Tremendous Bowl 2023 has been as entertaining as marketed so far, as each groups reside as much as the billing of being two of probably the most dominant groups from the common season.
Who may we see in subsequent yr’s model of the large sport? There are the mighty groups like these Eagles and Chiefs, and those who have been a number of bounces of the ball away from glory, just like the Payments and 49ers. However what in regards to the different groups? Who’re the darkish horse candidates to play within the large sport? Listed below are three shock groups that might play in Tremendous Bowl 2024.
Which Shock Groups May Be In Tremendous Bowl 2024?
Detroit Lions
There isn’t any denying that the Detroit Lions are on an upswing, given their tough and tortured historical past. Throughout the first half of the 2022 season, they’d some of the productive offenses within the NFL, and so they have been capable of make a late-season playoff push that got here up simply brief.
However head coach Dan Campbell has them headed in the proper route, and so they completed with a 9-8 file, a 6.5 sport enchancment from his first season on the helm. Not solely have they got some momentum with the staff on the sector, and they’re going to even have some firepower this low season. They’ve two first-round draft picks of their possession, their very own 18th general choose, and the sixth general that they obtained from the Rams within the Stafford/Goff commerce. They bundle the picks to maneuver up for one of many elite QB prospects, or stand pat and use the property to construct up the protection.
Miami Dolphins
They have been one of many Tremendous Bowl favorites halfway by 2022, however their season was derailed by accidents late within the yr and so they managed to simply squeak into the playoffs within the ultimate week. Regardless of the well being points and right down to their third-string rookie quarterback, the Dolphins nonetheless performed the Buffalo Payments to inside 3-points in an away playoff sport. Had Tua Tagovailoa been wholesome for the ultimate few video games of the season, outcomes may have been a bit totally different than they have been.
Miami doesn’t have an entire lot of draft property to work with, and so they have some entrance workplace work to do to get themselves again below the wage cap. They’ll lower your expenses by restructuring contracts, and by chance for them, there are already some positional items that don’t want a lot addressing this Spring. However that’s not to say that there aren’t sure holes to fill, particularly alongside the offensive line and within the secondary.
However the Dolphins have already made good strikes up to now in 2023, as they’ve added defensive guru Vic Fangio to be their coordinator reverse of Mike McDaniel. If Tagovailoa can keep wholesome, and that could be a large “if”, then don’t be stunned to see Miami representing the AFC within the subsequent Tremendous Bowl.
New York Jets
The Jets completed 2022 with a dropping file, however don’t let that idiot you concerning the expertise on their roster. They started the season with a 5-2 file, and regardless of the revolving door at quarterback, New York was in competition for the playoffs till the final couple of weeks of the yr. The rotation of Wilson, White, Flacco, and Streveler below middle was sufficient to make followers heads spin, particularly given the standard of gamers that surrounded them on either side of the ball.
Not solely do the Jets have one of many extra gifted rosters within the convention, additionally they have one of many youngest. If there may be one staff that really is a “quarterback away” from being precise contenders, it’s them. It’s changing into crystal clear that the Zach Wilson experiment is over after two years, and the staff can be trying excessive and low to seek out the proper man for the job. Will they use their first spherical choose (thirteenth general) so as to add a prospect? Or will they go together with a longtime veteran who’s in search of a staff to win now with?