Without them, they are still in a very weak division, still have a well balanced team on both sides of the ball, and picking Johnathan Joseph/Daniell Manning over Nnamdi Asomugha was probably the best move of the offseason last year.

They played a game in NO last year were he should have had his team out of sight by HT but they settled for FGs and wound up losing.

They had a pretty soft schedule last season too, this years looks alot tougher overall

Based on past results I don’t see both Johnson and Schaub staying healthy for a full season, without that they are not a contender in the playoffs.

I have to disagree with you. As a Bills fan, this is the team I think Buffalo can be in the next few years. There is almost no weakness to this team. Shut down AJ, Owen Daniels steps up. Shut down the passing game, Foster will run all over you. Shut down the offense? That defense will keep it close so it can be a 1 score game. There is no other team in the NFL that boasts this much balance. As long as their core stays relativley healthy, and not all of the guys go down at once or for extended periods of time, this team is a favorite in the AFC. I think the road to the superbowl goes through Texas, and no, not Dallas.

caldwell and butler are both very soft. newton should have the starting job by midseason, if brookes lives to his hype he will too.

I agree with the former; the latter, not so much.

Johnson has missed significant time the last two seasons with hamstring issues, and he just got over arthroscopic knee surgery. He’s older than his 31 years would indicate.

As Gantt mentioned, they have major question marks along the right side of the line (Butler, Caldwell) and a rookie PK who will undoubtedly have plenty of chances to prove himself.

But until they find a solid complement to Johnson – assuming Johnson will be available to complement – this team will fall short representing the AFC in February.