AFC Midseason Projections
AFC Midseason Projections

The second half of the NFL season gets underway this week. Here's a look at the top AFC players so far this season and what we project for the rest of the season

BALTIMORE

QB JOE FLACCO has 2,176 passing yards and is on pace to surpass Vinny Testaverde's single-season club record (4,177 in 1996)

RB JUSTIN FORSETT aims to join Jamal Lewis as the only players in Ravens history with consecutive 1,250-yard rushing seasons

TE CROCKETT GILLMORE has three touchdown catches in six games played and is on pace to join Todd Heap and Dennis Pitta as the only tight ends in club history with at least seven touchdowns in a season

LB DARYL SMITH leads the team with 76 tackles and is projected to join Ray Lewis as the only players in franchise history with 150+ tackles in a season

K JUSTIN TUCKER leads the team with 74 points and is on pace to surpass his own single-season franchise record of 140 points in 2013. P SAM KOCH leads the NFL with a 49.4 punting average and is on pace to surpass his own club record from last season (47.4 average in 2014).

BUFFALO

QB TYROD TAYLOR currently ranks third in the AFC in passer rating (108.9) and is on pace to join Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Kelly (101.2 in 1990) as the only players in club history with a rating of 100+ in a season

RB LE SEAN MC COY (9,620) is on pace to reach 10,000 career scrimmage yards. RB KARLOS WILLIAMS leads the team with five rushing touchdowns and is on pace to become the first Bill to rush for 10+ TDs in a season since Willis McGahee in 2004 (13)

TE CHARLES CLAY leads the team with 35 catches and is on track to surpass Pete Metzelaars (68 in 1993) for the most ever by a Bills tight end in a season

MARCELL DAREUS (29.5) is on pace to join KYLE WILLIAMS (35.5) as the only Bills defensive tackles with at least 30 career sacks

P COLTON SCHMIDT ranks third in the NFL in punting (48.7 average) and can surpass Brian Moorman's club mark of 48.2 in 2011.

CINCINNATI

The Bengals (8-0) are on track to eclipse their record for regular-season wins (12 in 1981 and 1988)

QB ANDY DALTON is 48-23-1 (.674) in his career, the best record by a starting quarterback in club history (minimum 20 starts). He is on pace to pass for 4,452 yards and 36 touchdowns, which would surpass his own club marks from 2013 (4,293 yards; 33 TDs)

TE TYLER EIFERT leads the NFL with nine touchdown catches and is on track to tie Rob Gronkowski's single-season tight end record for total touchdowns (18 in 2011) and surpass CARL PICKENS' single-season club mark for touchdowns (17 in 1995)

WR A.J. GREEN is on pace to surpass 1,400 receiving yards for the second time in his career and can challenge Chad Johnson's club mark for receiving yards in a season (1,440 in 2007)

RB GIOVANI BERNARD is on target to rush for 1,022 yards and would be the 10th player in franchise history with a 1,000-yard rushing season.

CLEVELAND

TE GARY BARNIDGE can challenge the Browns' single-season tight end marks for receiving yards and touchdowns, which are currently owned by Kellen Winslow (1,106 yards in 2007) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Ozzie Newsome (nine TDs in 1979)

QB JOSH MC COWN aims to join Brian Sipe (4,132 in 1980) as the only Browns with a 4,000-yard passing season

Rookie DUKE JOHNSON, JR. is on pace for 62 catches and 656 receiving yards and aims to surpass the running back franchise marks held by Greg Pruitt (65 catches in 1981) and Dub Jones (651 receiving yards in 1952)

WR TRAVIS BENJAMIN is on pace for 1,107 receiving yards, which would rank fourth in club history for a single season

LB KARLOS DANSBY is tied for the club lead with two interceptions and can become the first Browns linebacker with four INTs in a season since Tom Cosineau in 1983.

DENVER

QB PEYTON MANNING needs one win and three passing yards to surpass Brett Favre (186 wins; 71,838 yards) as the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards and regular-season wins by a starting QB...WR DEMARYIUS THOMAS is projected to finish with 1,490 receiving yards and would join Marvin Harrison (four) as the only players in history with four consecutive 1,400-yard receiving seasons. He is slated to finish with 122 catches, which would eclipse Rod Smith's club mark of 113 in 2001

The Broncos lead the NFL with 30 sacks and are on pace to surpass their single-season team mark since 1982 (57 in 1984)

CB AQIB TALIB is tied for the NFL lead with two interception return touchdowns and needs one more to set the franchise season record

K BRANDON MC MANUS (76 points) ranks third in the NFL in scoring and is on track to surpass Matt Prater's club record of 150 points in 2013.

