All bets off in AFC

The devastating loss of New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady to a season-ending knee injury Sunday has upset the landscape in the AFC and opened wide windows of opportunities for several other teams to make serious headway.

With the fate of last year's AFC champion now in the hands of untested Matt Cassel, look for a range of teams to make a run at the Pats' title. Brady's injury is clearly bad for the sport, but more games figure to have more significance as a result, making the 2008 season potentially one for the books. That means TV ratings could see an unexpected spike.

Based on Week 1, the New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos are now clearly more visible on the radar. The Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans came away as victors but need to show over time they can sustain their levels of play. Meanwhile, the Indianapolis Colts, San Diego Chargers, Cleveland Browns and Jacksonville Jaguars — all highly touted by the preseason pundits — need to get on track in a hurry. The Chargers figure to rebound, as do the Colts once Peyton Manning shakes the rust. We're not as sanguine about the Browns and Jags.

CBS and NBC are the immediate beneficiaries of a newly wide-open AFC. CBS has a sure-fire winner this Sunday with the Brett Favre-led Jets hosting the Brady-less Pats. Whichever team make a statement in this game takes a leg up in the AFC East.

NBC's primetime Sunday tilt features the Pittsburgh Steelers in Cleveland against the Browns. The Steelers looked dominant in Week 1 against the supposedly up-and-coming Houston Texans, while the Browns never got started against the Dallas Cowboys. The Browns can't afford to lose two in a row at home and fall two games behind the Steelers.

The blueprint for a wild AFC season is now in place thanks to one play in Foxboro.

Comments

[Sports Blogger]

Don't sleep on Cassel, he has an Aaron Rodgers vibe about him.