1. Tennessee Titans: The last time they won a division title was 2008. Kerry Collins was their starting quarterback. Last season, they claimed the AFC South and hosted a playoff game. After receiving his contract extension during the off-season, Derrick Henry put this Titans team on his back and carried them once again. For his stellar regular season, he was named Offensive Player of the Year. Derrick became the just the eighth running back to rush for 2,000 yards in a season. The Titans were active this off-season. First, they let Jonnu Smith and Corey Davis walk in free agency which made people question them. Just last month, the Titans acquired Julio Jones from the Atlanta Falcons giving them a big three on offense in A.J. Brown, Derrick Henry and Julio. I’m anxious to see what Mike Vrabel will do to fix up this defense. They did sign Bud Dupree in the off-season.
2. Indianapolis Colts: They got back to the playoffs last season for the first time since 2018. Philip Rivers wasn’t lights out, but they just needed him to manage the game. After their playoff loss in Buffalo, Philip decided to retire after a 17-year career in the NFL. Rumors swirled around and the Colts finally acquired Carson Wentz from the Philadelphia Eagles. This trade reunited Carson with Frank Reich. Frank was the Eagles offensive coordinator. I like this makeup of this Colts team. They can run the ball, they have arguably the best offensive line in the game anchored by Quenton Nelson and the defense was one of the best in the league last season. In my opinion, they can be one of the biggest threat to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC if they stay healthy. A change of scenery should do wonders for Wentz.
3. Houston Texans: This organization is a mess. To some, they might be the worst franchise in the league. Last season was a mess for them. In March, they shocked the world and traded away DeAndre Hopkins to the Arizona Cardinals for David Johnson. That was Deshaun Watson’s top weapon. However, Deshaun ended up putting together the best year of his career after signing a contract extension. In January this year, Deshaun announced he wanted out of Houston and I don’t blame him. Then, some legal issues have occurred for the star quarterback this off-season. I really don’t see the Texans doing much of anything this year. I’m still questioning the hire of David Culley as their new head coach.
4. Jacksonville Jaguars: They won their first game of the year in 2020. After that, they lost 15 straight games which ended up turning into the number one overall pick. Everybody knew who they were going to select. Trevor Lawrence, the top quarterback prospect from Clemson! Another big move the Jaguars made in the off-season was the hiring of Urban Meyer as their new head coach. At the college level, Urban was a consistent winner. I liked the hire because they bought someone in with head coaching experience. This is a new chapter of Jacksonville Jaguars football. They have their quarterback of the future, a new head coach which brings some optimism. I expect to see much better effort from them in 2021.
2021 Predictions
1. Titans (12-5)
2. Colts (11-6)
3. Jaguars (5-12)
4. Texans (1-16)
I like the Tennessee Titans to win the AFC South again. After losing both Corey Davis and Jonnu Smith, they replaced them both nicely with a guy named Julio. Look at this firepower defenses will need to prepare for. Derrick Henry out the backfield, A.J. Brown lined up on one side and Julio Jones on the other. This offense will score points as often as possible. I’m still concerned about the defense because they didn’t do much to correct their pass rushing issues. You can’t expect to compete against the Kansas City Chiefs and not apply pressure to the quarterback. Yes, they did sign Bud Dupree, but he’s coming off an ACL injury. Also, it takes more than one guy to apply pressure.
