For Jacksonville to realistically hit this over, they'd need to sweep the Texans, beat the Commanders in the opener on the road, beat the Giants at home in Week 7, and earn road wins against the Lions (Week 13) and Jets (Week 16). The Jaguars also signed Darius Williams from the Los Angeles Rams. 2022 AFC South All-Division Team: The Defense Defensive End: Jeffery Simmons, Titans On the one hand, the Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars both Champaign, Illinois native. The top-ranked Commander is defensive end Montez Sweat, who ranks No. Open main sports navigation Sports Height Feet 6-4. You'll now receive the top Jets Wire stories each day directly in your inbox. They dont really have any notable names in the trenches outside of Josh Allen (whos actually a linebacker), and theyll need to bring someone in to shore up this weak unit. DE. Jones was recently named the AFC Defensive Player of the Year at the NFL 101 Awards for his dominating performance in the 2022 season where he was a First Derrick Henry also always trounces them every time they play, so theyd be well off finding some guys that can slow him down. But at the snap, the Titans personnel tips the scales in their favor. Web2022 Review: Defensive Ends and Outside Linebackers. Sign up for our newsletter and get every update delivered to your inbox! Defense Article: 2022 AFC South Defense Breakdown by Position. Texas Tech linebacker Tyree Wilson wakes up with "GMFB" and shares his recovery from fractured foot, how he transferred to Texas Tech. Tuesday, February 28, 2023 The AFC South is a tougher one to analyze. They have responded to modern changes in the NFL defensive ethos by playing more quarters, despite relying on an aggressive, four-down front brought by Schwartzs experience, while also integrating the chaotic alignments and pressure packages of Bowen, all with unheralded names like Edwards and Long and Kalu playing tons of snaps. At defensive end, instead of those light, explosive, bendy rushers long favored by the Schwartzian defense, the Titans have 6-foot-3, 280-pound Mario Edwards Jr. Edwardss best season as a pass rusher came in 2020 with the Bearshe had four sacks and seven quarterback hits. This offseason, Indy decided to pull the plug on the Carson Wentz experiment and found an upgrade by trading for former Falcons star Matt Ryan. The Houston Texans drafter Jalen Pitre is in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Even as the Tennessee offense has sunk this season, the defense is putting on a master classand is keeping the Titans atop the AFC South. How far will Indianapolis go this season? Cincinnati Bengals Rookie Class Impact for 2022 The defending AFC champs didnt land much in terms of immediate help, but Cincinnati did add depth in a few key areas. Star wide receiver A.J. Hell compete for a roster spot during the summer. Will the Saints be a playoff contender without Sean Payton? Despite the clear Schwartzian influence along the Titans defensive line, the teams strategies for pass coverage behind Schwartzs fronts are updated with more modern sensibilities. The Tennessee Titans had the best rookie class in 2022 grade-wise, according to NFL.com's Nick Shook. Not only did the Colts bring in Ryan, but they helped add to a defense that already was inside the top-10 in DVOA last season by signing cornerback Stephon Gilmore and trading for pass-rusher Yannick Ngakoue. Other blendings are more schematic. He isn't George Karlaftis is a freakish athlete with an elite massive frame and is a natural dominating pass rusher. Gregg Rosenthal projects the starters for every team in the NFC North. But they are 6-3, only one game back from the AFC-leading Chiefs (whom they almost beat with their backup quarterback), and a half game back from the Dolphins. Edge could be an option and Murphy is a very intriguing one here. Figures indicate statistics each team allowed to their opponents. AFC South . College Junior Oregon. The AFC South is set to look much different in 2022 than years past. Head coach Josh McDaniels on the Las Vegas Raiders' goal to secure a long-term quarterback. The 2018 sixth-round pick earned himself a three-year, $45 million deal to play for Jacksonville during the off-season. And thats gonna keep them safe against the run. That being said, they still need more help on the interior of the offensive line. Head Coach. It has worked for them pretty well so far, but theyll need to continue to make investments into the offensive line if they want to continue their dominance. The Pro Football Focus grades were only a little better than average last year and there are two new starters, including a question mark at left tackle. While it is built to run-block well and did for most of the year, it was already one of the worst pass-blocking groups in football. The brother of Azeez, BJ could be an option on day two for the Jets. How Far Can This Version of James Harden Take the Sixers? WebHenningsen (6-3, 289 pounds) is a. Enagbare is a violent 6-foot-4, 260 . The But the Titans