Who wins the AFC West?

[iowajerms]

???

 

[Ewa PGH Fan]

I think Dever falls back to the pack this year, so it could be almost anybody.

 

[HammerDown]

#BoltUp you bitches! :yaho:

 

[Clayton]

Peyton Manning owns the Chiefs. Chiefs can stick with the Chargers with their backups but they play down to their competition sometimes

 

[Broncos6482]

I think it's the Broncos, but the Chargers are closing the gap. The Chiefs will be an 8-10 win team again.

 

[Manster7588]

I got the Chiefs here but won't put my money on it.

 

[nebearsfan70]

I think it's the Broncos, but the Chargers are closing the gap. The Chiefs will be an 8-10 win team again.

This.

 

[DJ]

Oakland.

 

[DJ]

Kidding.

Denver.

 

[nebearsfan70]

Kidding.

Denver.

But damn the NFL is so much more fun when Oakland is competitive.

 

[HaroldSeattle]

I think it's the Broncos, but the Chargers are closing the gap. The Chiefs will be an 8-10 win team again.

This.

This is how I see it.

 

[Beaker]

I'll take the Chargers. I do not trust Peyton to get through a full season anymore and I just don't think Oakland or KC have closed the gap enough.

But really, it would not shock me if any of these 4 teams came out of this division. The AFC West will either be really good or really bad.

 

[iknowftbll]

I think the Broncos are an 11-5 or 12-4 team this season, even with the changes in coaching. The offense will be different this year. It may not be quite as pass happy and prolific as the previous seasons, but I think it'll be one of the top 3 again regardless. What really has me excited is the potential for this defense to be something special. JDR last year squandered some of the best talent ever assembled on one roster. He had no excuses: quality players, health, etc and he just never used these guys to their strengths the way we expected him to. I don't think Wade Phillips will make that mistake.

I can see either of the Chiefs and Chargers at 10-6 and in the playoffs, with the other at 9-7 and just missing out. The Chargers have the better offense, the Chiefs by far have the better defense. I believe Andy Reid was a great hire for the Chiefs, elevating that team from a league bottom feeder to playoff contender two seasons in a row after he inherited a 2-14 dumpster fire. But he will leave fans scratching their heads wondering "WTF" after some losses.

The Chargers are a pretty capable team, able to beat any team in the league any given week. The problem is they are capable of stepping on their cranks in epic fashion as well (37-0 @ Dolphins comes to mind). They are the only team in the division to have dealt the Broncos a loss since Manning arrived and generally play them pretty well. With that said, last season the Broncos won both games by double digits and a combined 26 points. It's a whole new season now, though and guys like Melvin Gordon can make an immediate impact on that offense. I don't think their defense is improved enough to bridge the gap between them and the Broncos, nor its it enough to make them a clear favorite over the Chiefs for second place.

As for the Raiders, I think we are seeing the early stages of "how to build a franchise." Reggie McKenzie has done a fine job not over committing to retread players and getting that team out of salary cap hell in the post-Davis years. The Raiders are just now reaching a point where they are transitioning from cleaning up the mess to growing into a legitimate team again. With that said, there is still a lot of space between them and the three other AFC West teams. I believe the Raiders will be good enough to swipe wins against the Chargers and Chiefs, but not likely the Broncos. And even though I believe this team is trending in the right direction, I think they're heading for a 5-11 or 6-10 season for 2015.

 

[JMR]

I believe Denver has lost their choke hold on this division. It took Peyton about 12 games last year for his arm to turn into a noodle? Maybe this year it's only 8 or 10. I think he'll start strong and be fine in Sep/Oct, but it's clear to me at this point his arm can't hold up after 400 throws or so.

 

[DJ]

As for the Raiders, I think we are seeing the early stages of "how to build a franchise." Reggie McKenzie has done a fine job not over committing to retread players and getting that team out of salary cap hell in the post-Davis years. The Raiders are just now reaching a point where they are transitioning from cleaning up the mess to growing into a legitimate team again. With that said, there is still a lot of space between them and the three other AFC West teams. I believe the Raiders will be good enough to swipe wins against the Chargers and Chiefs, but not likely the Broncos. And even though I believe this team is trending in the right direction, I think they're heading for a 5-11 or 6-10 season for 2015.

I agree.

 

[JMR]

Didnt Oakland just bring in like 3 high priced re-tread players a year ago?

 

[DJ]

I think we have a chance to surprise some people and be in the 7-9 or 8-8 range. We'll be competitive. I think a lot depends on the defense. Curtis Lofton, Dan Williams, Nate Allen, and Malcolm Smith could help us a lot in that aspect.

Carr is legit and he has some nice weapons in Cooper (draft pick), Holmes, Crabtree (free agent), Streater, Rivera, and Murray.

 

[DJ]

Didnt Oakland just bring in like 3 high priced re-tread players a year ago?

Woodley was released this offseason and Tuck actually had his moments last season.

 

[JMR]

Woodley was released this offseason and Tuck actually had his moments last season.

Shaub? MJD?

Anyway, the point is we're giving the GM credit for building the right way and not blowing money on high priced has-beens, but it seems he actually did quite a bit of that last off-season. When I think of teams who typically do that, the Raiders pop up immediately. I do think they have some good, young talent on the team though.

 

[DJ]

Shaub? MJD?

Anyway, the point is we're giving the GM credit for building the right way and not blowing money on high priced has-beens, but it seems he actually did quite a bit of that last off-season. When I think of teams who typically do that, the Raiders pop up immediately. I do think they have some good, young talent on the team though.

Last season was last season. By most accounts, this offseason he's done well. A lot of analysts have given them a solid B.