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NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

After going 8-8 in 2006, and the annual rite of spring -- awaiting word on Brett Favre's future -- the Green Bay Packers weren't expected to do much this season. They were still a young team, with a young coach, and a quarterback who didn't seem sure he wanted to still play. And then there were the Bears, division rivals coming off a trip to the Super Bowl.

Well, a funny thing happened on the way to not doing much; the Packers won 13 games, put up some impressive offensive stats, and the defense was among one of the best in the NFC. There was the disappointing loss to the Giants in the NFC Championship game, but save even with Favre (and maybe Donald Driver), this is a relatively young one of the league's youngest teams. So what can Green Bay do this off-season to improve in 2008? Glad you asked.

1. Quarterback. Obviously, it's Favre's job if he wants it. What's not so obvious is if Favre wants the gig; he's supposedly figuring that out right now. Even if Favre decides to retire, the Packers are in good shape with 2005 first-round pick Aaron Rodgers. He showed promise during the preseason and limited action in the regular season. If Rodgers becomes the starter, Green Bay will need to find an adequate backup.

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

The offseason roadmap for the Dallas Cowboys isn't as much as "what we need to do to get this team to the top" as much as it is getting over that little playoff hurdle and into a Super Bowl. When you look at it, the resources are all there. The question is getting the Ts crossed and dotting the lowercase Js.

1. Lame Duck – Let's see. How many times during the next year will we hear about Jason Garrett possibly replacing Wade Phillips as head coach? Not as much as you'll hear it if the Boys start struggling. Dallas has wanted Garrett to be in training for the head coaching job ... eventually. But like any other position on the field, the question will be when to let the young guy take the reigns. We all know that if Phillips has a problem with it, Garrett ain't the one who will be shown the door.

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

If you were to ask a Chargers fan four months ago what the team's biggest need would be this off-season, it would almost certainly have something to do with finding a way to get rid of general manager A.J. Smith (and, by association, Norv Turner) and to convince Marty Schottenheimer to return as head coach. I mean, the guy did win 14 games in 2006.

Instead of imploding after a 1-3 start, San Diego finished 10-2 and won two playoff games (two more than Marty ever did, by the way) before losing to the Patriots in the conference final. So while every team could stand to improve this off-season, the Chargers are a lot better off than many of us figured back in October. Still, there are some things that need fixin.'

1. Wide Receiver. This was Vincent Jackson's make-or-break year and after a slow start, he finally started putting it all together. He managed just 30 receptions in his first two seasons, but hauled in 41 passes for 623 yards (15.2 average), including three touchdowns in 2007.

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

Save the Giants, the Browns were probably the biggest surprise of the season. After winning 10 games in the previous two years, Cleveland reeled off 10 in 2007. Third-year wide receiver Braylon Edwards finally put it all together, a healthy Kellen Winslow played like one of the best tight ends in football, and the Browns first first-round pick, tackle Joe Thomas, was better than advertised.

Things went so well that head coach Romeo Crennel is about to get a shiny new deal. The team looks to build on its recent success, but how do they go about doing that?

1. Quarterback. The Browns have offered Derek Anderson a three-year deal and while there will be some negotiating, the two sides are expected to reach an agreement. Make no mistake, though; Anderson is Cleveland's quarterback for 2008, and maybe beyond. The team missed on Charlie Frye, but luckily Crennel pulled the plug on that experiment about 15 minutes into the season.

And if Anderson falters (and that doesn't seem likely), there's 2007 first-round pick Brady Quinn. The real dilemma could come next off-season; if Anderson has another solid performance in 2008, the Browns might have to make a decision on Quinn's future.

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

Just when you thought the Colts had stopped choking in January, they serve up a buffet of dropped passes and missed opportunities against the Chargers. Marvin Harrison's knee injury (and the Colts' handling of it) clearly impacted this usually potent offense during the season and again in the postseason. However, this team still won the tough AFC South and got a first-round bye. So what really needs addressing this offseason?

1. Defensive line. Losing both Dwight Freeney and Booger McFarland made this line far less effective than it could have been. There was no pass rush without Freeney, so finding a complement to him and some extra run-stopping help would be useful for the Colts at this point.

2. Receiver. Let's be honest -- Peyton Manning can never have enough targets, and he's clearly not that good when he only has two guys he can trust. Anthony Gonzalez was solid in his rookie season and could be even better next year, but the guys behind him were ordinary at best. Plus, even without his injury, Harrison is getting up there in years. Don't be surprised to see Bill Polian grab another wideout in this draft.

