After one of the best seasons of football we have ever seen, sadly, the NFL offseason is here. Thankfully, the XFL is around, but it is just not the same. We will be without NFL games for months to come, so it is time to break down a thing or two.
During a long and daunting few months without football, all NFL franchises are thinking of the best ways to improve their teams for the next season. Let’s take a look at the weaknesses that these five NFL teams need to address during the 2023 off-season.
The Future is Now
For 31 teams, their eyes are already looking toward the 2023-24 NFL schedule. Every team is eager to get back out on the field. The Kansas City Chiefs, however, are perfectly content with basking in their Super Bowl Championship.
The future is now for all of these teams in the NFL off-season. Whether it is planning your draft plan or figuring out certain contracts, every team is currently addressing their weaknesses and trying to make them their strengths.
End the Quarterback Curse
Do you remember when the Indianapolis Colts had the best NFL odds to win the AFC South last year and were looked at as a threat to make the big game in February? Well, that did not last very long. They had a very disappointing season going 4-12-1, and currently have the 4th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
If there was any positive from their season, they did beat the Kansas City Chiefs and only lost to the Philadelphia Eagles by 1 point. The 2023 NFL offseason is when Indianapolis Colts finally looks to end its quarterback curse after Andrew Luck retired in 2019.
The Colts have many areas of concern, but the biggest is the quarterback position. Drafting a guy like Bryce Young or CJ Stroud could fix that. Or, they sign Derek Carr or trade for Aaron Rodgers. Indianapolis could be a reliable quarterback away from winning the division.
Defense Wins Games
Week 18 featured many wild NFL football scores. Two of the craziest outcomes came from the Houston Texans‘ win and the Chicago Bears’ loss. The Bears miraculously stumbled upon the first overall pick in the draft, and the Texans fumbled the bag.
Chicago got the top pick, but what are they going to do with it? Their Achilles heel last season was their defense. Words really cannot describe how bad it was. They had a very exciting offense, led by Justin Fields, in a season where he needed to prove himself.
Fields is the answer at quarterback, so the Bears need to bolster up the defense. Chicago Bears could also use some help at wide receiver. In a perfect world, the Bears would trade down in the draft and acquire a solid wide receiver. With the pick they trade down for, they would draft a guy like Will Anderson Jr. out of Alabama. The Bears are clearly rebuilding, but they should definitely rise up the NFL standings next year.
Goodbye Dan Snyder
This is interesting the think about, but the biggest weakness of the Washington Commanders is their ownership. Dan Snyder is holding back the Commanders, who are actually a promising young team.
With Snyder as the owner in the nation’s capital, free agents do not want to make the trip out East. On top of that, the team is playing in one of the worst stadiums in football. A new owner means a new stadium. A new stadium turns into a great free-agency destination.
Look out for the Commanders going down the road. The sooner Washington reaches a deal with a new owner, the sooner the NFL results will fall in their favor.
The Super Bowl Hangover
After winning Super Bowl 56, the Los Angeles Rams made history in the 2022-23 season. Unfortunately for them, not all history is good. They suffered perhaps the worst Super Bowl hangover in NFL history and have one major weakness to address heading into the NFL offseason. LA needs to fortify the offensive line.
First and foremost, the Rams need to stay healthy. Having a good offensive line is a key part of making that happen. The Rams played four different quarterbacks last season, which is rather absurd. Matthew Stafford was thrown around like a ragdoll all year long. In Los Angeles’ first 13 games, they used 12 different offensive line combinations. Figure it out, Sean McVay and company!
Play All 4 Quarters
This one might anger the Baltimore Ravens fans, but they have a major weakness in their game. The NFL scoreboard was often in their favor, but not so much when the 4th quarter rolled around. Baltimore blew many leads and was one of the worst teams in all of football when it came to closing games.
Using the excuse that their franchise quarterback Lamar Jackson was injured is not an excuse; he played in the majority of these 4th quarter disasters. Baltimore was the 5th worst in 4th quarter scoring last season and allowed the 3rd most points in the 4th quarter.
When well over half of your games are decided by one possession, you have to play your best football at the end of the game. Who knows what the future holds for Jackson with the Ravens, but they need to fix this issue going into next season. Perhaps finally having a WR1 could help bolster those 4th quarter NFL stats.
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