up with the rushing attack. San Diego was 27th in the NFL with an average of 187.7 yards passing per game. They threw 22 TDs against 16 INTs, numbers that can’t slip this season.
• Key number: 10 — League-leading interceptions by cornerback Antonio Cromartie last season.

2 DENVER BRONCOS

• Last year: 7-9
• Coach: Mike Shanahan (14th season, 137-88)
• Strength: The running game. The Broncos ran 429 times for 1,957 yards last season, but scored just 10 TDs rushing.
• Weakness: Rush defense. The Broncos allowed 142.6 yards per game on the ground last year — third-worst in the NFL.
• Who’s driving the team? QB Jay Cutler. Last season, the 2006 first-round draft pick completed 63.6 percent of his passes for 3,497 yards, 20 TDs and 14 INTs. He’s the team’s most reliable QB since John Elway.
• A ride to the Super Bowl if: Cutler and WR Brandon Marshall (1,325 yards, 7 TDs) can become a legitimate pitch-and-catch duo. A good passing game will open of the field for the running game for Selvin Young (729 yards).
• A ride to disaster if: The defense struggles to stop the run. The Broncos don’t have a quick-strike offense, and if the opposition can control the clock by running the ball, Shanahan’s days in Denver could be numbered.
• Key number: 97— Regular season victories by the Broncos in the past 10 seasons, third-most in the league behind Indianapolis (105) and New England (108).

3 KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

• Last year: 4-12
• Coach: Herm Edwards (third season, 13-19)
• Strength: Pass defense. The Chiefs had the fifth-best pass defense in the league last season, limiting the opposition to just 188.9 yards per game through the air. Kansas City had 37 sacks and allowed just 17 TDs passing.
• Weakness: Offensive depth. The Chiefs have been one of the NFL’s best rushing attacks recently, but last year, with a hobbled RB Larry Johnson, they faltered. The Chiefs had the second-worst rushing attack last season.
• Who’s driving the team? Johnson. He had emerged as one of the league’s premier running backs before injuries derailed him last year, when he rushed for just 559 yards and 3 TDs.
• A ride to the Super Bowl if: The team can clone Johnson 22 times. If the Chiefs can start Johnson at every position, they could make a deep run in the postseason.
• A ride to disaster if: QB Brodie Croyle struggles. The quarterback position has been unsettled in Kansas City since Trent Green left. Croyle threw for 1,227 yards, 6 TDs and 6 INTs last season.
• Key number: 100-to-1 — Odds Las Vegas has set for Kansas City to win the Super Bowl. By comparison, the Ravens are 75-to-1.

4 OAKLAND RAIDERS

• Last year: 4-12
• Coach: Lane Kiffin (second season, 4-12)
• Strength: Schedule. The Raiders have what is considered one of the easiest schedules in the league this season. They face just four teams that made the playoffs last year and their compeition this season went 112-144 last season.
• Weakness: Discipline. The Raiders had a minus-11 in turnover ratio last season, led 42 fumbles — 17 of which were recovered by the opposition.
• Who’s driving the team?  RB Darren McFadden. He’s only a rookie, but fans hope he’s the next Adrian Peterson.
• A ride to the Super Bowl if: The NFL feels sorry for Al Davis, the team’s owner, and automatically deems the Raiders the AFC champion.
• A ride to disaster if: QB JaMarcus Russell struggles in his first full season as a starter. The former No. 1 overall pick threw for 373 yards, 2 TDs and 4 INTs last season. He and McFadden are the future, but the present will probably involve growing pains.
• Key number: 50.5 — Millions of dollars the team will pay DT Tommy Kelly over seven years, the most lucrative deal ever for a defensive lineman.
• AFC SOUTH

1 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

• Last year: 13-3
• Coach: Tony Dungy (seventh season, 127-65)
• Strength: Offense. As long as Peyton Manning is running the show in Indianapolis, the Colts will win through the air. Manning’s attack averaged 252.1 yards passing last year, good for sixth in the NFL.
• Weakness: Schedule. The Colts’ schedule was ranked the second-toughest in the NFL this season based upon their opponents’ success last season. New England is one of eight playoff teams from a year ago on the Colts’ calendar.
• Who’s driving the team? Manning. He had 4,033 yards and 32 TDs passing last season, and those numbers came primarily without his favorite target, WR Marvin Harrison, who was injured for much of the season.
• A ride to Super Bowl if: RB Joseph Addai continues to grow. In his second season, Addai rushed for 1,072 yards and 12 TDs as a solid complement to the passing attack.
• A ride to disaster if: Injuries strike the passing game. Harrison was hobbled last season, and the team wasn’t quite the same when he returned. Without him, the offense proved it could survive. But to be a Super Bowl contender, the Colts will need all their horses healthy.
• Key number: 8 — Playoff berths in the past 10 seasons, most in the NFL.

2 JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

• Last year: 11-5
• Coach: Jack Del Rio (sixth season, 45-35)
• Strength: Running game. The Jaguars burst out last season, behind the tandem of RBs Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew. Jacksonville averaged 149.4 yards per game on the ground — second-most in the NFL — with 18 TDs.
• Weakness: Quarterback. David Garrard was serviceable last season, but it could be argued that he was a product of a superb rushing attack. He threw for 2,509 yards with 18 TDs and 3 INTs last season, but he still is not considered a top-flight quarterback.
• Who’s driving the team? Jones-Drew. He rushed for 768 yards and 9 TDs and made 40 receptions for 407 yards last season. He’s a great complement to Fred Taylor, who rushed for 1,202 yards and 5 TDs.
• A ride to Super Bowl if: The Jaguars defense can play like a championship-caliber unit. The Jaguars were 11th in the league, allowing 313.8 yards per game last year.
• A ride to disaster if: The inexperienced Garrard takes a step back or the aging Taylor can’t play full-time. Jones-Drew – at 5-foot-7 and 212 pounds – may not be capable of carrying the load by himself.
• Key number: 2 — Losses at home last season, against Tennessee in Week 1 and Indianapolis in Week 7.

3 HOUSTON TEXAS

• Last year: 8-8
• Coach: Gary Kubiak (third season, 14-18)
• Strength: Offense. With former Broncos’ offensive coordinator Kubiak at the helm, the Texans’ forte is offense. The passing attack ranked 11th in the NFL last season, and the running game should get a boost from RBs Chris Brown and Steve Slaton.
• Weakness: Efficiency. The Texans were minus-13 in turnover ratio last season, including 17 lost fumbles. Houston quarterbacks also threw 21 INTs.
• Who’s driving the team? WR Andre Johnson. He improved his touchdown total from 5 to 8 last season. But his yardage took a hit, slipping from 1,147 to 851 because of injuries. He’s a premier talent, and must step up for the offense to progress.
• A ride to Super Bowl if: QB Matt Schaub can take better care of the ball. He threw 21 INTs last season — a stat that must improve if the Texans offense is going to step up to the next level.
• A ride to disaster if: The offensive line returns to its porous past, and the defense is unable to stop the run.
• Key number: 23.7 — Points per game the Texans averaged last season, a jump of five points per game from the previous season.

4 TENNESSEE TITANS