Greatest NFL Draft need for all AFC teams

With the regular season completed, the focus for most NFL teams has turned to the draft, scheduled  April 24-26 in Green Bay.

Before the first week of NFL playoffs, Yardbarker NFL writers assess the greatest need for every team in the AFC. (Per NFL.com, here is the current NFL Draft order. The remainder of the order will be determined by playoff results.)

AFC East 

BUFFALO BILLS (13-4) | Defensive line | The Bills allowed 115.5 rush yards per game during the regular season, their worst mark since 2020 (119.6), and finished with 39 sacks, 15 fewer than they had last season. Six of those sacks came from 35-year-old edge-rusher Von Miller, who’s signed through 2027 but has an out clause that could save the team $17.5M next season.

MIAMI DOLPHINS (8-9) | Guard | QB Tua Tagovailoa missed five games after suffering a concussion in Week 2 and the final two games with a hip injury. The Dolphins must do better protecting their QB. With starting guards Robert Jones and Isaiah Wynn reaching free agency, Miami must bulk up its offensive line with the 13th overall pick in the draft.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (4-13) | Wide receiver | Rookie QB Drake Maye showed promise, but New England still finished with a league-worst 176.1 passing yards per game. Tight end Hunter Henry led the team with 66 catches for 674 yards (53rd among NFL pass-catchers).

NEW YORK JETS (5-12) | QB | Aaron Rodgers’ four-touchdown performance to end the regular season was merely fool’s good and something the Jets should ignore after finishing their 14th straight season without a playoff appearance. There’s just not enough magic left in the 41-year-old QB’s arm to overcome his increasingly toxic personality. The Jets can trim $9.5M off the salary cap with his release. — Bruce Ewing

AFC West 

DENVER BRONCOS (10-7) | Tight end | Broncos TE Adam Trautman — who had 13 receptions for 188 yards and two touchdown catches in 17 regular-season games — isn’t a dynamic pass-catcher. Denver should consider targeting Penn State TE Tyler Warren, who won the 2024 John Mackey Award as the best TE in college football.

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (15-2) | Offensive tackle | Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes was sacked a career-high 36 times in 16 regular-season games. Missouri OT Armand Membou seems like an excellent fit in the draft. Per Pro Football Focus, he allowed zero sacks in 12 games. 

LAS VEGAS RAIDERS (4-13) | QB | The Raiders started QBs Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew, who collectively posted a subpar 44.2 QBR. The 2025 class isn’t deep at QB, but it includes potential upgrades for the Raiders in Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders. 

LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (11-6) | Wide receiver | Chargers rookie WR Ladd McConkey led the team in receiving yards (1,149 in 16 regular-season games), but he could face more double-teams next season. Selecting Ohio State WR Emeka Egbuka or TCU WR Savion Williams would give L.A.’s receiving corps more spark. — Clark Dalton

AFC North 

BALTIMORE RAVENS (12-5) | Offensive line | Baltimore’s new-look offensive line performed better than expected with three new starters, but left tackle Ronnie Stanley and left guard Patrick Mekari are about to hit free agency. Without many holes, the Ravens would be wise to bulk up the offensive line and keep QB Lamar Jackson upright for the rest of his career.

CINCINNATI BENGALS (9-8) | Pass-rusher | This defense needs a serious infusion of talent, starting with the pass rush. DE Trey Hendrickson led the NFL in the regular season with 17.5 sacks, but he just turned 30, and no other Bengals defender recorded more than five sacks this season. 

CLEVELAND BROWNS (3-14) | QB | Deshaun Watson has played terribly since signing his $230M contract and will be coming off a torn Achilles, Jameis Winston makes too many mistakes to be considered a long-term option and Dorian Thompson-Robinson simply isn’t an NFL-caliber QB. The Browns must look at QBs Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders with the No. 2 overall pick.

PITTSBURGH STEELERS (10-7) | Wide receiver | George Pickens is the only wide receiver on this roster worth keeping around. Tight end Pat Freiermuth led the Steelers in receiving touchdowns (seven) and ranked second in receiving yards (653) this season, so GM Omar Khan should target a stud wide receiver early in the 2025 draft. — Jack Dougherty

AFC South 

HOUSTON TEXANS (10-7) | Offensive line | The Texans are a mess up front, contributing to the 52 sacks of QB C.J. Stroud, up from 38 in 2023. Houston needs interior line help most, making Alabama’s Tyler Booker, Arizona’s Jonah Savaiinaea and Oregon’s Josh Conerly Jr. potential options when the Texans make their pick no earlier than No. 19 overall. 

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS (8-9) | Right guard | The Colts — owners of the Nos. 14 and 45 picks in the first two rounds — have an opening opposite left guard Quenton Nelson. Undrafted 2024 free agent Dalton Tucker was one of three linemen to start at right guard and is the only one under contract in 2025.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (4-13) | Cornerback | Per Pro Football Reference, the Jaguars allowed QBs to complete 67.1 percent of their passes for 4,375 yards and 29 touchdowns while posting the league’s second-best passer rating (103.4). Fortunately for Jacksonville, it has four picks in the top 100 (Nos. 5, 36, 70, 92) to find immediate impact players for its secondary.

TENNESSEE TITANS (3-14) | QB | It’s time for the Titans to turn the page on the Will Levis era. Fortunately for Tennessee, it has the No. 1 pick in the draft, giving it a shot at its next QB, potentially Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders. — Eric Smithling