The offseason has been a blur of signings, trades, draft classes, rules changes, schedules and an extended vigil for a future Hall of Fame quarterback. But the NFL is heading into the quiet -- relatively speaking -- portion of the year, with the roster-building mostly complete and just a handful of practices remaining before everyone gets a little R&R.
If you fear football withdrawal, though, there’s good news: We’re just 100 days out from the NFL Kickoff Game, when the Philadelphia Eagles will begin the defense of their Super Bowl championship against the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 4. And we’re even closer to the opening of training camps in late July. There’s barely enough time to set up your lawn chair and grab your sunblock.
For many teams, the heat will be turned up again before long, as issues that were supposed to be solved in the spring continue to simmer in the summer. Here’s a look at the squads that will be under the microscope soon enough:
Most needs Super Bowl win
The Bills have come achingly close to supplanting the Chiefs for AFC supremacy, losing in the conference championship game to Kansas City twice in the last five seasons. The championship window will be wide open as long as Josh Allen is in uniform, but eventually Buffalo has to get over the finish line to avoid looking back on this era with the same angst generated by those four consecutive Super Bowl losses more than 30 years ago. The Bills spent most of the offseason focused on shoring up their defense, which was necessary in a conference teeming with superstar quarterbacks, and they will have a very manageable schedule, with six of their first seven games against teams that didn’t make the playoffs last season.
Honorable mention: Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, Los Angeles Chargers.
Most needs to make playoffs
Every season of Joe Burrow’s career that ends without a playoff appearance is a missed opportunity and a squandering of one of the best players in the game. The Bengals have spent the offseason behaving like a team that believes it is close. They kept their championship-caliber offense intact, with contracts for Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. They need to solve the contract standoff with reigning NFL sacks leader Trey Hendrickson, which threatens to linger deep into the summer. Even modest defensive improvement from last season should be enough to push the Bengals into the playoffs -- everybody remembers how dangerous the offense looked in the second half of the 2024 season -- but the most immediate challenge begins much sooner. For the Bengals to go anywhere, they have to eliminate their penchant for slow starts. Burrow’s good health certainly helps that effort, but limiting contract distractions like Hendrickson's is also important. It’s also worth paying attention to how the Bengals handle participation in training camp practices and preseason games.
Honorable mention: Dallas Cowboys, Miami Dolphins.
Most needs to solve QB situation
This might be a multi-year endeavor, but no team has a weirder, more unsettled quarterback room than the Browns, and we’re not even counting the specter of the injured Deshaun Watson, who might not play this season and whose disastrous era appears to, thankfully, be winding down. The Browns have Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, rookie Dillon Gabriel and rookie Shedeur Sanders on the roster. Can Gabriel or Sanders win the job over Flacco, who has the benefit of age and success with head coach Kevin Stefanski? Can they be good enough to convince the Browns they are the future? Cleveland has two first-round draft picks in 2026, so it will be in position to draft a quarterback high in the first round if it wants to. Drama is almost certain to ensue at some point.
Honorable mention: New Orleans Saints, Indianapolis Colts, Pittsburgh Steelers.
Most needs to show improvement
Owner John Mara has not given Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen a playoff mandate to save their jobs, but after two disastrous seasons, they have to start winning games. The Giants are confident that an improved roster and Russell Wilson will help them do that. But they face a brutal schedule -- the hardest strength of schedule in the NFL -- with an especially daunting first half, so even an improved team might not yield a vastly improved record. Then, the question will turn to rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart’s development and when the Giants might turn to him.
Honorable mention: Too many to mention.
Most needs to reduce the drama
It’s been a lot the last two years, and one of the many things new coach Aaron Glenn has already done is reduce the volume around this team, in part by deciding to move on immediately from Aaron Rodgers. There’s some talent on this team -- another way to reduce drama would be to get cracking on extensions for Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson -- and nobody there views this as a rebuild. But the first goal, from the top of the organization to the bottom, has to be to make headlines only for what happens on the field.
Honorable mention: Las Vegas Raiders, Dallas Cowboys, Miami Dolphins.