EAST
New England Patriots
Last season: 11-5.
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Big questions: It’s hard to overstate the importance of Tom Brady’s comeback and how he plays on his reconstructed left knee. Is he going to pick up where he left off in 2007, when he completed 69 percent of his passes, threw for 50 touchdowns and earned most valuable player honors? Or, like the Bengals’ Carson Palmer did after a similar injury and surgery, will he be tentative on his plant leg and see his accuracy suffer? Judging by training camp, it’s so far, so good.
Big moves: Does former Jaguars running back Fred Taylor have another good year in him? The Patriots hope he’s the Taylor who averaged 5.4 yards per carry in 2007 and not the one who dropped to a career-low 3.9 last season.
Bottom line: If Brady is back to form, his team will be too — provided the defense can shore up some holes. The Patriots should be less road weary too. A year after playing at all four Left Coast teams, they don’t travel west of Denver.
Miami Dolphins
Last season: 11-5, lost in wild-card playoff round.
Big questions: The Dolphins became the first team in NFL history to make the playoffs after just one victory the previous season. That postseason appearance snapped a six-year drought. Can the coach-general manager combination of Tony Sparano and Bill Parcells keep the momentum going? And how will the quarterback situation shake out, with Chad Henne being groomed to replace Chad Pennington eventually and rookie Pat White running the occasional wildcat formation?
Big moves: Welcome back, Jason Taylor. His one-year stint in Washington fizzled, but he’s an outstanding talent. Does he have something left? The Dolphins also expect a lot from rookie corners Vontae Davis and Sean Smith, one of whom is expected to start.
Bottom line: The Dolphins are trying to take the next step after a 27-9 wild-card loss to the Ravens. It won’t be easy, considering they have the league’s toughest schedule, including games at San Diego, Carolina and Tennessee and at home against Pittsburgh.
Buffalo Bills
Last season: 7-9.
Big questions: Can the addition of Terrell Owens get the Bills where they want to go? They have had three consecutive 7-9 seasons despite a promising 5-1 start last year. The franchise has gone nine years without making the playoffs. Maybe Owens can help change that. What’s going on with their offense? Coordinator Turk Schonert was fired last week, starting left tackle Langston Walker released on Tuesday and Owens has publicly criticized the new no-huddle scheme.
Big moves: The acquisition of Owens made all the headlines, but the Bills picked up other key players, among them running back Dominic Rhodes, cornerback Drayton Florence and defensive end Aaron Maybin, their first-round pick.
Bottom line: A key for the Bills will be keeping quarterback Trent Edwards upright and healthy. He took a beating last season. It doesn’t help that he’s playing behind a suspect offensive line.
New York Jets
Last season: 9-7.
Big questions: A season after the failed Brett Favre experiment, can the Jets turn things around with a rookie quarterback and first-year head coach? Despite just 16 starts at USC, quarterback Mark Sanchez has been named the starter. Coach Rex Ryan, who left the Ravens after 10 seasons, will try to bring some of their success to Gang Green. One thing is clear: Ryan is not intimidated by the task, announcing he’s not here to kiss Bill Belichick’s rings.
Big moves: Linebacker Bart Scott came from the Ravens with Ryan, as did safety Jim Leonhard and defensive end Marques Douglas. The Jets also picked up cornerback Lito Sheppard from the Eagles. He makes some big plays but gives up his share of them too.
Bottom line: Rookie coach and rookie quarterback? What’s the big deal? The Ravens made the playoffs that way last season with John Harbaugh and Joe Flacco, and so did the Falcons with Mike Smith and Matt Ryan. A lot of the Jets’ success depends on how quickly Sanchez can get up to speed.
NORTH
Pittsburgh Steelers
Last season: 12-4, won Super Bowl.
Big questions: Can the Steelers handle success? They couldn’t in 2006, when they came off a Super Bowl victory only to lose six of their first eight games. They had to scramble in the second half to finish 8-8, missed the playoffs and coach Bill Cowher capped things off with his resignation. It was the second time in club history the Steelers missed the playoffs the year after winning it all. Then again, they also have won consecutive Super Bowls twice.
Big moves: The Steelers are a homegrown franchise that seldom makes any noise in free agency. They do have some promising draft picks in defensive lineman Ziggy Hood and receiver/returner Mike Wallace, one of the fastest players in the draft.
Bottom line: This could be another big year for the Steelers, who return 20 of 22 starters and have an offensive line that, despite struggling during the 2008 regular season, played as a unit in the postseason. Ben Roethlisberger proved (again) he’s a clutch performer in big games.
Baltimore Ravens
Last season: 11-5, lost in the AFC championship game.
Big questions: The Ravens came within a victory of the Super Bowl last season, but can they take the next step? Can second-year quarterback Joe Flacco pick up where he left off in the regular season? Despite two playoff victories, he struggled in the postseason, including three interceptions in the championship game at Pittsburgh.
