The AFC West is not as shameful as it was a year ago. Alex Smith has weapons in Kansas City. Oakland will have competitive games, if they choose to go with Terrelle Pryor and the read option style. Never count out the Chargers, even if it hasn’t been too pretty the past few seasons. But everyone knows Denver is the favorite in all of the AFC.
Denver Broncos- Peyton Manning’s first season in the Mile High City was something to behold. He made a case for MVP and won Comeback Player of the Year. I think year two is going to be even better. An odd game against the Baltimore Ravens went against the Broncos. It was Baltimore’s year. But Denver has the easiest schedule in the league this year. Their division, while improved since the 2012-13 season, is not that great. Manning adds Wes Welker to a receiving core with Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas this year. They are going to pass, then pass and pass more. But it won’t just be that either. Many believe the run game is crowded with above average backs. Ronnie Hillman and Knowshon Moreno will be battling for carries with rookie Montee Ball in the mix. I like this offense. John Elway has put together an excellent team.
They’ll miss Von Miller if that suspension goes through. Elvis Dumervil is gone and Miller could miss a forth of the season. It’s alarming. Rahim Moore and Champ Bailey received a lot of flack for the Baltimore game, rightfully so. Denver adds Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie to the defensive backfield. He’s fast and experienced. Overall, the Broncos will be fine. With a cupcake schedule and one of the best quarterbacks of all-time, they’re a no-brainer in the West.
Kansas City Chiefs- The fans are finally excited in Kansas City and they should be. I still believe Alex Smith’s success could be directly linked to the genius that is Jim Harbaugh in San Francisco. Like most of his career with the 49ers, this KC team will look to Smith to be the playmaker and be “the guy.” Can he handle it? I don’t have the answer and no one does except for him. He will have help. Jamaal Charles is a beast. A top ten back when healthy, Charles is explosive. I’m also a big fan of Dexter McCluster. He’s crazy elusive. They’re going to be using him more as a wideout than a back this season. Sign me up for that. Dwayne Bowe is a good receiver. There’s a lot of Terrell Owens in him- big game, big mouth. Still, he’s a good asset. Smith will learn quickly that Anthony Fasano is not Vernon Davis. But Fasano was a great pickup for the Chiefs.
This defense is going to get torched by Denver. I predict two losses to the Broncos. They gave up 135 yards on the ground per game last year. I also hope they don’t plan on giving up 26.6 a game either. It’s hard to win that way. Brandon Flowers and Derrick Johnson are two good players on the KC defense. They need to turn that side of the ball around in order to make a run at the wild card.
Oakland Raiders- Everyone is so sold on Matt Flynn. He has yet to win a quarterback battle. I’d go with Terrelle Pryor regardless of what Flynn gives you. Pryor can run a read option like the Niners, Seahawks and others will do this year. He can make the offense more fast-paced. Now, he will make mistakes. That’s fine. The Raiders are still not going to make a case for the division title until Peyton Manning retires. Darren McFadden is never healthy. Good move by the Raiders to bring in Rashad Jennings. He was great in Jacksonville in the absence of Maurice Jones-Drew. Oakland gave up on another first-rounder in Darrius Heyward-Bey. They better hope that Andrew Luck doesn’t make them look silly for that decision.
For years Oakland’s defense has not been that bad. When you spend as much time on defense as the Raiders do, it’s hard to have good yardage and point averages. Still, the defense might get rocked by Denver, San Diego and Kansas City. It’s another subpar year for Oakland.
San Diego Chargers- To say that Philip Rivers has regressed is an understatement. This team has taken 100 steps backwards and it might not all be Rivers’ fault but we all know the quarterback takes the lion’s share of the fame and blame. Forget that their GM allowed Darren Sproles, Vincent Jackson and Michael Turner to leave. It’s the past and it’s time to move forward. I read that the team could be interested in Terrell Owens or Chad Johnson? Don’t even think about it. Stick with Malcom Floyd and hope that Ryan Mathews can stay healthy. If Rivers can play like he did three years ago, and he’s still young, then they will be the second-best team. If he plays like he has the last two seasons, 35 interceptions and 24 fumbles, then they could be worse than the Raiders.
The Chargers won’t be short of stories on the defensive side of the ball. Manti Te’o will start. He’s a good player and hopefully all those stories are behind him now. Dwight Freeney is in San Diego. I didn’t see too much of a drop off in his last season with the Colts. It was a financial decision to to bring him back, I suppose. I’ve always been a big fan of Shaun Philips- 9.5 sacks last season. Oh, he’s in Denver now.
AFC WEST- You could easily see the Broncos winning 12 games. The AFC East and West are the easiest divisions in football to pick a winner- Broncos and Patriots. I like KC taking second and surprising people with a 9-7-type record. Oakland and San Diego both appear to be below .500. Don’t look now, but the Denver Broncos are my pick to win the AFC this year.
