Teams that will level off as the season progresses

Every year, a few teams jump out to surprising starts. Sometimes, those teams keep it together all season long, and we see them making postseason runs. Other times, those teams fall apart as the season progresses, and they wind up exactly where everyone thought they would.

This season has been no different, and there are a number of teams poised for mid-season disappointment.

Dallas Cowboys (2-1)

Come on, this is the Dallas Cowboys. To this point, the NFC East has been the most disappointing division in football, combining for just three wins in three weeks. Ouch.

Still, the NFC East isn’t stacked with terrible teams. The Redskins will win some games once their young quarterback finds his rhythm, as will the New York Giants. Philadelphia may have a tough time winning many games with a college offense, but at the very least, they may surprise a couple of teams with their speed and tempo.

This division may be bad enough for the Cowboys to keep winning, but Dallas doesn’t play only NFC East teams all year. While I expect the Cowboys to fall off their current pace, they could probably win this division at 9-7, something that’s completely possible.

Miami Dolphins (3-0)

The Dolphins are a good team with an up-and-comer and quarterback. Still, Ryan Tannehill is young, and although it’s a cliché, this team still needs to mature some before they’ll be truly ready to be a contender.

The good news is this. The AFC seems to have an opening for a wildcard position that the Dolphins may be able to fill. If Ryan Tannehill continues to impress, the Dolphins will be a tough out for any team, and much like the Cowboys, they could still make the playoffs even if they do fall off their current pace a little bit.

Tennessee Titans (2-1)

How on earth the Titans are 2-1 right now is beyond me. How Tennessee came so close to starting the season 3-0 just blows my mind, especially since it took overtime for the Texans, the AFC South’s presumptive hegemon, to beat the Titans.

Still, the Titans aren’t a rollover team either. With Mike Munchak entering the season on a hot seat, the Titans have delivered to this point. They resemble the Titans of old, a team willing to grind out wins using a heavy dose of the running game. And oh yeah, Jake Locker has been solid too.

Still, the Titans play in a division that sports two more complete teams than themselves, the Texans and the Colts. That doesn’t exactly leave a lot of playoff room for the Titans, and I fully expect them to slide back to the middle of the pack as the season progresses.

About Shane Clemons

Shane Clemons came from humble beginnings creating his own Jaguars blog before moving on to SBNation as a featured writer for the Jaguars. He then moved to Bloguin where he briefly covered the AFC South before taking over Bloguin's Jaguars blog. Since the inception of This Given Sunday, Shane has served as an editor for the site, doing his best not to mess up a good thing.

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