Given that, let me make my predictions about what will happen this season in the AFC West:
1. Kansas City Chiefs (projected division champions) - The Kansas City Chiefs enjoyed a remarkably successful season last year due to a historical run in the latter half of the season. After a dismal 1-5 start that made it appear that this was close to being one of the worst teams in the league. But that began to change with a surprise upset win against Pittsburgh that really got this team rolling. From that point onto the playoffs, the Chiefs seemed virtually unstoppable, reeling off ten straight wins in the regular season to finish at 11-5. It was a run reminiscent of the 1992 San Diego Chargers, who started the season at 0-4, only to catch fire and win 11 of their last 12. Like those Chargers, Kansas City pulled off a shut out win in the playoffs, before their luck ran dry in the divisional round. The Chiefs absolutely dismantled the AFC South champion Houston Texans in the wildcard, scoring an impressive 30-0 road win, and then gave the Patriots all that they could handle up in Foxboro, although they ultimately lost. Now, however, the Chiefs know how good they can be. That, mixed with the pressure that Denver will face as the defending champion, puts Kansas City in a favorable position to take advantage and jump ahead of the Broncos and into first place. This is a solid team, and the Chiefs went farther last season than they had in a long, long time, ending a playoff drought that started to be measured in decades, rather than years. The question now is, how far can this team go? If they remain healthy and motivated, the Chiefs could again go deep into the playoffs.
2. Denver Broncos (projected second place) - The Denver Broncos won their third ever Super Bowl title by turning the tables in a significant way last season. In 2013, they were the team with the high profile due to the explosiveness of the offense, but once in the Super Bowl, they displayed a decisive lack of toughness, and the physicality and defensive dominance of the Seattle Seahawks was clearly far too much for them in the Super Bowl. Last season, the Denver Broncos were the team with the best defense in the league. So much was this the case, that early on in the first half of the season, some were even speculating that Denver's defense might be a contender for best defensive unit of all time. They allowed quite a few points in the second half of the season, and that kind of talk evaporated. Yet, the defense stepped up in a big way in the postseason, hanging on to hold off the explosive Pittsburgh Steelers and then the New England Patriots, before handing the dominant and explosive favorites, the Carolina Panthers, a stinging defeat in the big game. That, obviously, was the ideal scenarion. However, Peyton Manning rode off into the sunset having earned his second Super Bowl ring, and the Broncos lost their second string quarterback, Brock Osweiler. So, the quarterback position was a big mystery during the offseason, and it is likely that this uncertainty will cost the Broncos this season. As I write this, Denver still does not have a starter, although there are reports that Mark Sanchez has looked good in training camp. Still, the Broncos are known now mostly as a conservative, predominately defensive team, and that should be enough to keep them competitive, assuming they stay healthy. Just don't expect another title run, as that would likely be a bit much for them right now.
2. Denver Broncos (projected second place) - The Denver Broncos won their third ever Super Bowl title by turning the tables in a significant way last season. In 2013, they were the team with the high profile due to the explosiveness of the offense, but once in the Super Bowl, they displayed a decisive lack of toughness, and the physicality and defensive dominance of the Seattle Seahawks was clearly far too much for them in the Super Bowl. Last season, the Denver Broncos were the team with the best defense in the league. So much was this the case, that early on in the first half of the season, some were even speculating that Denver's defense might be a contender for best defensive unit of all time. They allowed quite a few points in the second half of the season, and that kind of talk evaporated. Yet, the defense stepped up in a big way in the postseason, hanging on to hold off the explosive Pittsburgh Steelers and then the New England Patriots, before handing the dominant and explosive favorites, the Carolina Panthers, a stinging defeat in the big game. That, obviously, was the ideal scenarion. However, Peyton Manning rode off into the sunset having earned his second Super Bowl ring, and the Broncos lost their second string quarterback, Brock Osweiler. So, the quarterback position was a big mystery during the offseason, and it is likely that this uncertainty will cost the Broncos this season. As I write this, Denver still does not have a starter, although there are reports that Mark Sanchez has looked good in training camp. Still, the Broncos are known now mostly as a conservative, predominately defensive team, and that should be enough to keep them competitive, assuming they stay healthy. Just don't expect another title run, as that would likely be a bit much for them right now.
3. Oakland Raiders (projected third place) - Once again, the Oakland Raiders seemed to show promise at times. At times, they showed the capacity to be an explosive offensive team. They were able to put up a decent amount of points against some weaker teams, but not against halfway decent defenses. They even managed to pull off a huge upset late in the season in Denver, where the defense stepped up in a huge way. Yet, the Raiders never felt like a team making a serious run to the playoffs, although that might have had as much to do with being in a division with two of the top teams in the AFC, as much as anything else. This season, they will be plagued with some of the same distractions as last season, with a potential move from Oakland to Los Angles adding uncertainty to the franchise and their fans. Oakland (for now, they can still be called that) could be a better, more competitive team, and they do have talent. Yet, much like last season, this likely will not yield significant results, or a serious run to the playoffs, this season, either.
4. San Diego Chargers (projected last place) - Last year, I predicted that the Chargers would be competitive, and even contend with the Denver Broncos for the AFC West division title. Instead, they had an absolutely disastrous, abysmal season almost right from the start. Yes, their season was derailed early, and they were never in the race at all after that. The Broncos started off undefeated, and the Chargers fell far behind. The Raiders got ahead of the Chargers at some point, then stayed there. The only team that seemed to have it worse than the Chargers were the Chiefs, who sank to a dismal 1-5 start. But the Chiefs recovered nicely with ten straight wins and qualified for the playoffs, while San Diego just kept failing. The season was lost quite early, despite winning their opener against Detroit, and San Diego's season earned the franchise last place in the division, and a relatively high draft pick. With the turmoil of a potential move casting a shadow, and Philip Rivers getting older, I just do not like this team's chances of much better results this year, and that makes it hard to predict anything but a last place finish once again.
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