NFL Season Predictions: AFC West

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The 2022 NFL regular season will start in three months. The NFL pre-season will be here before you know it in August. It’s time to start looking ahead to new beginnings and possibilities. Here are the likely final standings for the AFC West. Some may say the AFC West will actually be the best division in the NFL rather than the AFC North.

Which team will likely emerge as the King of the Hill?

1. Kansas City Chiefs 12-5- The Chiefs will look different without Tyreek Hill who was traded to the Miami Dolphins. However, the Chiefs didn’t exactly lose that trade since the team acquired multiple draft picks and drafted a similar receiver in Western Michigan’s Skye Moore. Like Hill, Moore is a vertical threat although short like Hill. He won’t necessarily win a lot of jump-ball situations but he can burn a defensive secondary. The Chiefs are still the top team. Patrick Mahomes wants to finish the job of winning another Super Bowl after losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and then losing to the AFC Champions Cincinnati Bengals last year. With Moore and Tight End Travis Kelce to throw to, there shouldn’t be any reduction in offensive production. The Chiefs had the third-best offense in the NFL overall, just ahead of the Las Angeles Chargers.

2. Los Angeles Chargers- 11-6- There is a temptation to call the Chargers the Division favorites this year but it’s wise to hold off on that for now. This team can score points in bunches too but there not as established as the Chiefs. The Chargers will still have one of the best offenses in the NFL with Quarterback Justin Herbert developing so quickly and the reliable receiver Keenan Allen to throw to. The Chargers also have one of the top defenses in the league as they ranked ninth overall against the pass and run in 2021.

3. Las Vegas Raiders 10-7- The Raiders will be so much better with DeVante Adams on the team. Now that quarterback Derek Carr has a very reliable receiver, he’s ready to put up big numbers. Raiders fans will feel energetic about their offense this year after all the heartbreak of the fatal accident in which Henry Ruggs, unfortunately, caused the death of a woman. Although this won’t take the sting away from what happened, Raiders fans will sense a new vibe and energy from this team this season.

4. Denver Broncos- 8-9- Trading for quarterback Russell Wilson was a huge win but in this rugged division and the time it takes to build chemistry with new teammates, this may not be an immediate turnaround that Broncos fans envision. Still, this team will start to trend in the right direction. The ascent to the peak of the mountain will be a slow one with many challenges along the way. Still, the dynamic duo of Wilson with receiver Courtland Sutton is intriguing.

As always, predictions can go wrong and the AFC West is by far, the most difficult division to accurately predict.