Mix in a really difficult AFC, Rodgers' defection to the Dolphins' division and a tougher schedule (they travel to the Chargers, Pats, Bills, Eagles and Chiefs in the first nine weeks of the season) and the Dolphins could take a step back even with a largely loaded roster. Hoping Tua backs up those numbers in 2023 is a tough ask. But it's notable that not ONE of those quarterbacks repeated the feat. Plenty of HOF signal callers - Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers - made the list and it's exclusively elite names on there. Only 13 quarterbacks have averaged 8.5 yards per pass attempt and recorded a touchdown rate of six percent or higher with 400 pass attempts or more in the last 20 years. He could be great! He's also never played more than 13 games in an NFL season and even Tua supporters have to realize some statistical regression could occur. Tua's play last year - his first in Mike McDaniel's system - is absolutely reason for optimism.

The Dolphins offensive line is a cause for concern in a vacuum it's a major red flag because of the trickle-down effect it could have on the quarterback's health. This is Tua dealing with a lengthy history of concussions, to the point he's still being discussed as 'fully cleared' just a few months out from the season. This isn't Tua coming out of Alabama with a nebulous hip injury. But even the most optimistic Dolphins beat writer can't control the biggest X-factor for Miami's season: Tua Tagovailoa's health. The fine folks over at the TuAnon corporate offices will have a field day with this one, no doubt. If your team is on here and you're mad about it, yell at me on Twitter or Instagram on both). Let's see if we can find some of those paths. This is not an indictment of any team on this list, it's more a reminder there's a path to failure for every single NFL team every single season. Lamar Jackson signing his contract is the rare exception - the Ravens were an obvious choice for this list before locking up their quarterback. This should create a lot more consternation, considering the lack of pessimism prevalent with NFL fanbases in the offseason months.Ī lot can happen between now and August and whatever happens is generally going to be negative for NFL teams. Naturally we've got to come back on the other side. We previously broke down a list of seven teams who could make the jump into the playoffs. It'll be fun to see whether or not the small sample size becomes the norm. For years it's been an average north of four teams per year. The last two seasons have seen a whopping seven new playoff teams each year, which means - for those less inclined to indulge in basic math - seven playoff teams ended up missing the postseason the following year.Įven with the pandemic year creating extreme circumstances (Washington and Cleveland both made the playoffs, if you don't believe me) and the league expanding the bracket by one team per side, that's a wild amount of variance.

Week 2 nfl score predictions