Teams With Best Chance At Regaining NFL Division Crown In 2022

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Winning your own division is generally one of the first goals for an NFL team during each season. Some teams have more of an upper hand in certain divisions, compared to others. For instance, the entire AFC West is viewed as anyone’s ball game after its wild and chaotic offseason. Whereas in the NFC South, two of the league’s worst teams may reside in that group for 2022. Dethroning the Tampa Bay Buccaneers could be one of the most challenging tasks, as a result.

Obviously, some teams will have an easier path when hoping to repeat as division champions. In the AFC, the Kansas City Chiefs have won the AFC West six consecutive years entering 2022. The Green Bay Packers have won the NFC North three consecutive years on the NFC side. Finally, no team has won back-to-back NFC East division titles since 2004, when the Philadelphia Eagles won it for the fourth consecutive season.

Who are the five teams that have the best shot to win their division in 2022 after they did not win their division in 2021? Items like strength of schedule, roster transactions and moves by division rivals factored into this list. Thus, we have narrowed down our list to the teams that have the greatest chance at regaining their respective division crown. Let’s kick it off.

Baltimore Ravens

There are possibly a few different things that should return back in the favor of the Baltimore Ravens. First and foremost, their injury luck cannot be as dire as what it was in 2021. Missing Lamar Jackson late last season halted any potential playoff hopes that the Ravens may have had. Beyond that, Baltimore was without names like JK Dobbins, Gus Edwards and Marcus Peters throughout all of last season, due to devastating injuries.

You also have to think that the Ravens will be able to get back to running the ball more effectively. They have added veterans like running back Mike Davis and offensive tackle Morgan Moses. On the other hand, younger additions like Tyler Linderbaum and Daniel Faalele could instill the psychically imposing competition that the Ravens cling to upfront on the offensive line.

The Cincinnati Bengals were a tremendous story last season. Furthermore, they have young stars that should help them stay competitive in the short term. There is reason to believe that the Ravens could snatch that AFC North division crown away from them, however. Baltimore will be playing the role of the hunter, rather than the hunted, like the Bengals will feel. The play style of the Ravens may be able to withstand the rough and rugged AFC North, while division rivals are crawling all over each other. And of course, their strength of schedule looks much simpler on paper than that of Cincinnati.

Denver Broncos

For the last few years, the Denver Broncos have been seen as being a team that is a quarterback away from competing. Just on offense, they have a tremendous young trio at wide receiver. All three are guys who can produce heavily week to week. Meanwhile, the Broncos have quietly rebuilt a sturdy offensive line over the past couple of years. The running back duo of Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon can certainly wear down opposing defenses quickly in that altitude as well.

Now, they have added one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in Russell Wilson. He currently has the fourth most wins (104) among active NFL quarterbacks, trailing only Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and Matt Ryan. Of those four guys, Wilson has the third-best career winning percentage (.661). It has been a bit more difficult for him the last couple of years to stave off young competitors. Yet, Wilson’s poise, knowledge and leadership is something that has been absent with the Broncos since Peyton Manning retired.

The wild, wild AFC West is sure to be filled with fireworks and unexpected results throughout the entire 2022 season. Can Denver go from worst to first? With their mix of weapons and experience at quarterback, the Broncos may have enough firepower to hang with the other gunslingers in the division. And like the Ravens, they have one of the more fair schedules, when it comes to strength of opponents.

Indianapolis Colts

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The Indianapolis Colts have always been an extremely complementary team under head coach Frank Reich. They are not afraid to run it down the opposing defense’s throats 40 times a game. On the flip side, their defense can be pests, when you factor in takeaways and pressuring the quarterback. A well-rounded team like Indianapolis was missing just one item last season. That would be a quarterback who can play under control and manage the game.

Being able to replace Carson Wentz with Matt Ryan is a win in my eyes. Ryan can still win to all areas of the field. He can still pick up on the tricks of the opposing defense when reading the field. Elsewhere, this new Colts quarterback can take care of the little things and put his team in position to win. With a decrease in turnovers or turnover worthy plays, Indy can quickly pounce on opponents, due to their tenacious play style.

The AFC South is not going to be competitive from top to bottom. Nonetheless, the Tennessee Titans have to be feeling more pressure than they have felt in a while. As far as entering a new season goes, Tennessee has not been this derived of star talent in premium spots in a good bit. The Titans are going to be forced to rely on young talent in critical spots. On top of that, this is going to be a make-or-break season for a few of their long-tenured veterans. The Colts could quickly seize this opportunity, overall.

Los Angeles Chargers

It is difficult to not choose two options from the AFC West in this exercise. To a degree, the Los Angeles Chargers appear to be getting the most hype that they can be the ones to dethrone the Chiefs. Not many quarterbacks have lit up the stat sheets quite like Justin Herbert over the last two years. The mix of LA’s vertical passing attack, along with their power running game, allows for their offense to easily score in bunches most weeks.

The only problem last year? It was the defense of the Chargers. The Bolts were one of the worst teams against the run last year, based on rushing yards allowed. Los Angeles did go out and add some serious star power upfront, by trading for Khalil Mack. Their free agent signing of JC Jackson gives them one of the most productive cornerbacks in the game to go along with an already feisty secondary. If those moves do not pay off, what will for this current Chargers core?

This team appeared to be playoff caliber last year. Though, a horrid finish collapsed their season. The hopes of being able to sneak deep into the AFC playoff field were dwindled. At the same time, this Chargers team has begun to receive attention from many people. They have continued to push the Chiefs to the limit in the AFC West. If that continues, Los Angeles could finally rise to the top and regain their long-escaping division crown.

Philadelphia Eagles

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As we mentioned at the top, no NFC East team has won back-to-back division titles since 2004. That puts the Dallas Cowboys, last year’s division winner, in a precarious position. To boot, Dallas lost plenty of talent this offseason. Guys like Amari Cooper, La’el Collins, Randy Gregory, Cedrick Wilson, Connor Williams, Keanu Neal and Damontae Kazee are no longer on the team. With a unit that has continued to fall short, Dallas may be feeling more pressure, compared to what most people are willing to admit.

Of all of the other NFC East division rivals, the Eagles have arguably improved the most this season. They signed names like James Bradberry, Haason Reddick and Kyzir White to help fortify a stingy defense. Philadelphia was able to maneuver enough and re-sign veterans like Fletcher Cox, Anthony Harris, Derek Barnett and Jason Kelce. Most of all, they gave young quarterback Jalen Hurts a shiny new weapon with which to utilize in his arsenal. The Eagles acquired AJ Brown from the Titans after a contract dispute occurred in Tennessee. When healthy, Brown has been one of the more productive and dominant wide receivers in the NFL over the last few years.

You can say what you want about the Eagles sneaking into the playoffs last year. Was it lucky? Possibly. However, this team certainly overachieved last season in a year that was supposed to be about rebuilding. While they look determined to grind out wins now, the rest of the NFC East is working to find their exact identities. In a weaker conference overall, the Eagles have multiple styles for which to play with throughout their roster. No matter how it looks, this team is primed and ready to take that next step in 2022.

Be on the lookout for more 2022 NFL offseason articles and analysis from Full Press Coverage throughout this summer.

– Braden Holecek is the Kansas City Chiefs managing editor for Full Press Coverage. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @ebearcat9//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Follow @FPC_Chiefs//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js and Facebook.