It’s never too early to begin thinking about the NFL season, and with that comes plenty of predictions and outlooks. It’s no secret that (outside of the BIlls) football in New York and the New England area have struggled these past few seasons. However, after everyone has had very successful offseasons, there’s a real chance our regional teams of interest have big bounce back seasons this year. Here’s why the Giants, Jets, and Patriots will all look exponentially better than last year.
New York Giants
After getting the number 3 overall pick in the draft, you should expect a pretty good player to come from that spot, but nobody expects the pound for pound best player to still be available at that pick. That’s exactly where the Giants found themselves after seeing Cam Ward and Travis Hunter go at picks 1 and 2. Abdul Carter fell directly into the Giants’ lap, and alongside Brian Burns, Dexter Lawrence and more, that pass rush is going to cause nightmares for opposing offensive coordinators. After officially moving on from Daniel Jones as well, and bringing in names like Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston, and 25th overall pick Jaxson Dart, the quarterback room is already the best the G-men have had in many years. Expectations should certainly be higher for Giants fans compared to years past.
New York Jets
Following the 2 year Rodgers experience, Jets fans can finally rejoice that the dramedy is over and this team can focus on football again. One key piece in that is locking up your franchise stars….Check! Garret Wilson and Sauce Gardner have signed their extensions and are now inked to the team until 2030 making the Jets a pretty attractive landing spot for free agents and disgruntled stars for the next few years. The signing of Justin Fields should indicate a more competitive nature than a 40 year old Aaron Rodgers did the past 2 years. Luckily for Fields the bar wasn’t set too high by Rodgers. The true X factor for this team will be the offensive line, with 3 guys picked top 15 in the last 5 drafts, it’s a raw and unpolished line but is oozing with untapped potential.
New England Patriots
The Patriots are the only ones on this list to actually bring in the same quarterback as last season. Drake Maye showed plenty of potential last season and established himself as the clear number one option under center for the Pats going forward. Now all he needed was some weapons and a solidified offensive line. Signing a former all pro receiver in Stefon Diggs and drafting the number one lineman in Will Campbell at 4 sets Maye up for a much improved sophomore season. There was also a drastic upgrade at the head coaching spot when they relieved Jerod Mayo of his duties and brought in former NFL coach of the year Mike Vrabel. This team still has quite a few holes to patch as the year goes on, but one thing is for sure, and that is there’s reason to be excited in New England.