The NFL offseason is a time of hope—or despair if you’re unlucky—for NFL teams and fans. The promise of a new season brings with it a new day. One where a team can improve from a previous season and reach new heights.
But the NFL offseason is also where expectations are formed and molded. Those expectations can be too high and can put pressure on players, coaches, and management. Even for teams without those Super Bowl ambitions, the threat of mediocrity can put just as much pressure on an organization.
The following are five teams that will be facing immense pressure to succeed this upcoming season.
Indianapolis Colts
General manager Chris Ballard has been given a very long leash. The Colts haven’t made the playoffs since 2020 and haven’t eclipsed more than nine wins since then either. They have defined mediocrity.
The ever-changing quarterback situation under Ballard has been a stain on his resume. There have been hits, misses, injuries, and surprise retirements. The Colts were arguably the best team in the league over the first half of the season last year, but the injury to Daniel Jones completely derailed their season.
This gave Ballard and the Colts a bit of grace, but they need a winning record this year to get back on course.
Los Angeles Rams
Following the Myles Garrett trade, the Rams, who were already in win-now mode, moved into WIN-NOW mode. They’ve mortgaged their future once again, after falling short of the Super Bowl last season.
Sean McVay would never get fired, even if the Rams vastly underperformed this year, but there is a lot of pressure to win this season after pulling off such a large trade. They’re in what is possibly the most competitive division in the NFL, which means that they have little room for error.
The ramifications of a bad season may not be as drastic as other teams on this list, but the Rams have made it very clear that it’s Super Bowl or bust this season.
Cincinnati Bengals
Often injured, the Bengals—and Zac Taylor especially—need to make the playoffs this year. Joe Burrow is heading into the season healthy, but the question is whether he will be able to maintain that health throughout the duration of the season.
The defense is again a question mark. It’s been a poor unit for a while now, forcing the offense into predictable situations that limit the ability of Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins. The offensive line has been similarly below average and has resulted in the various injuries Burrow has endured.
Taylor is on the hottest of hot seats this year. It’s been three years since a playoff appearance, and the stingy Bengals front office has put a lot of money into the offense that Taylor calls plays for. If Cincinnati fails to make the playoffs again, Taylor’s time may be up.
Buffalo Bills
How many more years can the Bills waste Josh Allen? Sure, they’ve been a regular in the playoffs during all the 2020s, mostly because of Allen’s talent. The roster around him seems to get continually worse even though he’s one of the best players in the league.
They’ve made it past the Wild Card round every year since 2020 but still don’t have a single Super Bowl appearance to show for it. Maybe this is a product of being in a conference with so many other great quarterbacks, but at a certain point, you need to capitalize on having your own ace in Allen.
Sean McDermott was wildly successful as the head coach in Buffalo, but after hitting a ceiling, year after year, he was canned for Joe Brady. The irony in this decision is that general manager Brandon Beane was safe even after failing to surround Allen with the appropriate talent.
If Buffalo once again fails to make it to the Super Bowl, Beane can expect a lot of criticism to come his way.
Philadelphia Eagles
Despite all their success, there’s been a dark cloud over the Eagles. Someone always seems to be perpetually unhappy. It doesn’t matter that they have one of the most talented rosters on paper, there’s an unspoken distrust and dislike amongst the team.
A.J. Brown was finally traded to the New England Patriots in a move that seemed destined to happen for months. But even still, the bad vibes remain. You can probably trace a lot of it back to head coach Nick Sirianni.
Sirianni has struggled to retain assistants, and when he has overseen hiring them, they have often disappointed. Howie Roseman is well respected as a general manager across the league and has been excellent at evaluating players and trading for them—he’s safe no matter the outcome of the season. Sirianni, on the other hand, could be shown the door if things don’t shake out well for the Eagles.
