What a difference just a few weeks can make in the NFL.
We have seen the Kansas City Chiefs and San Diego Chargers flip-flop places in the standings in recent weeks, as the red hot Chiefs are right in the thick of the AFC playoff race, while the Chargers (while still in it) are reeling, and trying to get their season back on the right track.
It was also thought that the Broncos were the best team in the NFL, but the New England Patriots put an end to that talk in their 43-21 victory over Denver last weekend.
All of a sudden, there are a ton of questions in the division.
Can Phillip Rivers and the Chargers bounce back? Is the Broncos defense enough to help Peyton Manning go on another playoff run? Are the Chiefs for real? And when the heck are the Raiders going to win their first game?
All that and more in this week’s Around the AFC West.
Standings (with last week’s result)
Denver Broncos…….6-2 (L, 21-43 v. NE)
Kansas City Chiefs…5-3 (W, 24-10 v. NYJ)
San Diego Chargers..5-4 (L, 0-37 v. MIA)
Oakland Raiders……0-8 (L, 24-30 v. SEA)
Denver Broncos
- What about that defense?
Coming into last week’s game, the defense of the Broncos was thought to be a much-improved unit compared to their counterparts from the year before.
After Tom Brady (333 yards passing and four touchdowns) and the New England Patriots had their ways with them last week, all of a sudden the Broncos have a lot of the same questions that they did at the end of last season about the effectiveness of their defense.
We all know about Peyton Manning and their potent offense attack, but is there defense good enough to give them a chance to compete for another Super Bowl?
In the off-season the Broncos bolstered their unit in adding Pro Bowl level talent in DE DeMarcus Ware, CB Aqib Talib, SS TJ Ward, and rookie Bradley Roby (whether through free agency or through the draft).
The problem is, that while I agree they are a much more talented unit, there hasn’t been too much of a change to the results on the field.
Coming into this week’s game, the Broncos are still 16th in point allowed (23.1 points per game) and 20th in passing yards allowed (254 yards per game) but do own the best rush defense in the NFL (allowing just 71.6 yards rushing per game).
The problem with looking at this group is that they haven’t been tested much in game situations. Sure, the Broncos record is great this year but looking back the defense was never really the main factor in their wins. That credit would go to their top rated offense always giving them such a cushion that teams abandon the run and try to force it all through the air.
When tested, like last week against a top NFL quarterback, the team still showed many holes in allowing 398 yards against, 29 first downs and 43 points to the Patriots.
Again, it isn’t time to panic yet, but maybe this defense isn’t as improved as we thought from just the year before.
- On Tap: Denver Broncos at Oakland Raiders, 4:05 PM (eastern), CBS
Luckily for the defense, they get a much easier match-up this week when Denver heads to Oakland to take on the Raiders.
I have been very impressed with rookie quarterback Derek Carr (60.7% completion, 1,711 yards, 11 touchdowns and four interceptions) but he is forced to do to much week in and week out as the Raiders don’t have much of anything right now that resembles a running game (just 66.1 rushing yards per game, last in the NFL).
While the Raiders will struggle putting points on the board, I don’t expect the top scoring offense to have any problems against the Raiders defense, who will be trying to play catch up with Denver’s weapons all afternoon.
This game would be my “lock of the week”, as I don’t really see a chance of the Broncos losing this one.
Kansas City Chiefs
- Surging Chiefs Get Right back in the AFC Playoff Race
Even just a few weeks ago, we were wondering here on the site if there was any way the Kansas City Chiefs could fight back into the playoff picture.
After starting off the year 0-2, Kansas City looked like a team whose talent on their roster was not reflected by their record. Fast forward a month and a half later, and the Chiefs have been on an absolute tear. 
After winning three straight games (and five of their last six) the Chiefs find themselves tied with four other AFC teams at 5-3. If the season ended today, Kansas City would have earned the final wildcard berth (due to winning the tiebreakers).
This match-up this week against Buffalo is huge, as the Bills are one of those teams tied at 5-3. A loss for them would hurt their chances, as they not only lose a game to Kansas City, but they lose the tiebreaker at the end of the year to them now too.
The Chiefs still play the Raiders twice, but have Seattle, Denver, Arizona, Pittsburgh and San Diego all on the schedule still.
It will be anything but an easy road, but if the Chiefs want to continue to move in the right direction, a win against Buffalo will be needed if their goal is to make the playoffs.