HOUSTON

QB BRIAN HOYER is on pace to become the first player in franchise history with 30 touchdown passes in a season and would surpass Matt Schaub's club mark (29 in 2009). He aims to join Schaub (three times) and David Carr as the only Texans to pass for 3,500 yards in one season

WR DE ANDRE HOPKINS is on pace to set franchise records for receptions, receiving yards and touchdown catches, each of which currently belong to Andre Johnson. Hopkins aims to become the second player in NFL history with at least 130 catches in a season (Marvin Harrison, 143 in 2002)

DE J.J. WATT is tied for second in the NFL with 8.5 sacks and is on pace to join Pro Football Hall of Famer Reggie White as the only players with three 17-sack seasons since the statistic became official in 1982.

INDIANAPOLIS

QB ANDREW LUCK needs 162 passing yards to join Peyton Manning, Pro Football Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas and Bert Jones as the only players in franchise history with 15,000 career yards

RB FRANK GORE is on pace to rush for 1,064 yards and would join Pro Football Hall of Famers Curtis Martin, Barry Sanders, Walter Payton and Emmitt Smith as the only players in NFL history to rush for 1,000 yards in at least nine different seasons

WR T.Y. HILTON leads the team with 703 receiving yards and is on pace to join Marvin Harrison (eight) and Reggie Wayne (seven) as the only players in club history with three consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons. WR ANDRE JOHNSON is on track to surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer Cris Carter (13,899), Steve Smith, Sr. (13,932) and Hall of Famer James Lofton (14,004) for ninth on the all-time receiving yards list.

JACKSONVILLE

QB BLAKE BORTLES is on pace to pass for 4,386 yards and surpass Mark Brunell's single-season club mark of 4,367 in 1996. He has also passed for 17 touchdowns and is slated to eclipse David Garrard's club-record 23 TDs in 2010

WRs ALLEN ROBINSON (707 receiving yards) and ALLEN HURNS (635) are on pace to become the second tandem in club history to record 1,000 receiving yards apiece in the same season. Robinson's projected 1,414 receiving yards would rank second in Jaguars' history to Jimmy Smith's record total of 1,636 in 1999

RB T.J. YELDON is on pace to join Fred Taylor (1,223) and Maurice Jones-Drew (941) as the only Jaguars rookies with 900-yard rushing seasons

PAUL POSLUSZNY leads the team with two interceptions and can became the first Jacksonville linebacker with four INTs in a season.

KANSAS CITY

QB ALEX SMITH is on track to pass for a career-high 3,938 yards and aims to join Trent Green (2003-05), Elvis Grbac (2000) and Bill Kenney (1983) as the only Chiefs with 4,000 passing yards in a season...WR JEREMY MACLIN leads the team with 566 receiving yards and is on pace to join Andre Rison (1,092 in 1997) as the only Chiefs with 1,000 receiving yards in their first seasons with the franchise

TRAVIS KELCE is on pace to join Tony Gonzalez as the only Chiefs tight ends with 1,000 receiving yards in a season

LB JUSTIN HOUSTON leads the team with 5.5 sacks and is projected to join Pro Football Hall of Famer Derrick Thomas (seven) and Neil Smith (four) as the only Kansas City players with at least four 10-sack seasons

CB MARCUS PETERS leads the team with three interceptions and is on pace to finish with the most of any Chiefs rookie since Dale Carter (seven) in 1992.

MIAMI

QB RYAN TANNEHILL is on pace to pass for a career-best 4,474 yards and would join Pro Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino (six) as the only Dolphins with multiple 4,000-yard seasons

WR-PR JARVIS LANDRY is the first Dolphin with a pass completion, rushing attempt, reception, kick return and punt return in the same season since Mark Clayton in 1983. Landry is on pace to become the first player in club history with a 100-catch season and would surpass O.J. McDuffie's single-season mark of 90 receptions in 1998. Landry and WR RISHARD MATTHEWS are projected to become the first Dolphin tandem since 1991 (Mark Duper and Mark Clayton) with 1,000 receiving yards apiece in a season

RB LAMAR MILLER is on track to accrue 956 rushing yards and 54 catches and would join Ricky Williams (2003) as the only Dolphins with at least 900 rushing yards and 50 catches in a season.

NEW ENGLAND

The 8-0 Patriots are aiming for their seventh consecutive division title, which would tie the Rams (1973-79) for the longest such streak in history. New England is on pace to join the 49ers (1983-98, 16) as the only NFL teams to record 13 consecutive 10-win seasons

QB TOM BRADY ranks third in the NFL with 2,709 passing yards and is on track to join Drew Brees (three) as the only players in NFL history with multiple 5,000-yard seasons. He is tied with Brees (414) for fourth on the all-time TD pass list and is projected to surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino (420) for third all-time

ROB GRONKOWSKI ranks second amongst NFL tight ends with seven touchdowns and is on pace to become the first tight end in NFL history with five 10-TD seasons

DE CHANDLER JONES leads the NFL with 9.5 sacks and can surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer Andre Tippett (18.5 in 1984) for the single-season franchise record.

