Each NFL team sought to address the weaknesses of its roster during this offseason through free agency signings, trades, and draft picks. However, regardless of how many additions were made, all 32 rosters emerged from the draft with shortcomings in at least one position.
I analyzed the biggest weakness of each team now that the 2025 NFL draft has concluded. At this point in the offseason, a roster deficiency doesn’t necessarily mean the position group lacks clear starters. Most teams have covered the top of their rosters. However, many units have limited depth, even after all the negotiations.
We are going to select a unit with pending questions for the 32 teams, going division by division.
AFC East
Buffalo Bills
Position of need: Wide receiver (outside)
Keon Coleman had a quietly efficient rookie season. Although he missed four games with injury and only had 29 receptions for 556 yards with four touchdowns, Coleman finished with an excellent 11.4% receiving DVOA, ranking 30th out of 91 qualified receivers. The Bills added Joshua Palmer in free agency; he’s a useful player with an average DVOA and consecutive seasons of at least 580 receiving yards. But there’s no clear-cut No. 1 option and very little depth behind Coleman and Palmer.
The following three receivers, Khalil Shakir, Curtis Samuel, and Elijah Moore, are slot options. The third-best external option is probably Kaden Prather, selected in the seventh round. The Bills should consider bringing back Amari Cooper, even if only for depth purposes. General Manager Brandon Beane might be content with the receiver depth, but it’s not optimal.
Miami Dolphins
Need position: Slot receiver
Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle form an excellent primary duo, but who is the third option? The arrival of free agent Nick Westbrook-Ikhine is an outside receiver. Veterans Erik Ezukanma and Dee Eskridge never really developed.
At this moment, the main options for the slot are two late-round draft picks from 2024. Malik Washington had 26 receptions for 223 yards with no touchdowns last season, while Tahj Washington missed last season due to an undisclosed injury.
New England Patriots
Position of need: Cornerback depth
The Patriots have three starting cornerbacks. Christian Gonzalez covered the opposition’s No. 1 option more often than any other cornerback in the league last season, according to FTN data. He is joined by veteran Carlton Davis III on the outside and Marcus Jones in the slot. But there’s a problem if injuries strike.
Alex Austin started in four games in recent seasons, but he’s not a solid option. There are a couple of late-round draft picks, Marcellas Dial Jr. from 2024 and Kobee Minor, selected in the seventh round this year. Fourth-round safety Craig Woodson could play some in the slot, but there’s a significant drop-off from the top three.
New York Jets
Need Position: Quarterback
The fact that a team thinks it has filled a gap doesn’t mean it has. There’s a chance that the addition of free agent Justin Fields will finally fulfill his potential in the NFL in his fifth season. But those odds are slim.
Fields had his best season in 2024 with a QBR of 50.8, but it was in a six-game sample. And that QBR would have ranked 23rd in the NFL if he had thrown enough passes to qualify. That’s better than what the Jets got from Aaron Rodgers last season, but it’s still not good, and there’s no guarantee that Fields can match or improve upon it. Tyrod Taylor is a good backup, but you don’t want him to be a starter for a whole season.
AFC North
Baltimore Ravens
Need position: Left guard
This is more of a mystery projection. Andrew Vorhees fell to the seventh round of the 2023 draft after getting injured at the combine. He missed his rookie season and then started three games in 2024. He had a solid 97.6% pass-blocking win rate, but the sample size was small. We don’t really know how good Vorhees is yet, and he’s slated to start. Veteran Ben Cleveland and seventh-round rookie Garrett Dellinger are his backups.
Cincinnati Bengals
Need position: Safety
Bengals fans were hoping for an upgrade at safety during the draft, but there was no luck. Vonn Bell is gone, leaving Geno Stone and Jordan Battle as starters. Both are solid in coverage, but they aren’t known for being big playmakers. Stone also struggles with tackling, as his 24.2% missed tackle rate was the third-highest in the league for defenders with at least 40 solo tackles. There’s also very little depth in case of an injury. Daijahn Anthony played just 11 defensive snaps last season, while Tycen Anderson only played special teams.
Caption: 1:13Jeff Darlington: Bengals trying to get Trey Hendrickson deal back on trackJeff Darlington and Marcus Spears weigh in on Trey Hendrickson’s ongoing contract situation with the Bengals.
Cleveland Browns
Position of need: Wide receiver
Jerry Jeudy is excellent and is fine as the number 1 receiver. It’s everything behind him that’s a problem. The number 2 receiver is Cedric Tillman, who only had 339 receiving yards in 11 games last season. The number 3 option is veteran Diontae Johnson, who had a strange 2024 where he played for three teams.
After that, comes veteran Michael Woods II, who only had seven receptions for 65 yards last season, or Jamari Thrash, who had three receptions for 22 yards as a rookie. Behind them are return man DeAndre Carter, fourth-year player David Bell, and little else.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Need position: Quarterback
As of the writing of this article, we have not yet determined whether Aaron Rodgers will play in Pittsburgh this season. If he doesn’t, Mason Rudolph is the starter.
