One of the more consistent divisions in the NFL over the past five years has been the AFC West, which has been consistently bad. In that time frame, it has housed two of the worst teams in the league in the form of the Oakland Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs, an underachiever in the form of the Denver Broncos, and the unbelievably talented San Diego Chargers, who have won the division in each of the past four seasons.
Don’t expect much change in the AFC West, even with all four teams making a number of alterations to their roster. Oakland welcomes Jason Campbell under center, while Kansas City added a pair of former Super
Bowl-winning coordinators from New England who goes by the names of Crennel and Weis. Denver is rebuilding with another former Patriots assistant Josh McDaniels, who is in his second season in Mile High.
Lastly, San Diego is experiencing life without former tailback LaDanian Tomlinson for the first time in a decade, yet looks poised for a fifth consecutive division championship. So like the last few years, it’s the Chargers and everyone else out west, as the other three teams fight it out over who will be selecting where in the draft.

Despite winning the AFC West in each of the last four seasons, the San Diego Chargers haven’t exactly turned that into postseason success, winning just a pair of playoff games in that stretch. After going 13-3
with one of the most explosive offenses in the league, San Diego promptly lost at home to the underdog Jets in the second round of the postseason. As high-powered as they were, the Chargers were a flawed unit, lacking balance on offense, where they ranked tenth overall (360.1 YPG), fourth in scoring (28.4 PPG), fifth in passing (271.1 YPG), but next-to-last in rushing (88.9 YPG). So changes were made, most notably the release of future Hall of Fame running back LaDanian Tomlinson. The former MVP was clearly slowing down, and the imbalance in the offense was indicative of its focus shifting to the passing game. And why wouldn’t it, with Philip Rivers putting together another tremendous season? Rivers threw for 4,254 yards and 28 touchdowns without the presence of a running game, which ultimately proved to be the team’s downfall. San Diego traded up in the draft to pick tailback Ryan Mathews out of Fresno State, who should fit well in Norv Turner’s offense. Defensively, the Chargers were average last season, ranking sixteenth overall (327.0 YPG), but should be better off now that sack artist Shawne Merriman is another year removed from knee surgery. While still a talented group, the Chargers are lucky that they play in such a weak division, where there is no real contender to their place at the top of the mountain.


After San Diego, there are three teams full of question marks that round out the division. First among these, and most likely to challenge the Chargers is the Oakland Raiders, who for the first time in quite a while have potential to make noise in the AFC West. Thankfully the JaMarcus Russell experiment is over in Oakland, as the former number one overall pick was released in the offseason. Former Redskin Jason Campbell is now the man under center, and will need to prove to his detractors that he can be a capable starter in this league. And honestly, that’s exactly what the Raiders need after a Russell-led offense ranked next-to-last in both scoring (12.3 PPG) and total yards (266.1 YPG), twenty-ninth in passing (159.8 YPG) and thirtieth in turnover differential (-13). Campbell’s weapons on offense are young, but there is talent, particularly in the form of
tight end Zach Miller and wide receivers Chad Schilens and Louis Murphy. How these youngsters gel with Campbell will dictate how far this unit will progress in 2010. Defensively, Oakland is in better shape, where there is a good deal of talent. However, this unit has struggled thanks to the ineptitude of the offense. Nnamdi Asomugha has earned the reputation as the top cornerback in the game, and Richard Seymour provided a huge boost after coming over from New England. After a stellar draft that netted Alabama linebacker Rolando McClain, this unit should improve on the 361.9 yards they allowed per game last season. With the talent base expanding and someone other than Russell under center, expect the Raiders to be a much-improved team in 2010, but don’t expect them to make it all the way to the postseason just yet. Not far behind Oakland is the Kansas City Chiefs, who continue to rebuild a franchise that has won just ten games over the past three
seasons. The first year of the rebuilding process brought forth new general manager Scott Pioli, new head coach Todd Haley, and new quarterback Matt Cassel, two of which are former New England Patriots.
Year Two brings yet more Ex-Patriots, as former coordinators Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel reunite under Pioli in Kansas City. The idea is that these guys will make sense of a team that despite some talent was
awful on both sides of the ball in 2009. Quarterback Matt Cassel wasn’t nearly as effective as he was in New England filling in for an injured Tom Brady throwing just as many touchdowns as he did interceptions. Then again, he didn’t exactly have Randy Moss and Wes Welker to throw to. As a result, the Chiefs ranked twenty-fifth overall offensively (303.2 YPG) and twenty-third in scoring (18.4 PPG). However, they did manage the eleventh-ranked rushing offense (120.6 YPG) in the league, and the addition of former Jet Thomas Jones to the backfield should improve what was already a strength. Defensively, the Chiefs were pathetic, ranking thirtieth overall (388.2 YPG), twenty-second against the pass (231.7 YPG), twenty-ninth in points
allowed (26.5 PPG), and next-to-last against the run (156.5 YPG). Kansas City has drafted heavy on defense over the last three seasons, and it’s time that some of those guys start showing results, which is where they hope Crennel will make a difference. The Chiefs should look more organized and prepared than they were last season, leading to a more competitive unit, but don’t expect them top challenge for the division quite yet.
Lastly, we come to the Denver Broncos, who after starting 6-0 under first-time head coach Josh McDaniels, ended up going 8-8 for the second consecutive season, and missed the playoffs for the fourth straight
season. McDaniels is continuing to rebuild this team in his image, which consisted of getting rid of any malcontents on the roster, including Pro Bowl receiver Brandon Marshall. This also apparently meant drafting former Heisman-winner Tim Tebow, who could actually end up starting for the Broncos despite being widely regarded as a long-term project. Whether it’s Tebow or Kyle Orton, the Broncos must do better than they did on offense in 2009, ranking fifteenth overall (341.1 YPG), eighteenth in rushing (114.8 YPG), thirteenth in passing (226.7YPG), and twentieth in scoring (20.4 PPG). McDaniels was the coordinator of New England’s record-setting offense in 2007, but is clearly lacking the talent that he had with the Patriots. Defensively,
Denver was an odd case, ranking seventh overall (315.0 YPG) and third against the pass (186.3 YPG), but twenty-sixth against the run (128.7 YPG). Defensive Coordinator Mike Nolan was not retained from the
previous season, and the pectoral injury to sack artist Elvis Dumervil will have a negative effect on this group. Age is creeping up in the secondary as well, as both Brian Dawkins and Champ Bailey are slipping in performance. The bottom line is this; the Broncos are rebuilding and McDaniels has a plan, but the fruits of his labor may be a few years away.