The Talking Heads posed the question “Well, how did I get here?” in the 1980 song “Once In A Lifetime.”

It’s applicable to anyone, of course, with football fans and their respective favorite teams being no exception. Starting this week, Football Insiders is taking a division-by-division look at the turning point in each franchise’s recent history that can answer that very question.

We begin with the AFC East, home of the defending champion New England Patriots and three teams who never seem to have many good things happen to them.

New England Patriots
Turning Point: Drew Bledsoe’s injury, Sept. 23, 2001

There was a time when Drew Bledsoe was the best quarterback in Patriots history. And not just by a little bit – you’d have to do a lot of searching to come up with a reasonable choice when picking the best guy to come before him. So when Bledsoe was clocked by Jets linebacker Mo Lewis on Sept. 23, 2001, no one could have guessed it was one of the greatest moments in franchise history. As a rule of thumb, internal bleeding rarely begets greatness.

As it turned out, Bledsoe became part of the most significant substitution in sports since Lou Gehrig took over for Wally Pipp. Tom Brady has cemented his status as one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history, leading the Pats to a Super Bowl title in ’01 and three since then. Only Terry Bradshaw can match that feat.

And thanks to the incompetence riddling the rest of the division – a subject we’re about to dive in to – Brady and the Pats have maintained their stranglehold despite a constantly rotating cast of characters and cast-offs from other teams who have excelled in New England.

Buffalo Bills
Turning Point: Music City Miracle, Jan. 8, 2000

One could write an entire book on the woes of Buffalo fandom – except the printing press would probably burn down.

Want to remember your Super Bowl appearances? Four straight losses.

Want to celebrate the greatest player in franchise history, like any other pro or college sports team does? Uh… It’s O.J. Simpson.

Want to remember the most recent playoff game in team history? It was 15 years ago. And it ended like this.

The Bills were the AFC East’s premier team of the ‘90s, but everything has gone downhill since Frank Wychek hit Kevin Dyson on the play Buffalonians still insist was a forward pass.

Buffalo is a tough sell for free agents, putting a premium on drafting. The Bills have not fared well in that department this century, and even when they do pick ‘em right, those guys end up superstars elsewhere – see Marshawn Lynch.

Fans can hope Rex Ryan’s hiring will be the next turning point in team history, but hope and Buffalo are a dangerous combination.

Speaking of Rex…

New York Jets
Turning Point: 2010 AFC Championship Game

Remember that time the Jets reached back-to-back AFC Championship Games? It feels more like it was 40 years ago than four, but it did happen. And one disastrous trip inside the 10-yard-line has effectively served as the turning point in team history.

Trailing 24-10 to the Steelers, New York embarked on an epic, smash-mouth drive that began in the third quarter and spanned into the fourth. Facing first-and-goal at the Pittsburgh 2, the Jets looked to be in good shape to make things interesting.

Instead, the next four plays featured the offensive incompetence that has come to define the team ever since. Shonn Greene was stuffed up the middle for a yard. Mark Sanchez misfired on consecutive pass attempts. And on fourth-and-goal, LaDanian Tomlinson was blown up by Brett Keisel and Casey Hampton for no gain.

The Jets would score on a safety the very next play, and ended up adding a touchdown with 3:09 left to play to cut the deficit to 24-19. That remains the last time the New York Jets have touched the ball in a playoff game. The Steelers picked up a pair of first downs to close the game out, and the only Jets highlight played in the ensuing years has been Sanchez’s infamous “butt fumble.”

Miami Dolphins
Turning Point: Jaguars 62, Dolphins 7 – Jan. 15, 2000

Perhaps no two great careers have concurrently ended in worse fashion than those of Jimmy Johnson and Dan Marino.

Though they hadn’t reached a Super Bowl since the 1984 season, the Dolphins were one of the most consistent NFL franchises of the 1990s. Miami made the playoffs seven times from 1990-99 and never suffered a losing season in that stretch.

The Dolphins second game of the new decade ended up portending how the rest of it would turn out. A week after beating Seattle in the Wild Card round, Miami traveled to upstart state “rival” Jacksonville for the Divisional playoffs.

What ensued was one of the great massacres in NFL history. Jacksonville exploded for 41 straight points to start the game before the Dolphins finally got on the scoreboard on the final play of the first half.

When it was over, Jimmy Johnson, who came to Miami to try and win a Super Bowl in the same city he won a college national title, was done. Marino, the best quarterback to never win a Super Bowl, was also through after going 11 of 25 for 95 yards and two picks.

The Dolphins still had enough talent to reach the playoffs the next two seasons under Dave Wannstedt, but that was their realistic ceiling under the combined powers of he and quarterback Jay Fiedler.

In 2004, Wannstedt was canned midseason as Miami went 4-12, their first losing season since 1988. There’s only been one playoff appearance since, in 2008 – aka the year somebody had to win the AFC East with Tom Brady out for the season.

Though it took some time to unravel, the playoff loss in Jacksonville seems to be where the yarn started being pulled apart for Miami.