Rebuilding in the AFC East

I was hoping to share some ideas about what is going on in our division and where we are with the rebuilding of our team and where we stand.

THE BUFFALO BILLS 13-3

The Bills had more talent then us when they started their rebuild in 2017.

In 2017 they traded 6 players, including Sammy Watkins, Kevin Seymore, and Ronald Darby, considerably building up their capital. Going into the offseason they could have drafted a QB right then, but they stuck with the plan of building enough capital to build a good team.

During the 2017 draft they traded the Patrick Mahomes pick for 2 firsts and a third. Now they had the capital to build a contending team. That trade worked well for them, both of those firsts became all pros, and they packaged the third in another trade for a 2nd that they used to trade up to take Josh Allen in the 2018 draft.

Their route was after Allen they focused much of their capital on building their defense in 2018 and 2019. This may be why Allen struggled some during those years. They built up a pretty good team that made the WC but still had a few holes.

In 2020 they went offense and filled their final holes with FAs and switched from trading players for picks to trading picks for players. That is always the final step in a rebuild, not the first step. The beginning of a rebuild is never trading picks for players. The end is for that - and only if you really need that player. With their final weapons added on offense they are now in the championship game. Their rebuild is done.

Now Buffalo will show what their FO is made of. Once you have a solid team all you have to do is maintain it. However, to get the final piece in free agency they gave up a 1st, 3rd, and 4th for Diggs. So they may have some challenges maintaining their team in the next few years. But they succeeded in this rebuild.

THE MIAMI DOLPHINS 10-6

The Dolphins started a year later and did the exact same thing as the Bills, and in most ways did it even better.

The had more talent to trade and were able to build up even more capital. They traded down every draft and instead of waiting 1 year, they waited 2 years to get a QB. They now have a very young and almost complete team. Their defense is practically done and all they need is a hot WR, linemen, and RB. They have 4 top 50 picks this draft so they are easily in position to challenge the Bills, and to maintain their talent longer. Unlike the Bills, waiting 2 seasons into the rebuild to get a QB (and always trading down) means they barely need any FA help. They still have tons of capital.

The dolphins will have a much easier time maintaining their team once their rebuild is done next draft. When Tua gets the hot WR, OL, and RB this season he is going to look a lot better.

This must be pointed out here. We are years behind both of these teams. There is no shortcut to catching them. There are no shortcuts to success. We are at the beginning. They are at the end.

THE NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 7-9

They are going to be right behind us soon. Obviously the Pats built and maintained a good team for a long time. But it did slowly catch up to them and BB borrowed heavily against their future from 2015 - 2019 to maximize Brady's final years. Other then the opt outs, that is the reason they looked so bad this season. They couldn't afford their talent anymore - especially on the o-line, and lost much of it.

BB on if he regretted going win now the last five years:
"Well it got us to 4 superbowls and 3 championship rings so I think it was probably worth it - don't you?"

Who can argue with him? BB will start the rebuild in 2022 once NE is done paying for their win now management. Don't think we have seen the last of them for very long.

THE NEW YORK JETS 2-14

We have supposedly been rebuilding since Rex left. Except we haven't actually tried to rebuild.

In 2015 Mac came on with a moronic plan. First he tried the amateur way of rebuilding through FAs and trades. We traded for Fitz, Marshall / Decker, as well as busts Posely and Stacy. So he begins his rebuild by going backwards. We are giving away picks for players. After going 5-5 we got hot and finished 10-6 so he thinks he is on to something. In 2016 he goes from building with trades to building with FAs in a list to long to write out. None of them were quality players and none of them are on our team anymore.

I cant stress this enough. After 2016 Mac had no plan.

From 2017 - 2019, once his amateur rebuild starts burning the team down, he makes terrible decisions. He start trying to put out the fires by signing high priced FAs, all of which fail, and drafts with emotion based selections that none of us can truly figure out. He does get Sam but he trades three 2s to get him - and then goes defense for the majority of his tenure. Its no wonder were a wreck. He didn't rebuild us he disassembled us.

2021

Now we have someone to trust. Someone we are putting our faith into doing it right. Going into this draft we are where the Bills were when they traded the Mahomes pick. We are in year 1 (really 1.5 if you want to count JDs first draft. But you don't start a genuine rebuild until you start dismantling and trading. That is where we are now.)

This draft is to get as many potential all pros on our roster as possible. Its about acquiring high picks and trading the QB selection, that you may be tempted to rush into, for more picks. Our goal should be to bring on at least 4 top 50 picks this year and next year. In rebuilding a crummy team there is no rush to get a QB.

I know its not as sexy as a QB. Have patience. Appreciate it for what it is. You have 4 blue chip players to follow next season - to root for and track how they are impacting and how much they make our team better. That should be pretty exciting in its own way. Who knows how far they will take us?

In 2022 we bring on more blue chips and get us the QB we want. Hopefully by then he will be in a position to succeed on a talented young team. The final year (2023) we will fill the remaining holes through the draft and FAs. Then we will be properly rebuilt.

None of this is a mystery fellow Jet fans. This is a traditional and proven rebuild system. Its just that we never do it.

That is - until now. Lets rebuild the right way and end up with a contender, not a pretender. Not the SOJ.

In JD we trust right?