The NFL playoffs are still almost a week away, so now is the time to reflect on the regular season for every team in the league.
It seems like everyone was just getting excited for training camp to start, and now the NFL regular season is already over.
All 32 teams have played 16 games, and all we have left is the playoffs that start next weekend.
There will be a lot of talk and speculation on what will happen in the playoffs, but we still need to take a moment and reflect on the regular season.
I felt like getting my teacher on and handing out some report cards, so here are my grades for every team’s regular season.
Next: Bruce Arians is coach of the year, right?
Arizona Cardinals (11-5)
Even though Arizona was a respectable 10-6 in 2013, they were one of the true surprise stories of 2014.
They finished this season 11-5, but they were the top seed in the NFC for most of the season and may have kept that title had it not been for a lot of unfortunate injuries (highlighted by Carson Palmer).
The Cardinals started 9-1 and had impressive wins over Dallas, Detroit, San Francisco, San Diego and Philadelphia.
Despite crawling past the finish the line, Arizona will have a solid shot at a playoff win when they head to Carolina next Saturday.
Grade: A-
Next: Hard Knocks didn't help Atlanta
Atlanta Falcons (6-10)
The entire NFC South kind of fell on their faces this year, and the Falcons are no exception.
It didn’t matter how much Mike Smith and company screamed about being a tough football team this summer, because they simply weren’t good.
Atlanta finished the second stretch of the season as a .500 team, but they dug themselves into too big of a hole when they started the season at an embarrassing 2-6.
What’s even worse than starting 2-6 is not showing for the last game of the season in a “win-and-you’re-in” situation.
The Falcons hosted Carolina yesterday to decide who would win the division and get into the playoffs, and they were stomped 34-3.
There’s a lot of changes that need to be made in Atlanta, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that started with Mike Smith getting fired.
Grade: F
Next: No Ray Rice, no problems
Baltimore Ravens (10-6)
All the Ravens had to do to get into the playoffs was win yesterday, and they did just that.
Their 10-6 record isn’t anything special, but they should be proud of where they have gotten after dealing with all the Ray Rice drama to begin the season.
Baltimore is a team that can look like garbage one week and a really good team the next, so it’s going to be interesting to see how they perform in the playoffs.
The Ravens and Steelers split their season series, but they will get a tiebreaker next Saturday during the Wild Card round in Pittsburgh.
Grade: B-
Next: Anyone have a good quarterback to spare?
Buffalo Bills (9-7)
Buffalo finished just above .500, and that could have been much better if they had a competent offense.
Kyle Orton relieved E.J. Manuel of his duties in Week 5, but he’s still no Joe Montana.
The Bills were one of the bottom offensive teams, and they finished the season with only three 300-yard passing games and zero 100-yard rushing efforts from any of their backs.
What did keep them afloat was their top five defense that held Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers to no touchdown passes in back-to-back weeks.
They have the defense, but now they need to get their offense together.
Grade: B
Next: Well, someone had to win the NFC South
Carolina Panthers (7-8-1)
Carolina couldn’t properly respond to their 12-4 effort from last season, but they are still the first team in NFC South history to repeat as division champs.
They had a 10-game stretch during the season where they went 1-8-1 and appeared to be out of the playoff race completely.
Thankfully for them though, their division was probably the worst in the entire NFL this year, and their four-game winning streak to finish the season 7-8-1 was just good enough to let them host a playoff game.
The Panthers have been hot as of late, but they will have their hands full when Arizona comes to town next Saturday.
Grade: C
Next: The Bears were not who we thought they were
Chicago Bears (5-11)
I don’t even know where to begin with the Bears.
I mean, just look at Jay Cutler’s face in the picture above – it pretty much sums up everything.
They finished the season on a five-game losing streak and lost seven games by at least 10, and that includes back-to-back losses of 51-23 and 55-14 by New England and Green Bay, respectively.
It looks like Marc Trestman is probably on his way out, and Cutler may very well be too.
