The Post’s Ryan Dunleavy previews the AFC East ahead of training camp:
Buffalo Bills
Coach: Joe Brady (first year) Training camp site: Rochester Key additions: In the two years after trading Stefon Diggs, the Bills paid the price for not having a true No. 1 receiver. Enter DJ Moore off a career-worst season with the Bears. Edge rusher Bradley Chubb changed sides in the division, leaving the Dolphins. The secondary should have more bite with the additions of CB Jay Alford and trash-talking S C.J. Gardner-Johnson. LG Austin Corbett will compete to start.
minicamp at Kaleida Health Performance Center on June 9, 2026 in
Orchard Park, N.Y. Getty Images
Key losses: LG David Edwards (Saints) and CB Taron Johnson (Raiders) secured big paydays. QB Mitch Trubisky left Josh Allen’s side for the second time to reunite with coordinator Brian Daboll in Tennessee. FB Reggie Gilliam, one of the best at a dying position, joined the rival Patriots.
Training camp storylines to watch: Promoted from offensive coordinator, Brady has one way to be successful: Get over the hump to a Super Bowl. How will the first-time head coach juggle all his new responsibilities? New defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard — an NFL first-timer — swapped out a 4-3 base front for a 3-4, so some former starters could learn that they do not fit. There will be position battles at left guard, cornerback, punter and backup quarterback, where either Kyle Allen or Shane Buechele will be one snap away from replacing MVP candidate Josh Allen.
Miami Dolphins
Coach: Jeff Hafley (first year) Training camp site: Miami Gardens, Fla. Key additions: Hafley and new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan — both Packers exports — brought with them Malik Willis as their first franchise quarterback. They selected an NFL-biggest 13-player draft class — including top 43 picks OT Kayden Proctor, CB Chris Johnson and LB Jacob Rodriguez, and starting TE Will Kacmarek. Jalen Tolbert, Tutu Atwell, and rookies Caleb Douglas and Chris Bell are in a crowded WR mix. Edge rusher Josh Uche is far removed from his 11.5-sack season.
Key losses: The new regime’s housecleaning was thorough, starting with QB Tua Tagovailoa despite an NFL-record $99.2 million dead salary-cap charge. It included the former dynamic WR duo of Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill, as well as TEs Darren Waller and Julian Hill. The offensive line will look different without Cole Strange (Chargers), Larry Borom (Lions) and James Daniels. A couple of defensive stars landed in the division: Chubb (Bills) and S Minkah Fitzpatrick (Jets).
Training camp storylines to watch: Is the tank on? Or is this journeyman-loaded roster capable of winning more games than expected? That largely depends on whether Willis — whom the Titans once gave up on as a future quarterback after just three career starts — is ready to be an above-average starter and hold off the 2027 quarterback draft chatter. It won’t be easy with this unproven receiving corps led by Malik Washington. The pass rush-light defense needs former first-round picks Kenneth Grant and Chop Robinson to progress.
New England Patriots
Coach: Mike Vrabel (second year) Training camp site: Foxborough, Mass. Key additions: Never stop supporting your young QB, and NFL MVP runner-up Drake Maye now is throwing to WRs A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs, with OL Alijah Vera-Tucker and rookie OT Caleb Lomu adding protection. FB Reggie Gilliam should bolster the complementary running game. S Kevin Byard, who led the NFL with seven interceptions last season, comes over from the Bears. DT Dre’Mont Jones (Ravens) is expected to hurry some throws.
on July 25, 2026, in Foxborough, Mass. AP Photo/Mark Stockwell
Key losses: WR Stefon Diggs’ 1,000-yard season wasn’t enough to keep him from being released in favor of trading for Brown. OLB K’Lavon Chaisson passed through for one year and revived his career (Commanders). QB Josh Dobbs wasn’t re-signed, as Tommy DeVito earned a promotion to second-stringer. DT Khyiris Tonga (Chiefs), ILB Jahlani Tavai and S Jaylinn Hawkins (Ravens) are gone from the middle of the defense.
Training camp storylines to watch: It was a tumultuous personal offseason for Vrabel, who still could face more questions about accountability and tampering based on his relationship with NFL reporter Dianna Russini. If Maye was a stud last season, training camp should offer a taste of what could be with better playmakers. Super Bowl losers have a long history of regressing, but the Patriots could use the notion that they were a fluke, whose success was inflated by an easy schedule, as extra motivation. Does LT Will Campbell look improved after allowing nine sacks as a rookie? CB Christian Gonzalez is in a contract dispute with hold-in potential.
New York Jets
Coach: Aaron Glenn (second year) Training camp site: Florham Park, N.J.
Key additions: Turn back the clock! Geno Smith is the Jets starting quarterback for the first time since 2016. This is what overhauling a defense that had zero interceptions last season looks like: Acquiring edge rushers Joseph Ossai and Kingsley Enagbare, DTs T’Vondre Sweat and David Onyemata, ILB Demario Davis, CB Nahshon Wright (five interceptions last season), S Dane Belton and S Minkah Fitzpatrick. LG Dylan Parham joins four returning starters up front. Add three first-round picks: edge David Bailey, TE Kenyon Sadiq and WR Omar Cooper Jr.
Key losses: The Justin Fields era was a short-lived QB bust, and he was traded to the Chiefs. Another QB, Tyrod Taylor, also bolted (Packers). OGs John Simpson (Ravens) and the oft-injured Vera-Tucker (Patriots) moved to AFC contenders. Edge Jermaine Johnson (Titans) joined Vera-Tucker as former first-round picks on the move. Former All-Pro LB Quincy Williams (Browns) followed his brother Quinnen out the door. K Nick Folk (Falcons) passed on a chance to return.
Training camp storylines to watch: The Jets presumably acquired a more mature Smith than they had last time. But are they getting the Pro Bowl version from the Seahawks or the NFL leader in interceptions (17) from the Raiders last season? Can Cooper and Adonai Mitchell emerge as the long-missing complements to WR Garrett Wilson? There are two noteworthy position battles: Seldom-used veteran Bailey Zappe versus rookie Cade Klubnik to be QB2, and a couple of Giants for a minute — Jason Sanders versus Cade York — to be the kicker. Can Glenn get off the hot seat by taking over defensive playcalling? He replaced half his assistants after one season, so the staff needs to jell quickly.
