The impact players: AFC South

The Impact Players: AFC South

Tennessee: WR Nate Washington

APWashington will give Kerry Collins another weapon on the outside.

We all know that the Titans are a team built on a strong running game and defense, but the addition of Nate Washington this offseason from Pittsburgh gives quarterback Kerry Collins a new weapon to work with on the outside.

During the 2008 season, TE Bo Scaife led the Titans with 58 receptions, while RB Chris Johnson was next with 43. Adding Washington — a veteran receiver who has shown he is capable of the big play — gives Collins and this offense another outlet, someone who can work outside the numbers and produce in the intermediate-to-deep passing game, which I like with Collins and his big arm.

The Titans also drafted rookie WR Kenny Britt from Rutgers and still have a deep-ball weapon in WR Justin Gage, who averaged an eye-opening 19 yards a catch in 2008 to go along with 6 TDs. There are no big-names at the wide receiver position like we see in Indianapolis and Houston, but Washington is an ideal fit for this offense, and as long as he can offer that needed production, this offense will be more effective in 2009.

Indianapolis Colts: S Bob Sanders

APThe Colts need Sanders to stay on the field in 2009 if they want a division title.

I’m picking Sanders for the Colts because when he isn’t on the field, their defense suffers. Since the Colts’ Super Bowl season of 2005, Sanders has played in only 26 ball games — and if he isn’t healthy in 2009, the defense will have issues stopping the rest of the AFC South.

If we think about the rest of the division, all three teams — Houston, Tennessee and Jacksonville — base their offenses on an ability to run the ball and get the running backs involved in the passing game. A safety such as Sanders — who can be the best eighth defender in the box in the entire league — is crucial to the Colts’ ability to limit first- and second-down runs and be a major factor in third-down sub packages.

But only if he is on the field. I understand the way Sanders plays the game invites collisions and the threat of injury, but the former Defensive Player of the Year is as good — and as essential to this success of a defense — as Troy Polamalu in Pittsburgh and Ed Reed in Baltimore. If he plays an entire season, the Colts will compete for the division title.

Houston: DT Amobi Okoye

APThe Houston defense needs more production out of Okoye.

I have made it no secret that I love the Texans’ ability to score points on offense, but their defensive attack is a different story altogether. In 2008, they gave up almost 25 points a game (ranking 27^th in the league), 336 total yards a game and over 122 yards a game on the ground. In this league, you can’t win giving up numbers like those.

I like the development of defensive end Mario Williams, who has 26 sacks over the past two seasons, but he needs help getting to the quarterback and he needs help stopping the run game in the AFC South. Okoye, a former first-round pick, needs to apply a push up front and become a dominant defensive tackle if this team wants to be serious about contending for a division title and playoff spot.

Every season, we talk about the Texans as a surprise team — and I’m no different — but if we really examine this team, the defense — the defensive line especially — is the key to any success it will have. If you can’t stop the run in the AFC South, you might as well stay in the locker room. Okoye can be that type of player on the inside for Houston, but talk is cheap. We need to see it starting in September.

Jacksonville: QB David Garrard

APCan Garrard and the Jacksonville offense score points in '09?

The Jags added WR Tory Holt and locked up RB Maurice Jones-Drew for the foreseeable future, but where is the David Garrard that burst onto the scene in 2007?

The Jags averaged only 18 points a game in 2008, and we can all agree that Garrard was one of many issues that hindered this team’s development. But that doesn’t hide the fact that his leading receiver from ’08 — Matt Jones — is gone, Fred Taylor is in New England, and it’s now up to him to prove that he’s worthy of the franchise-type quarterback money he’s being paid.

Can Holt be the weapon Garrard drastically needs on the outside, or do the Jags funnel their entire offense through Jones-Drew, who will be carrying a full load as a feature back for the first time in his career? Garrard is expected to produce and must produce for this team to compete in this division. Make plays and engineer drives that produce touchdowns -- that’s what the Jags should expect from their quarterback in ‘09.

Next: The Impact players of the NFC South

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