5 weak position groups that could sink their team's playoff hopes

The NFL draft has come and gone, and free agency has slowed to a standstill. At this point in the offseason, the players on each team's roster are the players who will take the field in Week 1 and, barring a few minor roster moves, carry each team as far as it will go.

Below, we examine five teams that opted against (or were unable to) improve a notably weak position group this offseason and assess the chances that each weakness will be the team's eventual undoing.

Seahawks' offensive line

A mad science experiment is underway in the northwest to determine whether a team can contend for a Super Bowl with stars littered throughout the roster, yet nothing but scrubs on the offensive line.

After the departures of Russell Okung and J.R. Sweezy in free agency, there's a good chance the Seahawks' line will feature new starters at all five positions in 2016. That's almost unprecedented.

And it's not like those five starters are anything to get excited about. First-rounder Germain Ifedi could eventually be a Pro Bowl-caliber guard, but he was a bit of a reach in the draft and will likely struggle as a rookie considering the lack of talent around him.

Russell Wilson could be the best ever at escaping pressure in the pocket, but the Seahawks are playing with fire by putting their franchise player behind such woeful protection. One big hit to Wilson's small frame and their Super Bowl hopes could be sunk.

Broncos' quarterbacks

The Broncos won a Super Bowl last season despite quarterback play that can best be described as below average, and might actually have been the worst of the Super Bowl era. They might need lightning to strike twice if they want to repeat as champions.

General manager John Elway's all-time great defense is still largely intact, so it's easy to see why he didn't panic when Peyton Manning retired and Brock Osweiler bolted in free agency. Opting not to trade draft assets for Colin Kaepernick or Sam Bradford was probably the right move.

Yet it's hard to feel good about the Broncos' chances when you look at who's in line to be under center. At his best, Mark Sanchez can be about as productive as a broken-down Manning. At his worst - and he's frequently at his worst - Sanchez commits the kind of back-breaking turnovers the 2015 Broncos largely avoided.

The wild card here is rookie quarterback Paxton Lynch. He's a raw prospect and may not be ready to start, but the Broncos could be forced to rely on their elite defense while Lynch takes his lumps on the field.

Cowboys' pass-rushers

The return of a healthy Tony Romo and the addition of rookie runner Ezekiel Elliott should instantly transform the Cowboys into an offensive force, but it might not matter if the Cowboys can't figure out how to slow down opposing offenses.

The Cowboys ranked 25th in the league in sacks last season and could slide all the way to 32nd this year after watching their thin and unproven edge-rushing group get decimated by the NFL's head office.

Demarcus Lawrence is slated to miss the first four games of the season under suspension, as will second-year rusher Randy Gregory. The Cowboys didn't do much to address the glaring need in the draft, and thus will be forced to rely on a no-name group of rushers for the first month of the season. That's great news for opposing passers.

Maybe Romo's unit will score enough for the Cowboys to weather the early storm, but the risk of them digging a hole in September they can't get out of looms large.

Panthers' secondary

The Panthers have a strict philosophy on defense: Build in the trenches and let everything behind sort itself out. Even when that means making the shocking move to rescind the franchise tag on All-Pro cornerback Josh Norman, they are sticking to that philosophy. Even when that means drafting yet another defensive lineman in the first round, instead of filling a glaring hole at cornerback, they are sticking to it.

Considering the Panthers' recent successes, it's hard to argue with the model. But it's also hard to look at the team's projected starting secondary and not get nervous about whether general manager Dave Gettleman has allowed the unit to atrophy to the point where it won't matter how strong the front seven is.

The Panthers will be as strong or stronger than they were last year up front, but Norman could prove to be the cog the team didn't realize was vital until its gone.

Bills' receivers

Sammy Watkins could be back by Week 1, but his broken foot could also linger into the season and force the Bills to rely on their perilously thin receiving depth.

After the retirement of Percy Harvin and the New England Patriots' poaching of RFA Chris Hogan, the Bills' best receiving options behind Watkins are Robert Woods, Marquise Goodwin, and Greg Salas. That trio combined to make just 52 catches last year - 47 of which were by Woods.

The Bills were among the most run-heavy teams in the NFL last season. They could be forced into more of the same this year, and that might mean the end result (tacking another year on to the NFL's longest playoff drought) will remain the same, too.