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers went from worst to first in the NFC South, thanks to a better quarterback, a better pass rush and a lot of crappy opponents in their division. That earned Jon Gruden and Bruce Allen a contract extension. Winning this division, however, didn't translate into winning in the playoffs. Spending nearly all of the last offseason improving the defense helped. Now it's time for Allen and Gruden to start boosting the offense.

1. Running back. Earnest Graham earned his keep, but he's really a backup at best, and so is Michael Pittman. With Cadillac Wiliams' career in jeopardy, the Bucs need to find someone to anchor the running game.

2. Wide Receiver. Joey Galloway and Ike Hilliard aren't getting any younger, and for whatever reason, Gruden doesn't seem to trust Michael Clayton, Maurice Stovall and Alex Smith to do the job. If that's the case, he needs a playmaker at this spot that can do the job. Those are in short supply in free agency, but will anyone be available for them in the draft?

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

The Jacksonville Jaguars recovered from a late-season collapse in 2006 to have a very successful 2007. They won 12 games total, finished 5-4 against other playoff teams over all and gave the Patriots a pretty good challenge in the playoffs. Now that they're back on track, though, they have to find a way to move up to the next level. Fortunately, they have a lot of salary cap room they can use to address these positions:

1. Secondary. Reggie Nelson had a solid rookie season at safety, and Sammy Knight helped, but he was always a stopgap until Gerald Sensabaugh got healthy. The cornerback position could use an upgrade as well. One shutdown corner wouldn't hurt, but they'll probably have to find one of those in the draft.

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

If you could pick a moment when the Carolina Panthers' 2007 season went straight to hell, it was probably the moment Falcons defensive end John Abraham got around left tackle Travelle Wharton and hit Jake Delhomme in just the right spot to ruin his elbow. Eventually we learned that the backup Carolina signed in the offseason couldn't actually play football. Let's hope the players Marty Hurney signs this offseason are more capable of this.

1. Offensive line. Jordan Gross is a free agent, Mike Wahle is getting a little long in the tooth, and the left side of the line isn't looking any better. Carolina needs to find some cap space to keep Gross around, then figure out if he's going to play at left or right tackle. This team has options at center, though one of them -- Ryan Kalil, Justin Hartwig or Geoff Hangartner -- will probably move to a guard spot. Finding another tackle in the draft wouldn't hurt, either, but whatever the Panthers do, they have to keep an eye on fixing the running game.

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

After the Chicago Bears lost in the Super Bowl to the Indianapolis Colts, they made several decisions before trying to defend their NFC crown. They gave Cedric Benson the starting tailback job, kept the quarterback position intact, signed Adam Archuleta to play safety and fired defensive coordinator Ron Rivera. It's hard to imagine any of them could have gone worse and each played a big part of the trip to a 7-9 record. The early word out of Chicago is that there won't be any big moves this time around but it's hard to see how such an approach would make for a markedly better 2008.

1. Quarterback – GM Jerry Angelo has been talking up a competition for the starting job in 2008 and that's certainly a good idea. None of the three quarterbacks who started for the Bears this season deserve an unfettered move to the top of the chain but the team won't do well to stand pat with the players they have. Rex Grossman is a free agent but unlikely to find big money offers and guaranteed starting jobs flooding his inbox.

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

How far do the Denver Broncos have to go to return to the playoffs? Their team was ravaged by injuries en route to a 7-9 record this season. A healthy team could have easily won another couple of games and found itself battling for a wild card. A more pessimistic view might point out that they got old in several spots because they haven't built well through the draft. That would indicate there's a longer road back to success. Either way, the good news is that, in Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall and Elvis Dumervil, they've got building blocks for 2008 and beyond. Here's where they need the most immediate help.

1. Defensive Stability – Jim Bates was hired as defensive coordinator and immediately installed a scheme predicated on big defensive tackles. It was a total flop. Sam Adams and Amon Gordon couldn't occupy blockers, leaving the middle of the field open to all comers. They overhauled the line during the season, but found no better results and that led to Bates's firing. New coordinator Bob Slowik must establish a strategy and stick to it if the team is to improve defensively. Be they big DTs or athletic ones, the team can't afford to veer wildly in such a short amount of time.