Grade: F
Next: Another solid season from the Bengals
Cincinnati Bengals (10-5-1)
The Bengals have had quite the roller coaster season.
They were among the top of the power rankings after just three weeks of the season, but then the team hit some really low lows and they had to find themselves again.
Cincinnati wasn’t a powerhouse elite team, but they did finish 7-3 in their last 10 games and will be one of the Wild Card teams for the AFC playoffs.
They lost 27-0 at Indianapolis in Week 6, but they will get their shot at redemption when the Colts host them in the first round of the playoffs next Sunday.
Grade: B-
Next: The Browns are still a mess
Cleveland Browns (7-9)
Cleveland is still a mess, but this year they were just a bit better at being a mess.
They had a solid 10-game stretch during the middle of the season where they went 7-3 and were in the playoff hunt, and that’s especially impressive since they played in what was probably the toughest division in football this year.
However, they fell back into their Browns ways by losing their last five games of the season to finish up another losing season.
Johnny Football doesn’t look like a franchise quarterback for the Browns to fall back on next season, and it’s hard to see where they will go from here.
Grade: C
Next: How 'bout them Cowboys?
Dallas Cowboys (12-4)
I don’t think even Tony Romo thought the Cowboys would be this good in 2014.
It’s always the same story for Dallas: the whole world falls in love with them in the offseason but then they fall on their face when it really matters.
That was all going to be different this year. The world agreed that Dallas was going to be terrible and everything was going to be right with the world.
But then Dallas had to go and ruin all of that by looking like one of the best teams in football by having one of the most complete teams that can do it all.
They even went into Seattle and beat up on the defending champs. I mean, c’mon.
Dallas will host Detroit in the playoffs next Sunday.
Grade: A+
Next: It's not about the regular season for Denver
Denver Broncos (12-4)
This season was much of the same for the Broncos.
They finished with the second seed in the AFC, and they even went toe-to-toe with their personal demon Seahawks when they lost in overtime at Seattle in Week 3.
However, they did have some rough patches that included bad losses to New England, St. Louis and Cincinnati.
Peyton Manning’s production dropped off a bit toward the end of the year, but it’s mainly because they found a rushing attack that should make them better in the playoffs.
These 16 games were nice and all, but it’s really about one thing for this team: the Super Bowl.
Grade: B+
Next: These aren't the Lions from the past few years
Detroit Lions (11-5)
The Lions have always been a team with a lot of talent, but they’ve just been an undisciplined team that couldn’t get into the playoffs.
I guess the addition of Jim Caldwell was all they needed, because the Lions are finally going into the playoffs and have looked like a respectable team.
The only slight against them is their lack of quality wins and the fact that they lost four out of the five games against playoff opponents.
Detroit can’t celebrate their playoff berth for too long since they will have their hands full in Dallas next week.
Grade: B
Next: Are the Packers ready for another run?
Green Bay Packers (12-4)
R-E-L-A-X
That’s really all that needs to be set about this season for Green Bay.
The Packers started 1-2 with losses to Seattle and Detroit, but they put it together quickly and surged as one of the top teams in the league.
Aaron Rodgers was his normal self and seems to be the favorite to win MVP as the Packers gear up for another Super Bowl run.
We won’t see Green Bay this weekend, but they will host a playoff game two Sunday’s from now.
Grade: A
Next: From the first pick to being in playoff contention
Houston Texans (9-7)
The Texans were an abysmal 2-14 last season, but the team really came together in 2014 and made a little playoff push towards the end.
Bill O’Brien looks like a good head coach, Arian Foster went back to doing Arian Foster things, DeAndre Hopkins is one of the best young receivers in the game and J.J. Watt is the best defensive player in football.
The Texans were a fun team to watch this year, and they are just a quarterback away from being a legit threat to everyone in the league.
This was a step in the right direction for Houston.
Grade: B+
Next: Welcome to the elite club, Mr. Luck
Indianapolis Colts (11-5)
Indianapolis was pretty much exactly who we thought they were.
