Could 2016 be the Year of the AFC South?
Despite the lack of recent success, the division is not devoid of talent. Far from it, actually. Houston is home to the best defensive player in the NFL, J.J. Watt. Indianapolis has Andrew Luck, who was unanimously lauded as the best quarterback prospect since Peyton Manning, and did not disappoint in his first three seasons. Jacksonville has a gunslinger in Blake Bortles, and the best young receiving duo in the NFL, Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns. Tennessee has two Heisman Trophy winners and a former NFL rushing champ in the backfield. That doesn’t sound like a division that had a winning percentage of just .325 against its non-divisional opponents in 2015. Expect this recent trend to be reversed in 2016.
The biggest reason why the AFC South might have a huge year in 2016 is the quarterbacks. The AFC South is the only division in the NFL without a single quarterback over thirty. As a matter of fact, 26-year-old Andrew Luck is the oldest and most experienced quarterback in the division. The quarterbacks are not only young, they’re all immensely talented. Andrew Luck missed the majority of last season dealing with a lacerated kidney, but in 2014, he had an MVP-caliber season. Blake Bortles had a breakout sophomore season in 2015, finishing second only to Tom Brady in touchdown passes. Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler, who signed a $72 million contract with the team this off-season, led the Denver Broncos to a 5-2 record to finish the season. Titans signal caller Marcus Mariota will be entering his second season in 2016, and his rookie year was quite promising, finishing with a quarterback rating of 91.5, tossing nearly twice as many touchdowns as interceptions, and making some very electrifying plays with his feet as well.
The quarterbacks of the AFC South can’t do it all alone, however. There are some very talented skill players, as well. Every team in the division has at least one Pro Bowl caliber pass catcher. DeAndre Hopkins of the Texans, Allen Robinson of the Jaguars and T.Y. Hilton of the Colts have all shown that they’re capable of being primary receivers early in their respective careers. Titans tight end Delanie Walker led all tight ends in receptions last season. Every team in the division also has a running back who has went over 1,000 yards in at least one of the last two seasons, headlined by the 2014 NFL rushing leader DeMarco Murray and the ever so versatile Lamar Miller.
While high-powered offenses may be all the rage these days, the old football adage “defense wins championships” may be as true as ever in the current NFL. Just look at the success of the Denver Broncos and the Seattle Seahawks in recent years. Could the next defensive power in the NFL reside in the AFC South? It just might. Every team in the division has invested heavily on the defensive side of the ball in recent years through both the draft and free agency.
The Texans probably have the best defense in the division currently, led by the reigning defensive MVP J.J. Watt, relentless linebackers Whitney Mercilus and Brian Cushing, and lock-down corner Johnathan Joseph. However, the rest of the division, particularly the Jaguars and the Titans, have loaded up on young defensive talent and could have very strong building blocks for the future. The Jaguars have tackling machine Telvin Smith, interior pass rusher Malik Jackson, and three supremely talented players who have yet to play a down of football in Dante Fowler Jr., Jalen Ramsey, and Myles Jack. The Titans, who were better on defense than many think last season, have one of the top interior lineman in the NFL in Jurrell Casey, feared pass rusher Brian Orakpo, a talented core of linebackers, and Kevin Dodd, a rookie who oozes potential. The Colts may be a step behind the other teams, but also have some talented players such as the best corner in the division Vontae Davis and D’Qwell Jackson, who holds down the inside linebacker position at a very high level.
All things considered, the AFC South should be a much more competitive and entertaining division in 2016. The Colts, Texans, and Jaguars could all easily finish above .500 and should be fiercely competing for the divisional title deep into December. As a matter of fact, the three teams all came in consecutively in the NFL Power Rankings that were released last month. The Titans are likely still a year away, as they started their rebuild a little later than the others, but in the NFL, anything is possible.
