Exploring AFC Wild Card Teams & Playoff Predictions

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00:00I want to start with an examination of the wildcard teams from a year ago in each conference.

00:06Let's start in the AFC. Those three wildcard teams last year, the Denver Broncos, the Pittsburgh

00:14Steelers, and the LA Chargers. The Chargers, the five seed, the Steelers, the six seed,

00:19the Broncos and Bo Nix's rookie campaign, the seven seed. If you had to pick one of those three

00:25teams, you expect to miss the playoffs this year. Which team would you be highlighting?

00:31Probably the Broncos due to the division that they play in. The fact that, you know, Bo Nix may be

00:37due for some sophomore regression. And I also think that the Raiders won't be as bad as many

00:42people project. Pete Carroll's never lost more. Pete Carroll's only lost more than only one less

00:48than seven games just once in his career. It was the first year as the Jets. Now, granted,

00:53I don't think he's going to win eight or nine games with the Raiders in year one, but I don't

00:56think they'll be as bad as many people are forecasting. So that hurts Denver more than

01:00anything else. I think the Chargers may be primed to snatch the division away from the

01:03Chiefs if they slip up. So it's going to be an incredibly tough decision. And I'll add one

01:08more note here that's going to make your eyes pop in, but I have a future on the Pittsburgh

01:11Steelers to win the AFC North. So I think they're actually on.

01:16I'll tell you what's also interesting, Mark, when you take a look at some of these AFC teams that

01:20didn't make the playoffs last year, because teams will change. Not every eight top seven

01:24last year, same as this year, same as it was the last three years. A lot of different teams

01:28make the NFL and that's what we like. And it's sort of hard to sort of prognosticate who that's

01:31going to be. But as you go down the list, there's a lot of teams I still don't like,

01:35but I see teams like the Jacksonville Jaguars for wins. I think there's a legitimate chance

01:39they could get to the playoffs. Obviously the Cincinnati Bengals, which were just left out last

01:43year. Do you have any beliefs in the teams that didn't make the playoffs last year in the

01:47AFC to sort of rise up and take a playoff spot this year? I mean, you know, look, if there's

01:54one team that I think may have a chance to do it, crazy as it sounds, it might be the New

02:01England Patriots. When Mike Vrabel gets into this conversation here, it starts to change

02:08the dynamic of things and what they are and how they play. You know, I'd even give a nod to

02:14the Jets. Look, I don't think the AFC South is competitive enough for anybody else to really

02:18get there. There'll be enough cannibals with Tennessee and Jacksonville winning games that

02:23they shouldn't against Indianapolis and Houston. And there's just not a really a whole lot of

02:27solid coaching that I trust in that division at this point in time. So I will give an odd to

02:32Vrabel here and even Aaron Glenn for them to be able to do it. You know, I have no faith in

02:36Zach Taylor and Cincinnati. I'd be surprised if he lasts all season, although the Bengals aren't in

02:41the in the business of firing coaches anymore. Look how long they held on to Marvin Lewis. So

02:45Zach Taylor may have the best job security in the NFL, despite the fact never winning anything.

02:49And so I think that there is a chance here that New England could make some noise and really

02:54surprise some teams in the AFC. Zach Taylor has won more AFC championships than Sean McDermott. But

03:01yeah, I guess to your point of not winning anything is a little bit large there.

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03:07Andre...

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