2018 NFL Season: Predicting The 5 Most Disappointing Teams
By Erik Lambert
The 2018 NFL season will be focused on the teams that are great and the teams that end up surprising by going from losers to winners.
Nobody wants to talk about which teams might do the opposite. Teams surrounded by high expectations only to fall flat on their faces. Understandable. It’s not exactly a pleasant subject. At the same time, it’s one that cannot be avoided. In order for some teams to exceed those expectations, others have to finish below them. So to that end, this list will cover the five teams that fit the criteria best.
Qualifications are as follows: the teams must have finished 2017 with a winning record, must be coming in with strong belief they’ll make the playoffs and also have a fatal flaw of some kind that will lead to their inability to finish the job. Who’s #1?
#5: Los Angeles Chargers
Right now they are the hot pick in the AFC to return to the playoffs and perhaps even make a run at the Super Bowl. It’s hard to argue given their roster. They still have Philip Rivers and an emerging young defense. Throw in a strong complement of weapons on offense and it looks like a true juggernaut on paper. Here’s the problem.
The Chargers haven’t lived up to high expectations for years. They always find a way to ruin it. What makes this season any different? It’s not that they can’t. It’s more a belief that somehow they’ll blow it.
#4: Dallas Cowboys
This team is not better from where they were at the end of last season, a year they finished 9-7 and out of the playoffs. Dez Bryant is gone. Jason Witten is gone. A lot of holes are opening up in their passing game, putting even more pressure on the running game and defense to pick up the slack.
If Dak Prescott struggled when he had those two, it’s difficult to imagine he’d be any better without them. Throw in the fact that the Eagles are the world champions and the Giants should be on the rebound? Nothing about their situation looks favorable. Not to mention their head coach appears to be on the hot seat.
#3: Kansas City Chiefs
“Transition period” is the best way to explain why the Kansas City Chiefs will disappoint this year. Andy Reid is a tremendous coach and always gets things right but even he’s had a hiccup from time to time. One is bound to hit this year.
Patrick Mahomes is stepping up as starting quarterback for the first time. Star corner Marcus Peters is gone and the team still has legitimate issues regarding their pass rush on defense. It’s just difficult to know how this team will operate without the steady Alex Smith or the playmaking skill of Peters. Too many maybes don’t often equal wins.
#2: Seattle Seahawks
No team experienced a faster fall from grace than the Seattle Seahawks. Remember just three seasons prior they were a bad play call from winning their second-straight Super Bowl. Since then their record has steadily declined until they missed the playoffs for the first time since 2011 last year. Worse still is it doesn’t seem like they improved.
Their coaching staff was gutted including both their coordinators. Several key defensive leaders are gone as well. Earl Thomas’ contract situation is a persistent distraction, as are the rumors that Pete Carroll has lost the locker room. Nothing about this team feels optimistic.
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#1: Buffalo Bills
This is one of those cases where it was less of an announcement of arrival and more a last hurrah. The Buffalo Bills made the playoffs last season and then promptly gutted much of their veteran core. Tyrod Taylor and Cordy Glenn get traded. Richie Incognito retires. Eric Wood retires. Zay Jones faces legal issues. LeSean McCoy and Eric Williams are a year older.
Not good. Now they’re banking on Josh Allen taking them to the next level, something he failed to do his entire time at Wyoming. This looks like a team trying less to win now and more trying to undergo a flash rebuild. They’ll likely be disappointed.