Ranking 5 NFL teams with worst supporting cast in AFC heading into 2024 training camp ft. Patriots

Offense is what guides teams to wins in the NFL. Nothing excites fans more than touchdowns, but will they happen unless the people responsible for accumulating and enabling the points know what they are doing?

The San Francisco 49ers, for instance, have one of the most potent offenses in all of football: a quarterback who has risen from Mr. Irrelevant to conference champion in a short career span (Brock Purdy).

They also have four players who have had at least a thousand scrimmage yards in the 2023-24 season (Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle).

They have one of the greatest blindside protectors ever (Trent Williams) enabling all those yards, and an offensive guru (Kyle Shanahan) conducting them. But on the other side are these AFC teams who need much work:

5) Jacksonville Jaguars

Trevor Lawrence and Evan Engram review a play

Now some may be thinking, "Trevor Lawrence, Travis Etienne and Evan Engram are not that bad a key group. And they also upgraded their offensive line with Pro Bowl center Mitch Morse!" But their wideout room leaves much to be desired.

Losing Zay Jones is not that big a deal, as they signed Gabe Davis and Devin Duvernay in free agency and drafted LSU touchdown machine Brian Thomas Jr. 23rd overall. However, it's still a disappointment when compared to the rest of the AFC South.

Those three and Zay Jones are decent, but they are not Stefon Diggs, DeAndre Hopkins or Michael Pittman Jr.

4) Buffalo Bills

Josh Allen has lost his favorite targets

The Buffalo Bills' era of AFC East dominance may be over. Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis are now in the AFC South, and so is center Mitch Morse.

All three had been contributors during when the team won divisional titles, but failure to reach the Super Bowl eventually doomed them. They have been replaced by a slew of good-but-not-great free agent signings bannered by two-time Super Bowl winner Marquez Valdes-Scantling. So OC Joe Brady has his work cut out for him.

3) Los Angeles Chargers

As a former quarterback, Jim Harbaugh should have focused on the passing game

Jim Harbaugh is very clear about what he wants the Los Angeles Chargers' offensive identity to be: a power-running team. To that end, he and general manager Joe Hortiz oversay a massive roster revamp that saw the departures of Austin Ekeler, Keenan Allen and Mike Williams.

In return, they brought in two former Ravens in JK Dobbins and Gus Edwards and drafted Joe Alt. But the passing room? Just holdout Josh Palmer and some other young guys like Quentin Johnston who have massive expectations to fulfill.

2) Pittsburgh Steelers

George Pickens stands alone in the Steelers' WR room

Of all the teams in the AFC North, the Pittsburgh Steelers have the worst wideout room.

The Cleveland Browns have an absurdly stacked core of Amari Cooper, Jerry Jeudy and Elijah Moore. The Cincinnati Bengals still have Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, while the Baltimore Ravens have Nelson Agholor, Rashod Bateman and Zay Flowers.

Whom do the Steelers have? George Pickens and no one else. It's a shame because every other aspect of the offense has at least two noteworthy players.

1) New England Patriots

Drake Maye face a dire situation in New England.

The New England Patriots' post-Tom Brady QB situation is already the stuff of legend. Cam Newton gave them their first losing record since Bill Belichick joined the team, while Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe failed to be "it".

However, there's the rest of the roster. Have there any been true playmakers on the Patriots since Julian Edelman? While the running game has been solid, what about the offensive line? Can they be trusted to protect Drake Maye from hungry defenses?

Barring a miracle, the post-Bill Belichick era will likely start rough.