Big moves: The Ravens lost more talent than they gained in the off-season, although six-time Pro Bowl center Matt Birk was a key acquisition. The un-retirement of Pro Bowl wide receiver Derrick Mason helps a banged-up receiving corps. Flacco also might throw to the tight ends more often.
Bottom line: A lot of the Ravens’ success hinges on the growth of Flacco, who completed just 38.3 percent of his passes inside the opponents’ 20-yard line, and the effectiveness of new defensive coordinator Greg Mattison. If those things go well, the Ravens will be back in the playoffs.
Cincinnati Bengals
Last season: 4-11-1.
Big questions: Will Carson Palmer be healthy enough to return to his Pro Bowl form? And how will he adjust to losing his favorite target, T.J. Houshmandzadeh? It hurts that first-round pick Andre Smith, the would-be right tackle, missed all of training camp because of a holdout then broke his left foot in practice Tuesday.
Big moves: The Bengals have made major changes on the offensive line, including the drafting of Smith and the release of their right and left tackles. Wide receiver Laveranues Coles, safety Roy Williams and defensive tackle Tank Johnson were added.
Bottom line: When he’s protected and healthy, Palmer is among the NFL’s five best quarterbacks. But Palmer, sidelined last season with an elbow injury, has missed a significant chunk of camp with a tweaked ankle and is playing behind a cobbled-together line. That’s not encouraging.
Cleveland Browns
Last season: 4-12.
Big questions: Will the Jets West approach work? New coach Eric Mangini, fired after three seasons in New York, brought seven former Jets with him to Cleveland. With his clamped-down style, he will try to do something player-friendly Romeo Crennel couldn’t: turn around a once-proud franchise. The most pressing issue: Who will start at quarterback, Brady Quinn or Derek Anderson? Quinn appears to be the choice, but Mangini hasn’t made an announcement.
Big moves: Quinn (or Anderson) will have fewer capable targets. The Browns shipped troubled-but-talented tight end Kellen Winslow to the Bucs, and wide receiver Donte’ Stallworth is suspended for the season after his DUI manslaughter conviction.
Bottom line: The Browns should be better on defense this season, and their offense … well, it couldn’t get much worse than the 2008 version, which last scored a touchdown Nov. 17. The offense failed to reach the end zone in the final six games.
SOUTH
Indianapolis Colts
Last season: 12-4, lost in wild-card round.
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Big questions: MVP Peyton Manning is still around, but his coach isn’t. Tony Dungy retired after last season, leaving the job to Jim Caldwell. That’s one of the many coaching adjustments the Colts will have to make coming off their sixth consecutive 12-victory season.
Big moves: The Colts released wide receiver Marvin Harrison, although his best days were far behind him. Running back Dominic Rhodes and punter Hunter Smith are gone too. The most interesting addition is running back Donald Brown, a first-round pick from Connecticut.
Bottom line: This time last season, Manning was coming off knee surgery, and his team got off to a slow start. Now the Colts have to adjust to a new defensive coordinator and special teams coach and juggled roles among the offensive coaches. Should be interesting to see if the franchise can maintain its remarkable stability.
Tennessee Titans
Last season: 13-3, lost in divisional round.
Big questions: Will the Titans ever have a complete offense? Will Kerry Collins beef up his ho-hum passing numbers? The Titans passed for a 27th-ranked average of 176.2 yards per game. And what’s up with backup Vince Young? He has looked alternately sterling and shaky this summer.
Big moves: Tackle Albert Haynesworth, a fixture in a defense that had 44 sacks and 31 takeaways, signed a $100 million deal with the Redskins. Big loss. But the Titans helped themselves on the other side of the ball by drafting wide receiver Kenny Britt.
Bottom line: The window of opportunity is closing fast for the Titans, who have 13 players hitting free agency after this season. The defense will lead the way under new coordinator Chuck Cecil and has 10 of 11 starters back, although the one missing — Haynesworth — is a biggie.
Houston Texans
Last season: 8-8.
Big questions: The Texans quietly are clawing their way toward respectability and have some underrated stars in wide receiver Andre Johnson and defensive end Mario Williams. As a whole, their defense was bad last season, prompting the firing of coordinator Richard Smith. When healthy, quarterback Matt Schaub makes good decisions. But he has missed five games in each of his first two seasons in Houston, suffered a sprained ankle in the preseason and doesn’t have usually capable backup Sage Rosenfels behind him.
Big moves: With Rosenfels traded to the Vikings, the Texans needed to stock up at quarterback. They got a couple of so-so former starters in Rex Grossman and Dan Orlovsky. On defense, they added end Antonio Smith from the Cardinals and drafted linebacker Brian Cushing out of USC.
Bottom line: The Texans, who are 12-4 at home over the last two seasons, play three of their first four in the friendly confines of Reliant Stadium. That’s good news for a team that had plenty of defensive struggles last season.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Last season: 5-11.