defense has no sounds easy enough to it. Should Packers fans concerned that their team might take a step back R-E-L-A-X? The most trustworthy part of this roster remains its defensive front. Before 2022 NFL Free Agency kicks off next week, we look into needs and possible fits for the AFC South. Sound good?" The best defensive end in the division is. The Colts have been stuck in the upper middle class for a while. The Titans didnt care. PFF has three Commanders ranked in the top 101, and the top-ranked Washington player will surprise you. pic.twitter.com/lxqFechekA, Josh Norris (@JoshNorris) April 29, 2022. They do have (one of the) worst offense(s) in football. Deforest Buckner had seven sacks last year, the next closest tally is Maliek Collins of the Texans with two and a half. The AFC South won't be mistaken for a super competitive division, but it did boast the No. Walker is a mystery. Such is the case on this run, when safety Josh Kalu (28) blitzes from depth and is replaced by Andrew Adams (47), who rotates down from depth. Well, in Tennessee, things are slightly different. Ballard is walking a fine line at receiver. Behind Leonard, there is a steep drop in terms of talent. One or two more effective players should do the trick in getting this line over the hump. The Titans can rotate in quality bulk with. For the first time in three years, we saw a different team step up and steal the AFC South away from the Tennessee Titans.Doug Pederson, Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars took the division in a thrilling Week 18 showdown against Tennessee, and then upset the Los Angeles Chargers on Super Wild Card Weekend in what was the 1 seed. Moore was an undrafted free agent in 2017 and worked his way to his first Pro-Bowl appearance in 2021. Jermaine Johnson had some minor injury issues during his rookie season but he showed some promise and could take a good step forward in 2023. When you see this first blending of ideas in the Titans defense, its easy to start seeing the next ones. Hutchinson has been the most dominating pass-rusher in college football during the 2021 season and easily outperformed the presump Thibodeaux has out-of-this-world athletic ability and as a result, is in the running for being the top pick in the 2022 NFL Draft George Karlaftis is a freakish athlete with an elite massive frame and is a natural dominating pass rusher. The Titans drafted Caleb Farley in the first round in 2021 who suffered an injury and missed his rookie season. As for the two bottom dwellers in the Jaguars and Texans, they are each entering the upcoming year with intriguing second-year quarterbacks in Trevor Lawrence and Davis Mills. In limited action, Huff was a machine, always getting to the quarterback. With the offseason rolling along and the Combine almost here, lets continue looking at the different positions on the Jets and look at the defensive end position. There are some that are concerned with his lack of size but he has room to grow. This year, hes winning with defense: a defense that hasnt given up over 17 points in regulation since Week 3. This isnt a strong group but they cover it up with a scheme and excellent defensive line play. But whats the legacy of the blockbuster album? That's why my favorite part of the defense is the depth and options Jacksonville has built. The Colts signed Stephon Gilmore this offseason to help bolster a young Colts secondary. He put up an impressive 12 sacks and 51 solo tackles. Do the 49ers have the talent to dethrone the defending champion Rams? The Colts were a top 10 rush defense in 2021 bolstered by Deforest Buckner. Indianapolis Colts: 125. The San Francisco 49ers defensive line will look slightly different heading into the 2022 season without three players who had a big impact on the team's defensive success last year: D.J. Whats legacy, anyway? CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Commissioner.com is a registered trademark of CBS Interactive Inc. site: media | arena: nfl | pageType: stories | The AFC South is a tougher one to analyze. It has three players that stand out from the rest, Clemsons Mile Murphy, Isaiah Foskey from Notre Dame, and BJ Ojulari from LSU. The Commanders activated Young from the reserve/physically unable to perform list and now have 21 days to either activate Young or place him on season-ending injured reserve. Tannehill loves to give his receivers a chance to win on contested catches. Jonathan Greenard has potential as a young building block. Whats at Steak in the 2023 NFL Combine, The Mandalorian Season 3, Episode 1 Instant Reactions. The Tennessee Titans have won the AFC South two seasons in a row, but things could change in 2022. Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh on Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson contract negotiation. Just something to think about. Looking at that second defensive end spot, paired with the likely five other names on that front to make the roster, all of those guys combined for just 2,540 career NFL snaps. WebSuper Bowl MVP: Cooper Kupp. Dont be surprised if one of the Jags reserves ([Jamal Agnew. How frisky are the Bengals? All Rights Reserved. Also, PFF strangely leaves off two players who should be in anyones top 101 players. This time, the credit doesnt belong to Brown or Henry or Smithno, this time, it belongs to the defense. However, Defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald is the lone change amongst the big three but has experience coaching a 3-4 base defense from the Landry had 12 sacks and 14 TFLs in 2021 as the leading pass rusher on the Titans 2021. Almost one year removed from tearing his ACL, Washington Commanders defensive end Chase Young is back on the practice field. Jones was recently named the AFC Defensive Player of the Year at the NFL 101 Awards for his dominating performance in the 2022 season where he was a First Gregg Rosenthal projects the starters for every AFC West team. Buckner also has playoff experience, making it to Super Bowl 54 with the San Francisco 49ers. He has everything you Travon Walker is a prospect who is still a better athlete than a football player. The Houston Texans currently have the lowest win total prop throughout the NFL. But what if the top options are all gone by the time the Jets pick at No. Rookie Travon Walker played some edge at Georgia so he can fit in as well as an option as a pass rusher. Clemons contributed on defense and on special teams and, also like Johnson, could be in for a bigger role in his second season. Teams who win a lot of football games are often called well-coached, because, well, theyre winning a lot of football games, so the coaches are probably doing their jobs well. The Jets would save $15.4 million by cutting Lawson, but will the Jets actually do so with Lawson coming off a strong season and the Jets being in a win-now mode? Oops. Edge - Houtons edge rushers, like almost every other position group for the team, are below average. This complexity brings us back to Vrabel. the best cornerback in 2021. Wide Receiver - Michael Pittman Jr. has been pretty solid in his time in Indianapolis, but the team still lacks real explosiveness and playmaking out of the position group. He has an elite combination of size, strength, a Drake is a quality prospect who possesses impressive athletic ability: he has a unique combination of speed, agility, power as wel David Ojabo may have the greatest upside of any player in the 2022 NFL Draft class with a unique combination of size, strength, an Arnold Ebiketie is an impressive pro prospect who has top-level athletic skills - he's explosive, has elite speed around the edge, Johnson has been rocketing up draft boards after his dominating 2021 season with FSU. Buy Commanders Tickets. Look at this two-high pre-snap alignment, once again with box safety Kalu (28) masquerading as a linebacker. That would get them to six wins and then you'd have to bank on an upset somewhere else on the schedule or a split against either Tennessee or Indianapolis within the division. Moore, an undrafted player in 2017 has turned into a good cornerback as a member of the Indianapolis Colts. Houston Texans- DE Jonathan Win total projection: 9.5 (Over +120, Under -140). WebVisit ESPN to view the Washington Commanders team depth chart for the current season This is an important middle ground in this iteration of the Schwartz defense. So pretty bad. The Titans are just well-coached. He has plenty of upside on the outside and has great character as evidenced by his wearing No. In just two years, Bowen and Schwartz have turned this defense into one of the leagues best. Schwartzs influence is not difficult to find. Compare their called coverages in the past two seasons with the coverages called by Schwartz when he coordinated the Eagles defense in 2019 and 2020. Our latest mock draft has them trading up for OT Paris Johnson Jr. out of Ohio State. The Texans and Jaguars are both bottom 10 in rushing yards allowed in 2021. Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach talks about the team's mindset going into the 2023 NFL Draft. Obviously everyone knows that the Bills are rea SAN DIEGO COUNTY CREDIT UNION HOLIDAY BOWL, NFC SOUTH TEAM NEEDS HEADING INTO FREE AGENCY AND THE 2023 NFL DRAFT, AFC SOUTH TEAM NEEDS HEADING INTO FREE AGENCY AND THE 2023 NFL DRAFT, AFC EAST TEAM NEEDS HEADING INTO FREE AGENCY AND THE 2023 NFL DRAFT. Please check your email for a confirmation. Del Rio has continued to praise his young players during his weekly press conferences and on Thursday spoke specifically about several. Okams exit was official a week ago and today Ravens head coach John Harbaugh announced that outside linebackers coach Rob Leonard has been hired by the Asking a team like the Texans to pull out three road wins just to get in the conversation of this total may be too big of an ask. With Bowen came the hiring of senior defensive assistant Jim Schwartz, in a role that has little description from the team, but huge ripple effects on the film. 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