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Another exciting NFL season will be on the horizon in a matter of days. During the offseason, players found new homes along with several teams that reloaded for their playoff push in the upcoming season. The AFC will be a whole new picture in itself with a handful of under the radar contenders trying to barge into the postseason this time around.
Here are the top 3 dark horse playoff contenders in the AFC.
3. Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos opened the 2019 season under a new head coach in Vic Fangio. They started their campaign on a bad note and fell to a 0-4 hole. The team had issues in crunch time as they failed to close out tight games, particularly in Week 2 against the Chicago Bears, Week 4 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and Week 8 against the Indianapolis Colts. The Broncos also blew an early 20-point lead to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 11 where they lost 27-23.
The team eventually concluded the season on a 7-9 showing and sat at second place in the AFC West. However, their record wasn't enough to power them through as they missed the playoffs for a fourth consecutive season. Health was also a big concern as starting cornerback Bryce Callahan was sidelined due to a foot injury followed by outside linebacker Bradley Chubb who had a partially torn ACL injury.
Despite the setbacks, the Broncos have a future to look forward to. The team found several young players who are capable of having a bigger role in the upcoming season. Sophomore tight end Noah Fant and third-year backup wideout DaeSean Hamilton showed flashes of potential in limited action last season. 2018 draftee Courtland Sutton also established himself as a potent threat and tallied 1,000 receiving yards en route to his first Pro Bowl appearance last season.
Perhaps the biggest revelation was quarterback Drew Lock who slotted in for starter Joe Flacco who was out with a season-ending neck injury. The rookie eventually led the team to an impressive 4-1 run with him playing under center. The team will also have eight-time Pro Bowl linebacker Von Miller and 2020 first-round pick Jerry Jeudy to bolster their chances in the upcoming season.
The young Denver Broncos will still have a lot of things to work on and will still need more time to mature as a unit. However, Broncos fans can still get optimistic as they are getting a full season with Lock as the full-fledged QB1 in the group's second season under head coach Fangio.
2. Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns also found themselves on a similar list this time last season. Many have set high expectations for the team to barge into the playoffs after landing big talents namely wideout Odell Beckham Jr., tight end Olivier Vernon, and running back Kareem Hunt.
Despite the buzz, the Browns underwhelmed mainly due to quarterback Baker Mayfield's mediocre performance all throughout last season. His sophomore slump saw him suffer a drop in his passing percentage from a previous 63.8 down to 59.4. He also saw a regression in his passing touchdowns coming from a previous 27 down to only 22 last season.
Both Beckham and fellow wideout Jarvis Landry were not able to play at their best due to their respective injuries. Despite the limitations, the former was able to exceed the 1,000 receiving yards mark while the latter still snagged a 2019 Pro Bowl appearance. Only imagine what their tandem could do if they are both healthy coming into the season.
All these deficiencies contributed to a dismal 6-10 outing for the Browns, which placed them in third place in the AFC North division. Failing to enter the playoffs for the 16th straight year eventually booted out head coach Freddie Kitchens and general manager John Dorsey.
The team's brass wanted to open a new chapter once again and brought in former Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski to be the team's new head coach. Former Philadelphia Eagles' vice president of football operations Andrew Berry then became the Browns' new general manager and executive vice president of football operations.
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The Dawg Pound still has high hopes that the team can maximize the talents at their disposal and make it work this time around. They are looking forward to finally have a breakthrough campaign and finish with a winning season for the first time in 12 years.
1. Pittsburgh Steelers
You know that the AFC North is a loaded division when two of its teams are listed as darkhorse playoff contenders.
The Pittsburgh Steelers also started the 2019 season on the wrong foot via a 33-3 blowout loss to the defending Super Bowl LII champion New England Patriots. They also saw starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger go down with a season-ending elbow injury in the very next game against the Seattle Seahawks. For the first time since 2013, the team started the season with a 1-4 record through Week 5.
However, the Steelers turned the tide and went on to win seven out of their next eight games. In Week 14, the team was still looking good with an 8-5 record despite starting wideout JuJu Smith Schuster and running back James Conner missing significant time.
The next three games went down the drain as the Steelers ended with an 8-8 record and finished runner up to division champions Baltimore Ravens. For the first time since the 2012 and 2013 seasons, they were mathematically eliminated from postseason contention for the second consecutive year.
Their Week 17 loss to the Baltimore Ravens coupled with the Tennessee Titans manhandling of the Houston Texans in the same week sealed the deal for the Titans to get the final AFC Wild Card spot.
Despite the losing season, the front office should still be mighty proud of this team. They went to battle each week without a stable quarterback at the helm along with the absence of their major contributors. Even with the difficult circumstances, the team only narrowly missed out on the final playoff spot which should already put head coach Mike Tomlin in the Coach of the Year conversation.
With their young pieces in safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, wideouts Diontae Johnson, and James Washington all gaining confidence along with the looming return of their starters, the Steelers are looking more stacked than ever.
Making it back to the playoffs again for the first time since 2017 should not be a far fetched aspiration for the team in the upcoming season.
