Here's a look at each AFC East team (in order of finish in 2002):

	Head coach Herman Edwards
	2002 record 9-7
	2002 finish AFC divisional loser

New York Jets
Overview: Herman Edwards showed he has a flair for getting the Jets to the playoffs. He made a successful wild-card bid in his first year as head coach, and last season, despite a slow start, Edwards stole away the AFC East title. The most important part of last season is that Edwards made the playoffs with his players. He made six starting changes on defense. Though the growing pains were tough at first, the Jets bounced back from a 1-4 start to finish 9-7.

Statistically, there is still a lot of work to do on defense. The Jets finished 24th overall and 27th against the run, but a lot of the problem was the team's poor tackling at the start of the season. After about six or seven games, linebacker Sam Cowart, safety Sam Garnes and defensive tackle Josh Evans improved team tackling and that led to the playoff run.

Perhaps the most exciting development last season was Chad Pennington taking over at quarterback and showing that he's good enough to take the team to the playoffs. Pennington, though not a great practice player, is a gamer. He completed 69 percent of his passes and had an incredible 104.2 quarterback rating. Pennington carried the offense through a tough part of the season in which Curtis Martin was struggling because of an ankle injury. Martin got better by the end of the season and finished with 1,094 yards, but Pennington was outstanding. He turned Laveranues Coles into a receiving star. Coles caught 89 passes for 1,264 yards. Santana Moss showed flashes of being a big playmaker, but he only caught 30 passes. Wayne Chrebet wasn't as much of a main target, but he's still valuable in the three-receiver set.

Biggest Needs: The Jets aren't solid along the offensive line, and they could be in worse shape if guard Randy Thomas heads to Dallas or Tampa Bay via free agency. Even though the Jets tried to fix the pass rush a couple of years ago by drafting John Abraham and Shaun Ellis, the Jets need more help with the pass rush. They had only 30 quarterback sacks, 10 by Abraham. They need more help on the pass rush to tighten the pass defense.

Biggest Decisions: Edwards faces major decisions at linebacker. He is expected to execute an option on the contract of Cowart to keep him. But he also has to be aware of the age of the linebacking corps. Mo Lewis is 33 and has been around for 12 years. Marvin Jones is 30 and has been in the league 10 years.

Cap Room: The Jets are $11.1 million under the $74.8 million salary cap.

	Head coach Bill Belichick
	2002 record 9-7
	2002 finish 2nd in AFC East

New England Patriots
Overview: The Patriots couldn't recapture the magic following their Super Bowl season even though quarterback Tom Brady threw for 28 touchdowns. Though they surprised everyone in 2001, the Patriots couldn't capture the same magic in free agency. Of the 13 moderately priced free agents they signed, only tight end Christian Fauria and safety Victor Green had successful first seasons. Donald Hayes wasn't the answer as a tall third receiver. Steve Martin didn't do much along the defensive line and was cut. Rick Lyle had a decent season at defensive end, but the defense looked older and slower.

Bill Belichick's biggest disappointment was stopping the run. The Patriots were the second worst team in football against the run, allowing 137.4 yards per game. On offense, Belichick stayed with his short passing attack at the expense of the run. The Patriots didn't get the $4 million a year use out of halfback Antowain Smith, who averaged only 16 carries a game and had a non-descript 982-yard season. What became clear was that the offense did well when Troy Brown was healthy and failed when he was injured. Brown fought through injuries and still caught 97 balls, but he only had a 9.2 yard average and scored only three touchdowns. When Brown was hurt, the team lost four in a row.

Biggest Needs: Belichick would love to find an impact defensive tackle to put next to Richard Seymour. He may look at trying to get younger at linebacker. He could use a pass-rushing defensive end. The Patriots had only 34 sacks last season. More depth could be added along the offensive line, and the team needs to get bigger and faster at receiver.

Biggest Decisions: Belichick's biggest challenge will be fixing the defensive line. Patchwork didn't work last year. He tried Martin, Lyle, Bernard Holsey and Riddick Parker along the line but the Patriots didn't win a lot of battles along the line of scrimmage. If they let Willie McGinest go, they will be losing their top sacker from the end position even though he had only 5½.

Cap Room: $5.064 million over the cap, but they will save about $8.3 million by releasing McGinest.

