Stefon Diggs' departure from Buffalo leaves door open in AFC East
After four seasons with the Buffalo Bills, Stefon Diggs is on his way to Houston to join the Texans. In a trade that nobody saw coming, the Houston Texans get their number one receiver for the young quarterback in C.J. Stroud, and the Bills are appearing to head towards some kind of offensive rebuild at the wide receiver position. With Buffalo in need of a number one receiver, and teams in the AFC East improving their roster, the AFC East crown is up for grabs. But why exactly?
Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets aim to take off this season after Rodgers' season only lasted four plays before he tore his Achilles. Now that Rodgers is expected to be fully recovered, he takes command of a high-powered offense with Garrett Wilson and Mike Williams at wide receiver and Breece Hall at running back.
On the defensive side of the ball guys like Sauce Gardner, Quinnen Williams, and C.J. Mosley return, and new guys like Haason Reddick and Javon Kinlaw join and improve the Jets' defense. With the lack of number one receivers and interception problems, Josh Allen has, the Bills' offense will struggle against a defense that has the potential to be a top-ten defense in the NFL.
It's not just the Jets Buffalo has to worry about. They also have to worry about the New England Patriots. Yes, the same Patriots team that is coming off of a four-win season and currently has no starting quarterback, and a rookie head coach after the departure of Bill Belichick. New England took care of business in bringing back their main core of free agents. But, did lack in bringing in new talent. However, currently, they hold the third overall pick which most likely will be a quarterback who will most likely take the reigns of being the franchise quarterback after Mac Jones failed to do so.
Last season, Buffalo did fall to New England at Gillette Stadium and just barely escaped the Patriots at home. Now without a true number-one receiver, the Patriots' secondary should feast on the weak selection of receivers, and the Bills' defense which did not improve much or at all, could struggle against an offense that last year gave them trouble.
Lastly, the Miami Dolphins have proven to the NFL that when Tua Tagovailoa is healthy they have a top offense in the NFL. Once again that is expected to happen. However, the Dolphins have lost many free agents this offseason and have taken a small step back as a team. But, the Dolphins (as well as the Jets and Patriots) will most likely improve in the draft to challenge Buffalo for the AFC East title. Last year it came down to Miami and Buffalo and Buffalo just escaped with the division crown and that was with Diggs and other key factors.
The Bills have a tall hill to climb to keep their AFC East division and also to stay as a top team in the AFC. But, for now, with Stefon Diggs heading for Houston, the Bills offense is in trouble even with Josh Allen at quarterback. The AFC East is officially up for grabs as the Bills took a giant step down with this trade.