They finished 11-5 with some impressive wins and a few embarrassing losses.
They have flaws on both sides of the ball and have questionable coaching and management, but they are fortunate enough to have one of the best quarterbacks in the game to cover up a lot of their mistakes.
Andrew Luck finished the season with the most passing touchdowns (40) and the second-most passing yards (4,761). It’s only his third year in the NFL, but it’s clear that he is already one of the best things the game has to offer.
Due to all the flaws they have, the Colts aren’t much of a threat to go far, but they can make some noise in the playoffs and have a great shot at winning the Wild Card game they host next week.
Grade: B-
Next: It's going to be a while, Jaguar fans
Jacksonville Jaguars (3-13)
You better have some patience if you’re fan of this team, but it’s going to take some time until they are truly relevant again.
Blake Bortles was drafted to be their future, but he had a rough rough rookie season with just 2,908 passing yards, 58.9 percent completion percentage, 11 touchdowns and 17 interceptions.
He did show some signs of promise, but he will have a lot of work to do this offseason.
Jacksonville will have yet another top pick in the upcoming draft, and all they can do is continue to develop the plan they have in front of them.
Grade: D
Next: Tough year for the Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs (9-7)
The Chiefs finished the season without throwing a single touchdown pass to a wide receiver.
I repeat: the Chiefs finished the season without throwing a single touchdown pass to a wide receiver.
Sorry, I just had to get that out of my system.
There’s nothing wrong with finishing 9-7, but it was underwhelming for a Kansas City team that had so much promise after a strong 11-5 season in 2013.
It’s especially underwhelming when you’re reminded that they lost to Tennessee and Oakland this year. They would have had a great shot at making the playoffs if they won just one of those games, and they would definitely be in if they won both.
I’m not exactly sure where the Chiefs will go after this, but there’s no reason for them to miss the playoffs next year.
Grade: C
Next: A little bit of hope in Miami
Miami Dolphins 8-8
The Dolphins were a definition .500 team as they had a lot of ups and a lot of downs.
They were in the playoff hunt at 7-5, but they stumbled across the finish line by going 1-3 down the stretch and missed the playoffs yet again.
Ryan Tannehill was subject to rumors of being benched in the beginning of the year, but he put those to rest and put forth a pretty solid season that included 4,045 passing yards, 66.4 percent completion percentage, 27 touchdowns and 12 picks.
Tannehill was always more of a project than a polished player, and it looks like he still has a lot of potential for improvement.
Miami has a strong defense, and they could turn into a solid playoff team if the offense can continue to improve.
Grade: C+
Next: In Minnesota, the future is Teddy
Minnesota Vikings (7-9)
Adrian Peterson really put the Vikings in a rough position with his off the field issues, but I think they did a great job in overcoming all of that by almost being .500.
Teddy Bridgewater didn’t start the season for Minnesota, but he came in during Week 3 and got better after every week. It might not be saying a lot, but he definitely looks like the best quarterback from this draft.
The Vikings have holes everywhere, and hopefully they can get a lot done this offseason.
Minnesota should be a competitive team sooner than later.
Grade: B-
Next: Weren't the Patriots almost done?
New England Patriots (12-4)
A lot of people were ready to give up on the Patriots once they started the season at a rough 2-2, but those people were quickly reminded on who they were talking about.
After losing to Kansas City in Week 4, New England went on a seven-game winning streak that including dominating performances against Denver, Indianapolis, Detroit and Cincinnati.
The streak ended after the lost by five at Green Bay, but I don’t think that’s anything to get down on.
This has turned into just another season for the Patriots, and they are one of the favorites to make it to the Super Bowl as they are the top seed in the AFC.
Grade: A
Next: What happened to the Saints?
New Orleans Saints (7-9)
The Saints were probably the most head-scratching team from this season.
They were one of the trendy Super Bowl picks during the offseason, but that optimism quickly vanished once they started the season 1-3.
New Orleans won consecutive games only once this year, and they just never could consistently put it all together.
