The last time the AFC East was ruled by someone not named the Buffalo Bills, it was Bill Belichick and Tom Brady ruining the hopes and dreams of Miami Dolphins fans. Will that change in 2025?
Buffalo remains at the top of the division, with the Dolphins, New England Patriots, and New York Jets fighting for second place or the chance to take the top away from them. Last year, Miami's horrible start to the season kept them out of the playoffs despite a surge at the end to climb back into the chase, something neither the Jets nor Patriots could do.
With the season over, the only winners in March are the teams that put names to paper with the hopes of turning around the season ahead. This year, the Dolphins are holding court in the AFC East basement while two other teams are making moves to get to the top. Will it shake up the division when it really counts? It very well could.
Miami Dolphins at the bottom of the AFC East during the 2025 offseason
Buffalo Bills roster is still good enough to win the AFC East, but it will be closer.
Buffalo lost Mack Hollins in free agency and waived Von Miller. They are also without Amari Cooper, Rasul Douglas, Jordan Phillips, and a few more but they added a high-reward player in Joey Bosa if he stays healthy and another defensive lineman, Larry Ogunjobi to help the defense.
The Bills are still well-built and are busy chasing the Kansas City Chiefs more than chasing any team in their own division, but the AFC East competition might be a lot tougher in 2025.
New England Patriots continue to turnover their roster with the hopes of returning to the playoffs
No bigger offseason move was made by Patriots owner Robert Kraft than when he hired Mike Vrabel to be the team's new head coach. New England's new head coach will bring a lot more toughness and tenacity to a team that has lacked everything since Belichick left.
On the field, the idea has been to build around second-year quarterback Drake Maye. Maye looked good throughout his rookie campaign with little talent around him. That isn't the case this year.
New England hit a home run by adding top DT Milton Williams to the roster and followed that by signing Robert Spillane, Harold Landry, and K'Lavon Chaisson on defense. All four will make the Patriots better and more disciplined.
Offensively, there are reports that Stefon Diggs is discussing a contract with New England, and that would make the Bills vs. Patriots games a lot more interesting for certain.
Still, New England added sure-handed Mack Hollins, who left Buffalo, and rebuilt part of their offensive line, but the skill positions remain a bit more of a question.
The Patriots are hoping the current roster will develop at those positions. For now, New England looks like a team ready to make a jump but in a division. They have been buried on the last three seasons, how high can they go in one year?
New York Jets will always be the Jets until they prove they are not the Jets
Aaron Glenn has a great history with the Jets as a player, now the first-time head coach will have to battle those New York demons that continue to haunt the Gang Green.
The biggest move was adding quarterback Justin Fields. He will replace Aaron Rodgers, but there is no reason to get too uptight about it. He has had good games and a lot more bad ones. The Jets will only go as far as he takes them and while they seem optimistic, there is no guarantee he can turn his career into something more consistent than what it is.
The Jets did take big hits to their roster, however. They lost D.J. Reed, Javon Kinlaw, DaVante Adams, Haason Reddick, Morgan Moses, and Ashtyn Davis. C.J. Mosely, Tyler Conklin, Tyron Smith, and Jalen Mills are all still free agents.
For all the hype the Jets are receiving, they could easily take over the bottom of the division in 2025.
Miami Dolphins are relying on their core roster with the belief 2024 was a fluke
Miami didn't lose a lot when free agency began because they didn't have a lot to lose. The biggest issue facing Miami is they have yet to really fix the holes on their roster.
This implies they are satisfied with the core of players that will lead them to wins. Mike McDaniel is banking on his play-calling ability to create winning situations with his offensive playmakers while getting Anthony Weaver guys to make the defense better.
The problem here is there are still question marks at safety and corner despite adding a few players and a glaring hole at defensive tackle where Zach Sieler is the only experienced player at the position.
Entering 2025, Miami needed to fix their guard situation but has so far, only added one player to the roster that could realistically make it better.
Overall, the AFC East March-Madness paper chase hints at another Bills repeat
The Bills didn't lose enough to slide, and the Dolphins didn't add enough to catch up. That leaves the Patriots, who have done a lot but will still need time to get it together under a new system and coach, while the Jets lost more than they gained and will also go through the pains of a new head coach.
Overall, the East looks like another two-team race between the Dolphins and Bills, with Miami banking on 2023 being who they are and not 2024.