A loss just makes it that much tougher in a division and conference currently experiencing quite the logjam in the standings.
- On Tap: Kansas City Chiefs at Buffalo Bills, 1:00 PM, CBS
This game features two teams that are very similar in terms of team make up and how they play the game.
Both teams have a good stable of running backs and rely on a run heavy attack, led by two veteran quarterbacks defined as game mangers, who won’t wow you with their arms but will keep their team in a game all afternoon long.
Buffalo and Kansas City also have great defenses, who excel at not only stopping the run but getting after the quarterback as well. If they don’t get the sack, they are at least going to make life as difficult as possible by getting a lot of pressure on whoever is dropping back in the pocket. Both secondaries are more than capable of making a play as well.
It is going to come down to who can hold onto the football and who can execute.
It sounds cliche, but in a game where the teams seem to be so evenly matched, there really isn’t any other way to put it.
Look for both teams to stick to the run, and run pretty conservative attacks as they try to feel each other out and put at least 3 points on the board on their drives.
Whoever has the ball last is going to have the last chance to get the victory in this one. I think the defense is going to be that much of a factor that the score isn’t going to get out of hand or anything like that.
It will be low scoring, as big plays should be few and far between for both squads.
Just because it is in Buffalo, I’m leaning towards the Bills pulling this one out in front of their home crowd at Ralph Wilson Stadium.
It would not surprise me in the least if it happened the other way around.
San Diego Chargers
- Can Phillip Rivers and Company make the bleeding stop?
Just a few weeks ago, Phillip Rivers lead everyone’s MVP talk (including my own) as his team looked to be one of the best in the entire league.
After three straight losses, the team now finds itself sitting at 5-4 and just part of the logjam that is the AFC playoff race. After the hot start, it looks like the Chargers might not even stay in the race long enough to even have a shot at the postseason.
Phillip Rivers is coming off his worst start of the year in throwing for 138 yards and three interceptions against the Dolphins last week.
The entire offense looked stagnant, and was able to gain just 178 total yards and 10 first downs. The running game added just 50 yards rushing as an entire unit.
The defense wasn’t any better as the Dolphins were able to do just about whatever they wanted and gained 309 yards passing and 132 yards rushing to go with a 57% conversion rate on third downs.
The talent is still there on both sides of the ball, it’s just that they have been playing some pretty awful football lately and it has come in all three phases of the game.
Once the Chargers start to play as a more complete team, they will be able to return to the win column. Until then, it is showing that they need more than one phase of the game to show up come Sundays.
Rivers just can’t do it all by himself.
At least they have the benefit of their bye coming in Week 10, which gives them a little bit of extra time to get it all figured out.
It couldn’t have come at a better time.
Oakland Raiders
- So when exactly will Oakland get that first win?
It has been a very rough season to say the least, as it is Week 10 this week in the NFL and the Oakland Raiders are still searching for their first win.
So when exactly is that win going to come?
This week the Denver Broncos come to town, so that is probably out.
Ditto for the two weeks after that, as two hungry foes in San Diego and Kansas City will be looking to stay in the race for the playoffs.
After that the schedule consists of St. Louis (maybe a win but they have been playing very good teams tough this year, including two nice upsets), San Francisco (a loss), Kansas City again (this time at Arrowhead Stadium, another loss), Buffalo (loss?) and Denver again (loss).
It isn’t out of the question to think that the Raiders have a very legit shot at going 0-16 this year. 
Harsh as it may be, the remaining schedule is tough and as a group the Raider’s play has left a lot to be desired.
All it takes is one to stay out of the infamous winless club that just the 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers and 2008 Detroit Lions are apart of.
I’m just not sure when that one is going to come.
- On Tap: Oakland Raiders vs. Denver Broncos, 4:05 PM, CBS
This match-up does not favor the Raiders in any aspects of the game.
Oakland is going to have to find a way to slow down Peyton Manning and the rest of the Broncos high-flying offense, which is going to be more than an unlikely thing that is going to occur.
Then they are going to have to have a rookie quarterback (Carr) put up more points on the board than a first ballot Hall of Famer, all while he gets as little help as possible from his running game (Oakland has rushed for less than 75 yards in 6 of their 8 contests)?
Just doesn’t sound like an afternoon that is going to be very successful.
This one has stinker of the day written all over it; Broncos should win big pretty easily.
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