The 2023 NFL season is creeping up on us, with plenty of teams setting lofty playoff expectations. But are they all warranted?
Here are five completely overrated teams that shouldn’t be too confident in their postseason chances.
- Buffalo Bills
Are the Bills a lousy team? Absolutely not, but in a crowded AFC field compacted AFC East, the Bills could find themselves on the outside looking in. What sample size do we have from the past to exude confidence in this team?
They continue to fall short in the playoffs, and it feels like their window is starting to close. Josh Allen didn’t look that sharp last year, with a rift developing between Stefon Diggs and the organization, which cannot be ignored. The defense isn’t as great as everyone believes, and their new defensive coordinator needs to prove himself. The Bills are likely to make the playoffs, but with the second-best odds to win the AFC, I expect more from them than simply fighting to clinch a Wild Card spot.
- Minnesota Vikings
I’m sick of the Vikings getting propped up. Kirk Cousins is closer to being a lousy quarterback than a good one, continuously falling short on the biggest stages. Dalvin Cook‘s departure is being completely glossed over as if Alexander Mattison can come in and seamlessly be Dalvin Cook. Plus, their defense stinks.
The NFC North has no elite teams but will provide the Vikings with competent opponents. Minnesota’s narrow victories last year are almost impossible to replicate in back-to-back seasons. Could the Vikings still find their way into the playoffs on the back of a historic Justin Jefferson season? Maybe, but it will mean the NFC Wild Card field is weaker than expected.
- Detroit Lions
Listen, I want the Lions to be good as much as the next guy, but the hype around them is getting out of hand. After all, they are the Detroit Lions, an organization plagued with continual failures and shortcomings.
Offensively, I liked what I saw from Jared Goff last season, but expecting a sizable leap this season is a bit far-fetched in my eyes. The weapons around him aren’t as good as many make them out to be. Outside of Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams will be suspended for the first six games and didn’t show much in his limited rookie action last year. Jahmyr Gibbs is an unproven rookie, with David Montgomery being a downgrade from D’Andre Swift and Jamaal Williams. Defensively, Aidan Hutchinson is excellent, but collectively, they aren’t good. Last year, they allowed the third-most passing yards and fourth-most rushing yards and failed to make significant improvements this offseason.
The Lions should be good eventually, but let’s pump the brakes. A lot remains to be seen.
- New York Giants
The Giants aren’t making any leaps. Despite beating the Vikings in Minnesota in last year’s playoffs, we all saw the Giants’ true colors as the Eagles utterly dismantled them in the Divisional Round. They lack talent.
Offensively, Daniel Jones‘s two biggest weapons, Saquon Barkley and Darren Waller, are unreliable due to injury, and there’s little promise in the wide receiver room. Defensively, it’s a feisty bunch but not a difference-making group. Brian Daboll is undoubtedly a great coach that will likely squeeze every last drop out of this team, but too much has to break their way to make the postseason.
- Miami Dolphins
What’s the love for the Miami Dolphins all about? Besides Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill, there isn’t much more to get excited about. Tua Tagovailoa isn’t a great quarterback and comes with significant injury concerns. Also, newly acquired defensive anchor Jalen Ramsey is sidelined until December. They have one of the most demanding schedules in football and are only the third-best team in their division. In the crowded AFC playoff field with potentially a dozen playoff hopefuls, expecting the Dolphins to be a lock is too generous.
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