On Monday, the Patriots and Eagles finally completed a deal many believe had been agreed upon for months.
With June 1 here and with it the cap implications that’ll save Philadelphia money on its books (splitting a $40 million hit), general manager Howie Roseman sent three-time second-team All-Pro receiver A.J. Brown to New England in exchange for a 2027 fifth- and ’28 first-round picks.
Brown, who will turn 29 later this month, heads to the AFC champions with the charge of getting them over the proverbial hump. Last year, Brown struggled to his worst year during his four-season tenure in Philadelphia, totaling 12.9 yards per reception with 1,003 yards and seven touchdowns. Good numbers, but a far cry from great, and all his lowest in green.
In practicality, he will be replacing Stefon Diggs, who was released by New England earlier this offseason after amassing 11.9 yards per reception and 1,103 yards with four touchdowns. Sound familiar? The Patriots are also hoping the signing of fellow wideout Romeo Doubs will bolster the receiver group while drawing coverage away from Brown, giving him more opportunities than Diggs enjoyed a year ago.
But in the AFC, a conference loaded with equal parts potential and question marks, is it enough to be a top contender? After all, the Patriots were squarely in the regression bucket before trading for Brown, especially considering their historically easy schedule from a year ago, along with Mike Vrabel’s tumultuous offseason.
With the Brown trade now official, let’s do a flash power rankings of the five best AFC teams.
5. Jacksonville Jaguars
This was a tough choice. The Ravens, Texans, Chargers, Bengals and Steelers all had cases for inclusion in the top five, but the Jaguars get the final spot.
Liam Coen earned Coach of the Year consideration last year, leading Jacksonville to 13 wins and an AFC South title after the Jaguars won just five games in 2024. Coen led a renaissance for quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who threw for 4,007 yards and 29 touchdowns, and returns with a quality receiving corps, including Parker Washington, Jakobi Meyers and Brian Thomas Jr., alongside tight end Brenton Strange. Last year, the quartet accounted for 2,929 receiving yards despite missing 10 games between them.
While Jacksonville did lose running back Travis Etienne Jr. and All-Pro linebacker Devin Lloyd in free agency, the Jaguars backfilled with Chris Rodriguez Jr. and fourth-year man Ventrell Miller. The former ran for 500 yards and six touchdowns with the Commanders in 2025, while Miller played 46% of the defensive snaps in ’24 before taking a smaller role as Lloyd blossomed.
With Coen and Lawrence leading the way, the Jaguars should be a force again.
4. Denver Broncos
There’s a level of disrespect in having the Broncos fourth. They were the AFC’s top seed a year ago, and if not for Bo Nix breaking his ankle in overtime of Denver’s divisional round triumph over the Bills, it’s likely the Broncos would have gone to the Super Bowl.
Still, there are some obvious concerns with the Broncos. For starters, Denver beat the Titans, Giants, Jets, Commanders and Raiders by a combined 15 points. Those teams had a record of 18–67. Only the Washington contest was on the road, while the Jets game was in England. Then there’s Nix, who, despite leading the NFL with 612 pass attempts, failed to throw for 4,000 yards. Since 2007, only Sam Howell and Nix have paced the league in attempts and not hit that threshold.
All that said, Denver’s defense has been elite over the past two years. In 2025, the Broncos had a league-best 68 sacks while ranking second in yards and third in points allowed. There’s no reason to think that unit will drop off, with the only significant loss being lineman John Franklin-Myers. Offensively, the Broncos added receiver Jaylen Waddle for first-, third- and fourth-round picks, giving Courtland Sutton a running mate.
The bottom line: Denver has to be on the list, warts and all.
3. New England Patriots
Even if the Patriots regress, they’re still one of the better and more reliable teams in the conference.
Drake Maye is coming off a second-team All-Pro season, throwing for 4,394 yards and 31 touchdowns. While his postseason was shoddy (828 yards, six touchdowns, 58.3% completion rate), he was getting crushed behind a poor offensive line, which allowed 21 sacks across those four games. However, that should improve with the addition of guard Alijah Vera-Tucker and second-year left tackle Will Campbell healthy after he struggled with the ill effects of a torn knee ligament sustained in November.
With the signing of Romeo Doubs and the trade for Brown, New England has more skill-position talent than a year ago. The Patriots also have Kayshon Boutte and tight end Hunter Henry, who combined for 1,319 yards and 13 touchdowns a season ago.
Maye might see his numbers regress a bit due to a tougher schedule, including games against the Seahawks, Jaguars, Bills, Bears, Lions, Chargers and Chiefs on the road. Still, that added star power will make New England more dangerous come January.
2. Kansas City Chiefs
Figuring out what to do with the Chiefs was the toughest part of this exercise.
On one hand, Kansas City finished 6–11 last year after Patrick Mahomes sustained multiple torn knee ligaments in Week 15 of last season. The Chiefs’ best receiver is also currently serving jail time. It’s not an ideal start to a season they’re hoping ends in redemption and a fourth championship parade since 2019.
However, Kansas City has the league’s greatest force multiplier in Mahomes. General manager Brett Veach finally gave his quarterback a legitimate back in Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III. Travis Kelce is back once again, and the offensive line is in great shape with second-year left tackle Josh Simmons and a pair of Pro Bowlers, center Creed Humphrey and right guard Trey Smith.
Defensively, Chris Jones and George Karlaftis are getting R Mason Thomas, Peter Woods and Khyiris Tonga up front as support, while Mansoor Delane attempts to replace Trent McDuffie. Kansas City will hope the unit improves after using its first four draft picks on defense, but youth is always an open question.
If the Chiefs hit their ceiling, they could win another ring. If not, Kansas City will likely be a playoff team, but a flawed one.
1. Buffalo Bills
The difference between all of these teams, and even those who just missed the cut, isn’t massive. But the Bills get the top spot because they have Josh Allen, the only superstar AFC quarterback without health concerns going into 2026.
And, as importantly, they’ve consistently been a threat to win it all for each of the past six years, something nobody else in the conference can say.
Allen, 30, still needs to prove he can win it all. To get to that point, he needs to prove he can play well beyond the wild-card round. In eight such games, Buffalo is 2–6, while Allen has thrown for 6.4 yards per attempt with 20 total touchdowns against four interceptions and nine fumbles. Regardless, he’s a perennial MVP candidate, and he’s surrounded by the league’s reigning rushing champ in James Cook, the newly-acquired DJ Moore on the perimeter, and a top-10 offensive line led by tackles Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown.
The looming question over Buffalo, apart from its January struggles, is how the defense plays under new coordinator Jim Leonhard. The Bills are transitioning from a 4-3 to a 3-4, and that means new roles and unknown results for players such as Ed Oliver and Gregory Rousseau, who are asked to do far different things in this scheme.
If the defense can gel and Allen continues on his Hall of Fame trajectory, the Bills are the safest bet with the highest floor in the AFC.
