AFC East Futures Odds Preview
For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, it’s no surprise that the Buffalo Bills are the favorites to win the AFC East this season.
At Bovada Sportsbook, the Bills are -225 favorites on the AFC East futures. Buffalo has won the division the last two seasons and last year finished a single win ahead of the New England Patriots.
Bills minus-money faves to three-peat in AFC East
Believe it or not, the Bills led the AFC in scoring last season and they also allowed the fewest points of any team in the conference. A repeat of that this season on offense looks promising with quarterback Josh Allen still under center. Stefon Diggs also returns while a strong season from Gabriel Davis and the addition of Jamison Crowder should negate the losses of Emmanuel Sanders and Cole Beasley.
Buffalo made a big-name addition on defense by signing linebacker Von Miller. Miller, a two-time Super Bowl champion, a Super Bowl MVP and an eight-time Pro Bowler, should fit in nicely in the Bills’ stout defense that still boasts Tremaine Edmunds and Jordan Poyer.
Pressure on Tua to produce after Miami makeover
According to the oddsmakers, the team with the best shot at dethroning the Bills in the AFC East this season is the Miami Dolphins at +450. Miami made over its roster in the offseason with several acquisitions, including Tyreek Hill, Cedrick Wilson, Chase Edmonds, Raheem Mostert, Sony Michel and Terron Armstead.
Following that influx of talent, the pressure will be on quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to improve a Dolphins offense that ranked near the bottom of the conference last season. If the Dolphins are to have any chance of overtaking the Bills, they’ll need a much better start than last season when they went 1-7 in their first eight games before turning things around to finish at 9-8.
Jones, Patriots surprised in 2021 with 10-7 record
Following the Dolphins on the AFC East futures are the New England Patriots at +500. The Patriots surprised last season with a 10-7 record thanks in part to a strong rookie season from quarterback Mac Jones.
For New England to win the division, Jones will need to avoid a sophomore slump. He has a new target in wide receiver DeVante Parker, who will try to fit in with Jakobi Meyers, Kendrick Bourne and Hunter Henry. On defense, the Patriots had a few notable departures, including linebacker Kyle Van Noy and safety J.C. Jackson.
New York hasn’t won AFC East crown in 20 years
If you like long shots, you can get the New York Jets to win the AFC East at +2200. The Jets went 4-13 last season, which was actually an improvement from their two-win campaign in 2020.
New York hasn’t won a division title since 2002 and unless Zach Wilson and Breece Hall take the Jets offense to new levels and the defense improves after allowing a conference-high 504 points last season, that streak should continue this year.