Someone is going to have to win this division. Nobody knows who though.
Somewhere between heaven and hell, there exists a land known as the AFC South. It is the Mad Max area of the NFL, where everything is a barren wasteland and nothing grows.
It’s very early, but it’s looking like the AFC South is going to be the worst division in the NFL. The division went 0-2-2 on opening weekend, and the only reason there’s a 2 in the third column is because the Texans and Colts tied after a horrendous game of football.
We’ll start in Houston, where the Texans under new head coach Lovie Smith (and his beautiful beard) took on Frank Reich and his new Colts QB Matt Ryan. Nothing in this game actually worked offensively, with both teams really struggling to find any creases:
Then, we have the kicking. Both kickers missed potential game winning field goals, and by the end of the game, Lovie Smith decided to punt on fourth down instead of going for the win, and settled for the tie. Only in the AFC South.
The Jaguars were in Washington to face Carson Wentz and the Commanders, and tried to get new coach Doug Pederson his first win as a Jaguar. Of course, it didn’t go that way, as the Jaguars lost 28-26 and the Jaguars offense sleepwalked through the first half, putting themselves in a hole that they couldn’t get out of. The retooled offensive line had the same old problems, as the Washington defensive front terrorized the Jaguars offense.
Then we have Tennessee, who seems to lose games in spectacular ways. At home against the Giants, Tennessee succumbed to a Daniel Jones touchdown pass then a Saquon Barkley 2-point conversion to go down one. Titans QB Ryan Tannehill threw a great pass to Kyle Phillips to set them up for a game winning field goal...which they promptly missed because kickers in the NFL can’t have nice things, apparently.
The AFC South has to be won, but the path to that point will be full of twists, turns and possibly horrendous football.