NFL Power Rankings: Predicting every team's worst-case scenario in 2024

10. Miami Dolphins: 7 or 8 wins, miss the playoffs

It’s not going to be enough for the Miami Dolphins just to make the playoffs again this year. They need to show some actual signs of life in January. This team can’t underachieve when it comes to the postseason with all of the talent they have on the roster. With that being said, the lowest the Dolphins could go this year is probably seven or eight wins. This doesn’t strike me as a team that’s really going to bottom out and be in the top 10 of the 2025 NFL Draft barring major injury.

The Dolphins losing 9 or 10 games, however, would be a bad enough downslide for this team to potentially warrant some big changes, whether we’re talking about head coach or quarterback…or both. 

9. Buffalo Bills: 8 or 9 wins, miss the playoffs

It wouldn’t shock me if the Buffalo Bills took a step back in 2024, but it’s still hard to imagine this team really going on a downslide as long as Josh Allen is at the quarterback position. The Bills did reset a lot on this roster over the course of the last six months, and it’s going to be really interesting to see just how different things are for this offense without Stefon Diggs or Gabe Davis in the mix.

There’s a lot of pressure on Josh Allen, and for a gunslinger like that, sometimes the pressure to perform can lead to an overabundance of turnovers. And Allen has been able to succeed despite poor ball security at times, including last season. Even with all of the roster losses they’ve had to deal with this offseason, I still don’t see the Bills winning less than eight games in 2024. But if they do drop to 8-9 or 9-8, missing the playoffs is very much a possibility, which would be horrendous in a year of Josh Allen’s “prime”.