NEW YORK JETS

QB RYAN FITZPATRICK is on track to pass for 3,580 yards and would join Pro Football Hall of Famer Joe Namath, Ken O'Brien and Vinny Testaverde as the only Jets with 3,500 yards in a season

RB CHRIS IVORY leads the team with six rushing touchdowns and can join Pro Football Hall of Famer Curtis Martin and Thomas Jones as the only Jets with at least 12 rushing TDs in a season

WR BRANDON MARSHALL is on pace for 108 catches for 1,460 yards and would eclipse the team marks held by Al Toon (93 catches in 1988) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Don Maynard (1,434 yards in 1967)

WR ERIC DECKER leads the team with six TD catches and can challenge the Jets' single-season mark of 14

DE MUHAMMAD WILKERSON leads the team with 5 sacks and looks to become the fourth Jet with multiple 10-sack seasons.

OAKLAND

QB DEREK CARR is tied for third in the NFL with 19 TD passes and is on pace to eclipse Daryle Lamonica's single-season team mark of 34 in 1969. He is on track to pass for 4,188 yards, which would rank second in club history to Rich Gannon's 4,689 yards in 2002

WR AMARI COOPER's 45 catches are already the most by a Raiders rookie, and he is projected to eclipse James Jett's club rookie mark of 771 receiving yards in 1993. Cooper and WR MICHAEL CRABTREE are on pace to become the first Raiders tandem since Pro Football Hall of Famers Tim Brown and Jerry Rice in 2001 with at least 1,000 receiving yards apiece in the same season

RB LATAVIUS MURRAY leads the team with 630 rushing yards and is projected to become the fourth player in club history with a 1,250-yard rushing season

S CHARLES WOODSON (65) is tied for first in the NFL with five interceptions and can surpass Ken Riley (65) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Dick "Night Train" Lane (68) for fourth all-time.

PITTSBURGH

MIKE TOMLIN (87) is on pace to join Pro Football Hall of Famer Chuck Noll and Bill Cowher as the third coach in Steelers history to reach 90 career regular-season wins

WR ANTONIO BROWN leads the AFC with 1,002 receiving yards and aims to join Calvin Johnson (1,964 in 2012) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice (1,848 in 1995) as the only players with 1,800 receiving yards in a season. Brown leads the AFC with 69 catches and is on pace to join Wes Welker (2007-09) as the only players in NFL history with three consecutive 110-catch seasons

QB BEN ROETHLISBERGER is on track to surpass Kerry Collins (40,922) for no. 13 on the all-time passing yards list and Dave Krieg (261) for no. 14 on the TD pass leaderboard

LB BUD DUPREE leads AFC rookies with four sacks and can challenge Kendrell Bell's single-season rookie record of nine in 2001.

SAN DIEGO

QB PHILIP RIVERS leads the NFL with 3,033 passing yards and is on pace to extend his club record for the most seasons with 4,000 passing yards to seven. He is on pace for a club-record 5,392 passing yards and would be the sixth player in NFL annals with a 5,000-yard passing season

MELVIN GORDON is on pace to become the first Chargers rookie running back with at least 900 scrimmage yards since Tomlinson in 2001

RB DANNY WOODHEAD is on pace for 926 receiving yards, which would surpass the single-season mark for a Charger running back (Ronnie Harmon, 914 yards in 1992)

JERRY ATTAOCHU and MELVIN INGRAM are tied for the team lead with four sacks apiece and aim to become the first Chargers linebacker tandem to post at least eight sacks apiece in a season

K JOSH LAMBO is on pace for 120 points, which would surpass Nate Kaeding's club rookie record of 114 points in 2004.

TENNESSEE

MARCUS MARIOTA leads NFL rookies in touchdown passes (13, already a franchise rookie record) and passer rating (101.5). Mariota can challenge the NFL rookie records for passer rating (Robert Griffin III, 102.4 in 2012) and TD passes (Peyton Manning, 26 in 1998). He needs one more four touchdown-performance to join Pro Football Hall of Famer Fran Tarkenton as the only rookies in NFL history with three such games

TE DELANIE WALKER leads the team with 42 catches and is on pace to surpass Frank Wycheck (70 catches in 1998 and 2000) for the most in franchise history in a season by a tight end. Walker is on track to become the first tight end in franchise annals with consecutive 800-yard receiving seasons

BRIAN ORAKPO leads the team with 5 sacks and aims to become the second linebacker in club history with 10 sacks in a season (Jason Babin, 12.5 in 2010).

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