We’re down to the final two teams in the 2023 NFL playoffs: it’s the Chiefs and the Eagles headed for a Super Bowl LVII showdown, after Kansas City edged the Bengals at Arrowhead Stadium and Philly routed the 49ers at Lincoln Financial Field. But what about the 12 title hopefuls who fell short of the promised land this year? Which ones are destined to be back in the race a year from now, and which ones have quite a bit of work to do?
Here’s our early ranking of the 12 non-Super Bowl playoff teams, and which ones are best suited for a run at the next championship, come January-February 2024:
They were far more explosive than expected with Geno Smith under center, and they’ve got both early draft picks and extra money to spend this offseason. But Smith, 32, may be due to regress, and even if a high-profile rookie succeeds him at quarterback, this team will be in transition on defense, where they’ve been mostly overmatched for years.
Every year, we give them the on-paper hype they’re due, and every year, they remind us of their big-stage failings. And now they’re entering an offseason in which they won’t have excess cash for clear needs, like a true No. 2 receiver. Dak Prescott remains a good QB, but with an aging line and play-calling uncertainty — Mike McCarthy is set to take over in the wake of Kellen Moore’s departure — his setup suddenly feels like it’s a year past its championship expiration date.
The defense should get a boost with Vic Fangio set to join the fold, but that unit is still a work in progress. More importantly, how can they be projected for sustained success when the health of QB Tua Tagovailoa is such a major question? If they’re truly committed to Tua, they’d better also invest in a premium fallback, which is easier said than done. Mike McDaniel is a smart coach, but in a tough AFC East, they hardly feel a lock to be back in the postseason.
They’re a tough one to sort mainly because Tom Brady’s future is up in the air, and no matter what happens — a Brady return, retirement or relocation — they aren’t overly promising as an aging group with an overly predictable head coach in Todd Bowles. Still, if somehow Brady laces ’em up with renewed motivation, plus new play-calling juice post-Byron Leftwich, they’ve got enough weaponry out wide and on “D” to surprise.
As long as Justin Herbert is slinging it, they should generally be in the mix. Their lineup is…
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