The holiday season is upon us. With Christmas coming next week, the New Year will soon be upon us. NFL teams They certainly want the right thing to do to make their season — or their team — as successful as possible.
With that in mind, we give it to them. In theory, of course. Here's what each team wants for the next week or so.
NFC East
You've seen the Cowboys' home road splits, right? Did you watch their last few games against the Niners? The Eagles must lose one of their two remaining games against New York to clinch a home playoff game. They need someone else to do that to avoid knocking off San Francisco in the playoffs.
Jones received a $160 million contract. He immediately regressed to the player he was before his surprise turnaround in 2022. New York needs to find a way to get out of that deal that isn't too painful.
Philly has scored 49 points in its last three games: losses to the 49ers, Cowboys and Seahawks. Jalen Hurts is in for a treat. The Eagles will have to find a way out of this before heading into the playoffs in the last few weeks of the season.
For Washington, Josh Harris would be better than Daniel Snyder. That shouldn't be too much to ask.
NFC North
Justin Fields is playing well. The Bears are also likely to get the No. 1 pick in the draft. Put the fields and trade the pick, or trade the fields and keep the pick? For the sake of the Bears and their fans, let's hope whoever makes that call makes the right call.
Earlier this season, it looked like the Lions' offseason spending on their secondary would lead to real defensive improvement — especially with how well they've been playing. But as the season moved on, it seemed less and less real. We need a Lions defense that is a worthy companion to a very entertaining offense.
We thought about adding some Jordan Love here, but with the Packers allowing NFC Offensive Player of the Week performances against Tommy DeVito and Baker Mayfield, it's clear it's time for something to change on the defensive side. ball.
Cousins has been out for Minnesota long, with his contract situation and torn Achilles. But Justin Jefferson is too good not to be linked to a good quarterback. The Vikings will have a variety of options through the draft, free agency and potential trades, and it would be nice to see them land someone who can pair up with Jefferson, Jordan Addison and TJ Hockenson for a good, long term. .
NFC South
Sorry, Arthur Smith. But if the Falcons are going to draft a running back and tight end in the top 10, and you're not going to actually use them, the team needs one.
The David Tepper era has been a disaster in Carolina so far. Matt's rule doesn't work. Frank Reich was even worse. The Panthers need their deep pocket owner to step back from the football side and start showing the ability to identify the right people for the right jobs, and that should start this season.
The Saints presumably don't really want a way out of salary cap hell. They want to rehabilitate and kick the can down the drain trying to squeeze out every ounce left of this era. But there is nothing left. They're old, slow, and not particularly close to contention. Submit to reality, rip off the Band-Aid, and start over.
Evans is a future Hall of Famer who may never play for another team. Star wideout Jason Licht will have to work out a new deal before he ever hits free agency this offseason.
NFC West
After trading with the Texans last year, the Cardinals will receive two first-round picks in 2024. They need those picks to form the foundation of the Jonathan Cannon era, along with players like Trey McBride, Paris Johnson Jr., P.J. Ojulari, and (presumably) Kyler Murray and Buda Baker.
See how much fun the Rams had Thursday night against the Saints? We want it to continue for the Rams and their fans. As long as they have McVay, Stafford and an offensive line that isn't in total shambles, the good times should keep rolling on that side of the ball. As for Donald, he is one of the best in the league and will undoubtedly be one of the best ever, and we want to see him continue to confirm those things for years to come.
The 49ers have lost three games this season. Each came without Williams, Samuel, or both. In every other game, they demolished all comers. If those guys line up, the Niners are favorites to win it all.
Seattle's offense has been lacking at times this year thanks to injuries on offense, but that unit has all the pieces to succeed. But the pass defense, even if Devon Witherspoon lives up to expectations, needs a whole lot of work. The Seahawks need a better pass rush and better cover players, especially at the second and third levels.
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AFC East
The Bills are 8-6, as are the Jaguars, Bengals, Colts and Texans. But they are currently on the outside of the playoff picture due to various tiebreakers. In these final three weeks of the season, Buffalo needs some breaks so it will be a team no one wants to see come January.
Speaking of that perfect situation, the Dolphins need to do the opposite. They want a Week 18 game against the Bills in the AFC East so they don't have to worry about losing control of the division and a playoff spot on the final day of the season.
Whether Bill Belichick drafts them or not, the Pats desperately need their first- and second-round picks to become foundational players for the team's future. It has been a long time coming. Given how bad the team has been this season, it would be particularly damaging if they were to re-coup in 2024.
The Jets brought in Nathaniel Hackett, Alan Lazard, Randall Cobb and Tim Boyle at Rodgers' behest. How did it end?
AFC North
In each of the last two seasons, Lamar Jackson was injured late in the year and the Ravens either missed the playoffs entirely or lost early. We wish that didn't happen this year — especially since the Ravens have already lost Mark Andrews and Keaton Mitchell.
Jake Browning did a great job of keeping the Bengals out of the year with Burrow, but we knew the Bengals had to be. Super Bowl Future contenders need Burrow to perform at full capacity. Between his training-camp calf issue and his season-ending wrist injury, that just didn't happen this year. Let's hope it's a mutation.
Well, this is what the Browns have wanted since the beginning of their existence. But that doesn't mean it's not what they want now.
The Matt Canada era was an epic disaster in every way. The post-Matt Canada era was fun for a week, but has since come crashing back down to earth. The Steelers will need to make significant changes on offense this upcoming season, and they can't be afraid to step outside their comfort zone with creative hires.
AFC South
CJ Stroud is set to miss his second straight game in concussion protocol. Tank Tell is done for the year with a broken leg. Those two are really good, really fun, and it will be great if they come into next season fully healthy. (Playoff-wise, whatever the Texans do is just a bonus this year.)
We've seen over the years that Steichen knows exactly what he's doing when it comes to quarterbacks and offenses in general. We saw it in Justin Herbert's rookie season when he was offensive coordinator in LA, we saw it with Jalen Hurts in Philadelphia, we saw it with both Richardson and Gardner Minshew. Let's hope for a long, happy, successful partnership between the head coach and the ridiculously talented quarterback.
A lot of people (myself included) thought Lawrence would take a big step this year in his second season under Doug Pederson. That didn't really happen for a variety of reasons. He is still good and has an incredibly bright future. But what we're looking for is the step it takes for him to become an annual MVP candidate and a guy who leads his team deep into the playoffs every year.
The Titans will definitely be moving on from the Derrick Henry/Ryan Tanhill era this season. Levis should be the man they create the next era.
AFC West
Wilson's numbers this season have been pretty good. The film does not tell the same story. If the Broncos aren't going to be bad enough to have a successor in the draft, Wilson needs to be a good one, someone who drives his team's success, not an average worker in yards per attempt. Because the team can't run the ball in the end zone for some reason, sacks, and torque with an unbearably high touchdown rate.
Well, the CM is pretty self-explanatory.
Mark Davis was no more patient than his father when it came to finding head coaches and general managers. Or quarterbacks. Or players at any other level. But Al Davis had some success at times during his tenure. Yet the same cannot be said for Mark. It is essential to find the right people to lead the organization and let them do their thing.
The Brandon Staley era is over, the Tom Delesco era is over. The Spanos family has a gem of a quarterback to lead the franchise into the future. Now we need to find the best people to bring out the best from an uber-talented player.