Their defense was terrible like it has been for some time now, but their offense was not what we have grown accustomed to.
I don’t know if this was just a fluke season or the beginning of an end to an era, but the Saints need to take a hard look in the mirror this summer.
Grade: D-
Next: Are you down with OBJ?
New York Giants (6-10)
The Giants were bad – again – but at least they did it in style this time.
New York was lucky enough to get Odell Beckham Jr. in the past draft, and it sure looks like they found themselves a star.
He missed the first four games of the season due to injury, but he still finished the season with 91 catches for 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns.
That’s just silly.
I don’t know if Tom Coughlin will return for next season or how Victor Cruz will look after his brutal knee injury, but at least Beckham gives the Giants something to hold their head on.
Grade: C
Next: An end of an era for the Jets
New York Jets (4-12)
Rex Ryan was barely holding onto his job after last season, so it’s no surprise that the team is parting ways with him after a 4-12 effort in 2014.
I hope Jets fans don’t take what Ryan did for them for granted, because he gave them a lot of success and positivity in his time with the team.
A new coach probably won’t change much for this squad as they simply have a poor team, but they have some good pieces on both sides of the ball to build around.
I don’t know where Ryan will go after this or if Geno Smith will be the Jets starting quarterback next year, but I do know that this was a season to forget.
Grade: D
Next: Have the Raiders found a quarterback?
Oakland Raiders (3-13)
The NFL works in funny ways.
Oakland can lose to a handful of bad teams that included a 52-0 drumming by St. Louis, and yet they were able to beat Kansas City, Buffalo and San Francisco.
It’s clear that you need a quarterback in order to be successful in the NFL, and for the first time in a long time, the Raiders might actually have a decent one on their team.
Rookie Derek Carr has surprised a lot of people with his performance this season, and he finished the year with 3,270 passing yards, 58.1 percent completion percentage, 21 touchdowns and 12 picks.
The Raiders don’t have a ton of players to build on, but they few that they have could go a long way for them.
The team can only go up from here.
Grade: D+
Next: What's next for the Eagles?
Philadelphia Eagles (10-6)
Philadelphia started the season 8-3 and looked to be building on what Chip Kelly had started in his first year with the team, but things took a bad turn towards the end and the team lost three straight games at the end of the season that knocked them out of the playoffs.
Some people might want to put the blame on Mark Sanchez since he is an easy target, but I don’t put a lot of blame on him.
The Eagles put out a terrible defense every week and often looked like an undisciplined team, and I think that was their ultimate downfall.
There’s already some rumbles about them trading away everything but the rights to cheese steaks in order to draft Marcus Mariota, but I think that would be a terrible decision for this franchise.
This is a team with a lot of promise, and I think they can easily clean up a few things that will put them right back into the playoffs.
Grade: B-
Next: The Tebow curse is over in Pittsburgh!
Pittsburgh Steelers (11-5)
The Steelers started off with a rocky 3-3 record, but they bounced back strong and finished the season on a 8-2 run.
It was hard to see where the Steelers were going after they lost to Tampa Bay, barely beat Jacksonville and then got destroyed by Cleveland, but I guess a six touchdown passes here and six more touchdown passes there fixed everything.
Pittsburgh seemed to have offensive struggles last year and at the beginning of this year, but something switched for them which led to Ben Roethlisberger being tied for the most passing yards, Antonio Brown having the most receiving yards and Le’Veon Bell having the second-most rushing yards in the league.
They are a scary underdog team going into the playoffs, and they will host the Ravens next Saturday.
Grade: B+
Next: Chargers can't finish strong
San Diego Chargers (9-7)
All the Chargers had to do to make the playoffs was win yesterday, and they just couldn’t do it.
Not only could they not do it, but they couldn’t do it against at Kansas City team that didn’t even have their starting quarterback due to a lacerated spleen.
San Diego was in the playoff hunt for most of the season, but they simply crumbled down the stretch and went 1-3 to end the season – and it took a miraculous effort to win that one game.
