Every team's goal heading into the 2019 NFL season is to make the playoffs for a chance to hoist the Lombardi trophy in February. Unfortunately, only 12 teams get an opportunity to reach the postseason.
Thus, leaving 20 teams to watch the playoff teams in defeat while their offseason begins early. Despite not making the postseason, there are teams who have the talent to make it there—they just couldn't put it all together.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, for example, had a tremendous roster in 2018 but failed to make the playoffs. As did the Atlanta Falcons, Green Bay Packers, and Carolina Panthers. Unfortunately for all of those teams, they all reside in the NFC and there are only six spots for the postseason.
For the Steelers, the organization struggled to get past the drama surrounding both Le'Veon Bell and Antonio Brown. The drama was cast above the locker room like a dark cloud and they never managed to overcome it.
This NFL season is different though and we could see a few teams make the playoffs in 2019 that didn't in 2018. Here are three teams who could do just that in the upcoming season.
3. Carolina Panthers
People are quick to forget that the Carolina Panthers were one of the best teams in football through the first eight weeks of the season. The team stood at 6-2 after eight games, beating three playoff teams along the way.
Then, Cam Newton suffered a shoulder injury in the Panthers Week 10 bout against the Steelers on Thursday Night Football. One nasty hit from T.J. Watt caused Newton to struggle in the following weeks before being shut down for the rest of the season.
Therefore, Carolina ended up starting guys like Taylor Heinicke and Kyle Allen under center. And as a result, the Panthers finished the season with a 7-9 record after starting the year at 6-2.
This year, Newton is nearing his way to being one-hundred percent and Christian McCaffrey and D.J. Moore flashed their potentials in Norv Turner's offense. Making it out of the NFC South can be tough but with a healthy Newton leading the way, the playoffs are a possibility.
2. Green Bay Packers
It's been tough watching an Aaron Rodgers-led team fail to reach the postseason two years in a row. That's why Mike McCarthy is out and Matt LaFleur is in as the new head coach of the Green Bay Packers.
McCarthy's offensive scheme became outdated in today's NFL so Green Bay wanted a fresh face for the job. Whereas, LaFleur is a young, bright offensive mind that stems from the Sean McVay coaching tree (or branch).
Last season, LaFleur spent the season as the Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator after spending the 2017 season as the Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator. The Titans may not have had an explosive offense but LaFleur did the best he could with what he was given.
Now, he is handed arguably the best quarterback in the NFL and a plethora of weapons on offense. Aaron Jones showed he can be a versatile back in the NFL and Davante Adams has been one of the best receivers in football for a couple of years now.
It's tough to imagine Aaron Rodgers missing out on the postseason for the third straight year. Even though he's in a tough NFC North, Rodgers has owned the division with an impressive 41-18-1 record over his career.
1. Cleveland Browns
It has been an eternity since football fans in Cleveland have experienced their team in the playoffs. This year, the Cleveland Browns are poised to end their 17-year drought of not making the postseason with their superb offseason acquisitions.
John Dorsey worked his magic once again and was able to land Odell Beckham Jr. and Olivier Vernon via trade with the New York Giants. Then, he also signed guys like Sheldon Richardson, Kareem Hunt, and Morgan Burnett to round out the roster.
In the 2018 NFL season, the Browns seemed to begin turning the corner on a disastrous few years of football that saw them win just four games from 2015-2017. The Browns drafted Baker Mayfield as their hopeful franchise quarterback and he rose to the occasion.
The rookie quarterback helped lead Cleveland to a 7-8-1 record just a year after the franchise failed to win a game throughout the entire 2017 campaign. In 2019, the expectations are through the roof and if they make the playoffs, Cleveland will party like it's 2002.
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