In the most recent news, Von Miller signed that 6 year extension he was looking for and Eric Berry and Kirk Cousins will indeed be playing under the franchise tag in 2016. The NFL season is approaching quickly and there are a lot of young teams looking to do some damage to the rest of the league this year. There are also a lot of storylines to take a look at heading into the 2016 season. The season will for sure look a lot different without 2 Mannings taking the field.
Tennessee Titans
Image Source: Sports Illustrated
The Titans are flying under the radar and not many storylines are surrounding them this offseason. However, they have some young solid weapons heading into 2016 not to mention their recent draft selections. Marcus Mariota will be more poised in his 2nd year as well as having DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry in the running game. Mariota will also have great options to pass to like Dorial Green-Beckham and Kendall Wright. The Titans also drafted LB Kevin Dodd out of Clemson and DT Austin Johnson out of Penn State to bolster their defense.
Oakland Raiders
Image Source: Scout
The Raiders showed us last year that they are not a team to be taken lightly and that they do have a talented roster. Jack Del Rio is great coach to fire these kids up and knows how to get them going. Derek Carr only has room to grow under center and everybody is looking forward to a big season by him. The Raiders also have pieces in the running and passing game with Latavius Murray and Amari Cooper. Their defense looks to be spectacular as well since they went out and got outside linebacker Bruce Irvin from Seattle. They are my early pick to win the AFC West.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Image Source: Business Insider
The Jacksonville defense looks stellar heading into next season and the offense has some intriguing pieces as well. I love what they got going on on their defense with Jalen Ramsey, Myles Jack, Dante Fowler Jr, and Malik Jackson. That is a young defense with loads of talent and skill. The offense is also starting to shape up with Blake Bortles being in the system for awhile now along with T.J. Yeldon in the running game. Julius Thomas is also a great option in the passing game at tight end for this offense. They may be a year or two away from contending but they most certainly have the pieces to win a good amount of games.
Los Angeles Rams
Image Source: LA Times
The Rams have been talked about ever since the move back to Los Angeles was announced. The Rams went 7-9 last year winning some impressive games over the Arizona Cardinals and Seattle Seahawks. If Jared Goff can come in and be an effective starter, they will have a good trio on offense with Goff, Gurley, and Tavon Austin. They also just drafted Pharoah Cooper, WR from South Carolina who can step in and help balance the receiving with Tavon Austin. DT Aaron Donald is one of the best defenders in the NFL and has high expectations for this year. Mark Barron, Robert Quinn, and Alec Ogletree are also all expected to do big things on defense this year.