Rudolph was surprisingly reasonable for the Titans last season, and his 55.5 QBR would have ranked 20th in the league if he had thrown enough passes to qualify. Still, nobody looks at Rudolph and thinks he’s a starter for a playoff contender. His current backup is sixth-round rookie Will Howard.
AFC South
Houston Texans
Need Position: Guard
The Texans have a lot of guards, but are any of them good? The starting left guard will likely be Tytus Howard, a natural tackle who has had ups and downs when playing inside. Behind him is veteran Laken Tomlinson, who ranked 44th out of 64 graded guards in pass-blocking win rate (91.1%) last season in Seattle.
On the right side, there’s Juice Scruggs, who is more of a center, but had a 93.0% pass-blocking win rate as a guard last season. Veteran Ed Ingram, who ranked 54th among guards in pass-blocking win rate (89.8%) last season in Minnesota, is next. The Texans have thrown many bodies at this position, but how much will they improve compared to last season’s disaster?
Indianapolis Colts
Need position: Center
While the linebacker was considered, the Colts’ current starting center is second-year player Tanor Bortolini. He started five games last season but had only a 91.3% pass-blocking win rate as a center, well below the league average of 93.8%. His run-blocking win rate was also below average. Backup Wesley French started three games in 2023 but did not play last season due to an ankle injury.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Position of need: Edge rushers
The Jaguars have good starters in Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker. But there isn’t much behind them. The Jaguars recently added veteran Emmanuel Ogbah, but he is 32 and only had five sacks as a full-time starter in Miami last season.
Myles Cole had no sacks as a rookie last season despite playing 11.3% of Jacksonville’s defensive snaps. Yasir Abdullah, a hybrid edge/off-ball linebacker, also had zero sacks last year. The Jaguars can manufacture some depth by occasionally moving veteran defensive tackle Arik Armstead to the outside.
Tennessee Titans
Position of need: Interior Linebacker
The Titans really don’t have credible inside linebackers on the roster besides the addition of veteran Cody Barton. Otis Reese IV played only 8.4% of Tennessee’s defensive snaps last season. Second-year players James Williams and Cedric Gray played 10.5% and 4.5% of the defensive snaps, respectively. One of the veteran LBs still on the market, Ja’Whaun Bentley, Kyzir White, or Shaq Thompson, would fit here.
AFC West
Denver Broncos
Need position: Number 2 Receiver
This choice wasn’t easy, as the Broncos have a credible two-deep at every position. The best I could come up with was the lack of a clear number 2 receiver behind Courtland Sutton. The Broncos have a bunch of players there, but nobody has really established themselves as a solid WR2.
Marvin Mims Jr. had 39 receptions for 503 yards last season, while Devaughn Vele had 41 receptions for 475 yards. Also present are Pat Bryant, who could struggle to live up to his third-round selection, along with veteran Trent Sherfield Sr. and Troy Franklin, Bo Nix’s former college teammate.
Kansas City Chiefs
Need position: Left guard
The Chiefs have strong starters everywhere, as one would expect from a team that has been to three consecutive Super Bowls. The biggest question is whether second-year Kingsley Suamataia can succeed at left guard after struggling at left tackle last season. If Suamataia fails there, it falls to Mike Caliendo, who performed admirably during last season’s playoff run after Joe Thuney moved to tackle.
Las Vegas Raiders
Position of need: Outside Linebacker
The Raiders’ primary outside linebacker at the moment is Devin White, who couldn’t get on the field for the Eagles last season and eventually went to the Texans, where he started one game. He is known for overplaying plays and for his questionable pass coverage instincts.
Amari Burney is behind White and played only 9.1% of Las Vegas’ defensive snaps last season, slightly more than Tommy Eichenberg’s 7.2%.
Los Angeles Chargers
Need position: Center
Veteran center Bradley Bozeman ranked 29th out of 33 qualified centers with a pass-blocking win rate of 92.0%. The Chargers signed him anyway to a two-year extension, but they might have a better option behind him after signing free agent Andre James.
James has always had surprisingly high pass-blocking win rates. He was at 95.7% last year, fifth among centers, and at 96.5% in 2023, second behind the Chiefs’ Creed Humphrey.
NFC East
Dallas Cowboys
Position of need: Cornerback depth
The biggest hole was at wide receiver, but that was addressed with the George Pickens trade. So let’s move to cornerback. DaRon Bland and Trevon Diggs are solid starters, but there are questions about whether Diggs will be ready to start the season after surgery late last year to repair damage to the cartilage in his left knee. There are also questions about the health of the No. 3 cornerback, third-round rookie Shavon Revel Jr. He was thought to be a first-round talent, but he fell due to an ACL tear.
The depth is poor if Diggs or Revel aren’t ready for Week 1. Caelen Carson allowed an atrocious 98.4% coverage DVOA in limited time as a rookie, along with 10.9 yards per target. Kaiir Elam was a first-round pick, but faded in Buffalo. Safety Israel Mukuamu can line up in the slot, but played just 18% of Dallas’ defensive snaps last season.
New York Giants
Need position: Tight end
Theo Johnson