The Chargers have a good team that should be able to do great things when healthy, and I expect them to be back into the playoffs next year.
Grade: C+
Next: Don't blink, it's a new day in San Francisco
San Francisco 49ers (8-8)
When you look back on it, this season for the 49ers seemed doomed from the get-go.
It was known by pretty much everyone by the start of the season that Jim Harbaugh was probably coaching his last season with the team, and that can’t be good for the environment around the franchise.
San Francisco has been a powerhouse team in the NFC ever since Harbaugh took over a few years ago, so it was difficult to watch them struggle.
The team was 7-4 to start the season, and although that wasn’t like the 49ers from the past few years, it still wasn’t terrible.
However, I guess it all became too much for the team to handle and they went 1-4 to end the season and missed the playoffs.
Harbaugh and the team parted ways nearly immediately after their season ended, and it’s just sad that his time with the team had to end like this.
He is an incredible coach that will make any place much better, and I have to believe the 49ers will be taking a step back with whoever they take to replace him.
Grade: D
Next: Can Seattle repeat?
Seattle Seahawks (12-4)
Like a couple of the other top teams, Seattle started the season rough but came on strong towards the end.
Seattle started the season 3-3, and it looked like they weren’t the same team from last year.
Maybe they heard what everyone was saying, because they went 9-1 in their last 10 games and looked like the same team that dominated in the Super Bowl nearly a year ago.
They have the top seed in the NFC which is a huge deal for them, and it’s hard to picture many teams going into that crazy environment and winning a playoff game.
Seattle might be the favorites to win it all.
Grade: A
Next: Anyone have a quarterback that the Rams can borrow?
St. Louis Rams (6-10)
The Rams aren’t that great of a team, and I was pretty surprised that they were able to finish with six wins in that division.
They didn’t have a lot of bad losses, but they had some really great wins including victories over Seattle, Denver and San Francisco.
St. Louis has a good foundation put in place with their defense, running game and tough style of football, but they are missing a quarterback and some offensive weapons for said quarterback.
I don’t know if they can address those needs this summer or not, but it wouldn’t take much to have this team in playoff contention.
Grade: C
Next: Tampa Bay is on the clock
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-14)
When it’s all said and done, the Buccaneers were one of the biggest disappointments from 2014.
Not everyone had them making the playoffs, but a lot of people did think they would be a competitive team.
They did get a little bit more respectful towards the end of the season, but they were an awful team for basically the entire year.
Lovie Smith had his defense looking completely lost for the most part, and they didn’t have a good quarterback on the roster.
They have the top pick in the upcoming draft, and hopefully they can use that pick to get the quarterback that will take them to where they need to be.
That offense has a lot of weapons, and they could make a quick turnaround next year.
Grade: F
Next: Trouble in the music city
Tennessee Titans (2-14)
The Titans were in a race with Tampa Bay to see who would finish with the top pick, and unfortunately they lost that race.
It’s one thing to be the Buccaneers. Sure, they were 2-14, but they do have pieces to build on.
It’s hard to say the same for the Titans.
Tennessee is just an all-around bad team right now, and they have a huge amount of holes to fill.
Like most bad teams, the quarterback position is one of those holes that need filing, and the Titans should be able to take a chance on a top guy with the second pick.
It’s going to be a little while until the Titans are competitive again.
Grade: D-
Next: Trouble in Washington
Washington Redskins (4-12)
The Redskins didn’t finish with the worst record this year, but they probably had the messiest/ugliest season out of everybody.
Robert Griffin III got hurt in the beginning of the second game, and that allowed the quarterback drama to boil for the rest of the season.
It wouldn’t have been that bad if their coach didn’t speak his him, but Jay Gruden used the media like his own personal diary and said nearly anything he wanted to.
It’s hard for me to truly grasp that dysfunction that was the Washington franchise this year, but it was a complete mess.
I don’t know what their plans are this offseason, but I wouldn’t be shocked if some big changes were made.
Grade: F