This new series will discuss which player, in my opinion, will be the most focus upon for each team throughout the entire season.
NFC East
The division that many believe will be one of the most hotly contested division this season the NFC has more than it’s fair share of talent and even the reigning super bowl champions. With all the talent in this division, NFL fans will definitely be keeping their eyes on it.
New York Giants: Saquon Barkley- The Cleveland Browns shocked the NFL community when they chose Baker Mayfield with the number 1 overall pick in the 2018 draft. However, the New York Giants couldn’t be more excited. Their run game has struggled over the past few years and the Giants picked Barkley with high hopes and expectations. With all the hype and expectations surrounding Barkley, he has a lot to live up to, to both prove himself as a force to be reckoned with and to enhance the Giants run game.
Philadelphia Eagles: Carson Wentz- A fantastic quarterback last year and even an MVP candidate until a post season (insert injury here) ended his run for the season. But Foles stepped up with a great post season performance and helped the Eagles win their first super bowl ever. After Fowl’s talented playoff performance and Wentz’s injury the NFL community will look back to Wentz. We’ll see if Wentz can maintain his performance level from before he suffered the injury, or if he’ll crumble in the pocket.
Dallas Cowboys: Ezekiel Elliott- With Le’Veon Bell’s contract dispute with the Steelers and Gurley’s massive contract extension it appears Elliott is next in-line for some sort of contract negotiation. Adding to the pressure other top-tier running backs are applying with their contract negotiations Elliot’s expires at the end of this upcoming season. Because of this many will turn to Elliott to see how his soon-to-come negotiation unfolds and how he performs, given that it will directly impact the negotiations.
Washington Redskins: Derrius Guice- The new hotshot running back taken by the Redskins in the second rounds is predicted to win the starting running back spot say various NFL experts. Guice had a strong college career and many think he’ll be able to reciprocate that in the NFL. The rookie may also have a leg up on the starting spot as the other two running backs up for the position, Samaje Perine and Robert Kelley, weren’t very successful in previous seasons. With Guice primed to take over as the starting running back for Washington and having experts predict a very successful career ahead him many will be watching to see how Guice starts his career.
AFC East
While this division may seem the same year after year, the Patriots dominating and then going onto the Super Bowl, that doesn’t mean that each team doesn’t have their fair share of talent to watch.
New England Patriots: Tom Brady- While he’s one the greatest players the game has ever seen Brady is also getting fairly old for a quarterback, turning 41 on August 3rd. With that being said there’s has been lots of talk recently about whether or not Brady should retire. Due to his increasing age and the fact that he’s one of the best players ever fans of all teams will be watching to see how Brady’s season unfolds. They’ll also be looking to see if he can once again prove that his increasing age doesn’t mean it’s time for retirement.
Miami Dolphins: Ryan Tannehill- In early August of last season, Ryan Tannehill completely tore his ACL in his left knee, the same knee he already had a brace. This resulted in Tannehill needed season ending knee surgery. Tannehill is now back up and running again, still with a brace on that previously injured left knee. With Tannehill barely seeing any playing time last year cause of his injury, fans will look to see how Tannehill’s injury last season will impact his performance this season.
New York Jets: Sam Darnold- The 7th overall pick in the entire draft and one of the hottest quarterbacks in the draft Darnold will have a lot to prove this upcoming season. First, he’ll have to show that he can handle himself in the NFL and prove he was worthy of the hype surrounding him. Secondly, he’ll have to try and achieve getting a struggling Jets offense off the ground and back into playoff contention. Third, football fans will have to wait and see if Darnold even plays a snap for the Jets as he’s currently in a holdout. Because of these expectations and circumstances surrounding Darnold many will be watching the newbie to see how he handles his first NFL season.
Buffalo Bills: Tremaine Edmunds- Arguably the best linebacker to come out of the entire Edwards could be a major force to be reckoned with. Edwards can give a huge boost to the struggling Bills defense. With Edwards impressive college career it seems that he will become a standout rookie this season. Tremaine Edwards could become a major player if he lives up to the expectations, but for now we’ll all just have to wait and see how his rookie year unfolds.
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