	Head coach Dave Wannstedt
	2002 record 9-7
	2002 finish 3rd in AFC East

Miami Dolphins
Overview: Critics may tend to overanalyze the Dolphins failure to make the playoffs. How, they wonder, do you have the league's leading rusher (Ricky Williams) and the leading sacker (Jason Taylor) and not make the playoffs? The defense ranked third. The simple analysis is that they didn't have the right backup quarterback.

Ray Lucas is a good backup in some offenses, but not the Norv Turner system that requires quick reads from the pocket and less running by athletic quarterbacks. Lucas finished 2-4 as a starter filling in for an injured Jay Fiedler and started with a three-game losing streak. That said, the Dolphins would have made the playoffs had they not lost to the Vikings with Fiedler in Week 16, so it goes beyond one player. For personnel, though, the Dolphins are solid. They have a great defense that can pressure from the cornerback positions and from the defensive line. They are excellent against the run and play well in big games. The schedule was harder last year than in most seasons, so the Dolphins won't be on as much of a weekly grind in 2003.

Coach Dave Wannstedt still has to remove the stigma that the Dolphins fade in November and December. That's a problem that dates back to the Jimmy Johnson and maybe even the final days of Don Shula. The Dolphins are trying to make some adjustments to the salary structure, seeking a little less pay for wide receiver James McKnight, offensive linemen Tim Ruddy and Todd Perry and linebacker Derrick Rodgers. If that works, it will free up money to make the talent on offense even better.

Biggest Needs: The Dolphins will be looking for upgrades at wide receiver and left tackle. If Rodgers is released, they may be on the lookout for a linebacker. The Dolphins are always trying to stockpile talent along the defensive line.

Biggest Decisions: Wannstedt's biggest mission is fixing the backup quarterback position. The plan is to keep Lucas on the roster until they can find the right replacement. If they can't, they will stay with Lucas. It's not out of the question for the Dolphins to wait until June and go for Brian Griese if the Broncos release him then.

Salary Cap: $334,000 over

	Head coach Gregg Williams
	2002 record 7-9
	2002 finish 4th in AFC East

Buffalo Bills
Overview: For two days around the draft, general manager Tom Donahoe labored over the thoughts of trading a first-round choice to the Patriots for Drew Bledsoe. It might have been the move of the year. Bledsoe brought instant credibility to the offense. He passed for 4,359 yards. Eric Moulds and Peerless Price combined for 194 catches, 2,539 yards and 19 touchdowns. The passing ignited a running game and Travis Henry became a star with 1,438 yards and 13 touchdowns. The Bills improved from 3-13 to 8-8. Now, the work must be done on defense.

Even though the Bills ranked 15th on defense, they gave up too many big plays and too many points. Giving up 24.8 points a game put too much pressure on Bledsoe. His offense averaged 23.7 points a game. Gregg Williams didn't have much to work with along the front seven of the defense. Pat Williams is the only legitimate star along the defensive line. London Fletcher created excitement at middle linebacker, but the Bills are in the process of replacing the two outside linebackers. The Bills are okay at cornerback with Nate Clements and Antoine Winfield, but they need to get a little more help at safety. Opponents had an 84.7 quarterback rating against them and had 24 touchdown passes compared to only 10 interceptions. Still, a good offseason could be the difference between the Bills making the playoffs and not making the playoffs next year. They have a playoff caliber offense. They need to stop people with their front seven on defense.

Biggest Needs: Two outside linebackers are the prime needs. The Bills could go for Rosevelt Colvin, Anthony Simmons or Mike Peterson as outside linebackers in free agency and then draft one. They need to use the draft to find some help on the defensive line, either a pass-rushing end or a defensive tackle. Some help at safety wouldn't be bad.

Biggest Decisions: Donahoe has to decide whether or not to keep Price or let him go through free agency. It isn't an easy decision. If the Bills franchise Price, it throws the balance of their cap onto the offense, which will limit the ability to rebuild the defense. On the other side, can the Bills afford to lose a Pro Bowl-caliber receiver when they aren't certain that Josh Reed is ready to take over for him. Odds favor the Bills letting Price go.

Salary Cap: $9.35 million of cap room

John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com.