The AFC East has belonged to the Buffalo Bills for several years now, but the Miami Dolphins can steal the division back in the 2024 NFL Season. Buffalo's shaky cap situation coming into this offseason forced them to make some tough moves in shedding certain veteran contracts. This first installment of the Josh Allen era is now effectively over, as the team will, in the coming seasons, bring a bunch of new faces aboard.
Ideally, these players are good, young, and on their rookie deals, which allows Buffalo more flexibility with their cap space. Well, on the flip side of this is the Miami Dolphins, a team that has not yet had to endure the only downside of paying a QB top-dollar: cap contraints.
It does seem like it's only a matter of time before Miami and Tua Tagovailoa agree to a contract extension, but until then, Miami can continue to load up their roster. General Manager Chris Grier has been hyper-active this offseason, as he's signed guys like Odell Beckham Jr, Jonnu Smith, Teair Tart, Calais Campbell, Kendall Fuller, and Jordan Poyer, among some other veteran players.
Miami really hasn't necessarily broken the bank on anyone, but it's clear that Grier came into this offseason wanting to fill out the remaining holes of his roster, and he did have the cap flexibility to do that. All of a sudden, as we head into the 2024 NFL Season, the Dolphins roster does look more stout than the Bills, and with QB Josh Allen now without Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis, he could be in for a regression himself.
Don't look now, but the Dolphins do seem to be in prime position to steal the AFC East away from Buffalo for at least one season. Miami will need to perform in the cold to accomplish that, though, and that's one thing they have simply not done.