Big questions: Now that they have given the boot to some longtime standouts, can the Jaguars reboot as a franchise? They need to, considering they can’t sell tickets and they’re coming off their worst season in five years. A big problem was getting the running game going on a team that lost four of its offensive linemen for most of the season. Running back Maurice Jones-Drew is a huge component to the success of the franchise.
Big moves: The Jaguars did a major housecleaning, getting rid of nearly a dozen starters, among them Fred Taylor, Paul Spicer, Matt Jones, Dennis Northcutt and Mike Peterson. They plan to rebuild through the draft but did pick up tackle Tra Thomas and wide receiver Torry Holt.
Bottom line: The Jaguars dropped off the table last season, losing seven more games than the previous year. Their reconstruction process starts up front, and that could take a while, although talented rookie tackles Eben Britton and Eugene Monroe are promising. Could be a long year.
WEST
San Diego Chargers
Last season: 8-8, lost in the divisional round.
Big questions: Can the Chargers get off to a good start? They made the playoffs the last two seasons despite painfully slow Septembers. That will be a point of emphasis. This fall also marks the return of Pro Bowl linebacker Shawne Merriman. But he’s a question mark again because of allegations of domestic violence. The secondary’s numbers dropped off last fall, with just 15 interceptions after 30 the previous year. Is LaDainian Tomlinson still The Man? Darren Sproles played great last year, but he’s not built to be an every-down back.
Big moves: Getting Merriman back — and keeping him on the field — is huge, especially because he’s in the final year of his contract, so he’s motivated to get a blockbuster deal — probably elsewhere. A little extra motivation: The Chargers used their top pick on his potential replacement, Larry English. They picked up Cowboys linebacker Kevin Burnett in free agency.
Bottom line: As long as they don’t put themselves in another early hole, the Chargers are built for a Super Bowl run. They’re in a weak division and have shown they can give the Colts fits. Now they need to prove they can get over the hump against the Steelers and Patriots.
Denver Broncos
Last season: 8-8.
Big questions: Was dumping Mike Shanahan the right thing to do? His successor, Josh McDaniels, is already in hot water with fans who think he shoved quarterback Jay Cutler out the door (although both sides are to blame). The Broncos endured a historic collapse last season, blowing a three-game division lead with three to go. Their porous defense played a big role in that, and is switching to a 3-4 scheme.
Big moves: Out goes Cutler and in comes Kyle Orton, who didn’t bowl anyone over in Chicago but isn’t that bad, and he will be playing behind an excellent line. Orton has a dislocated right index finger, though. Rookie running back Knowshon Moreno has impressed a lot of people.
Bottom line: McDaniels comes from the Patriots’ winning system and should be able to be competitive in the watered-down AFC West. The Broncos need strong seasons from cornerback Champ Bailey and wide receiver Brandon Marshall, both of whom are coming off injuries.
Kansas City Chiefs
Last season: 2-14.
Big questions: Can coach Todd Haley bring over some of the success he had last season as the Cardinals’ offensive coordinator? Is quarterback Matt Cassel the real deal, or was he simply the product of a terrific system when he stepped in for Tom Brady in New England last season? And how will the Chiefs cope without tight end Tony Gonzalez, a fixture in their offense for so many years and maybe the best pass-catching big man in the game? The franchise is coming off the worst season in its history and has just six victories in the last two seasons.
Big moves: GM Scott Pioli, formerly Bill Belichick’s personnel man in New England, brought some of his old team with him, trading for Cassel and linebacker Mike Vrabel. He also brought in linebackers Monty Beisel and Zach Thomas and wide receiver Bobby Engram. The Chiefs are excited about first-round pick Tyson Jackson, who will play end in the new 3-4 scheme.
Bottom line: Turnarounds take time, and the Chiefs must be patient. Haley will have to lean much more heavily on the run than he did in Arizona, where the Cardinals had the air show of Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin.
Oakland Raiders
Last season: 5-11.
Big questions: Is this the year JaMarcus Russell steps up and proves he was worthy of the No. 1 overall pick in 2007? He will need some receivers around him, and first-round pick Darrius Heyward-Bey, who is speedy but has questionable hands, had an up-and-down camp. And what about the coaching staff? According to reports, coach Tom Cable allegedly slugged defensive assistant Randy Hanson in the face, breaking his jaw. If true, the league could take disciplinary action. Not the kind of distraction a shaky team needs.
Big moves: The Raiders doled out huge money to keep cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha and punter Shane Lechler and got backup quarterback Jeff Garcia on the cheap. They traded for five-time Patriots Pro Bowl defensive end Richard Seymour, but Seymour hasn’t reported yet. Drafting Heyward-Bey seventh was a gamble.
Bottom line: There’s always a chance the Raiders could break out of their malaise and realize their potential. But the franchise has averaged a league-low four victories over the last six seasons. There’s little to indicate that pattern will change.