Kansas City Chiefs: Where do they rank?

Most National Football League experts believe the Kansas City Chiefs have improved since we last saw them. Despite losing center Rodney Hudson to the Oakland Raiders, the Chiefs have made ample additions in safety Tyvon Branch, left guard Ben Grubbs, right guard Paul Fanaika and of course, receiver Jeremy Maclin.

Wit 10 draft picks to use in the upcoming NFL Draft, Kansas City stands to improve further before the start of OTAs. Factor in the returns of Derrick Johnson and Mike DeVito, and fans are downright giddy.

So where do the Chiefs rank among their AFC counterparts? Can Kansas City actually make a run after two winning seasons under Andy Reid, or is there still much work to be done?

Over at NFL.com, Elliot Harrison put together a power rankings post and has the Chiefs at No. 9. Kansas City is put fifth in the AFC behind the New England Patriots, Indianapolis Colts, Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos. Surprisingly to some, the Chiefs were put ahead of a pair of playoff teams in the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals, along with the contending San Diego Chargers, who were placed at No. 16.

Personally, I believe Kansas City is the third-best team in the AFC, behind the Patriots and Colts. The Chiefs have a vastly superior roster across the board compared to the Colts, but Andrew Luck is a demigod. With Luck, Indianapolis will always be dangerous and because they play in the woeful AFC South, I give it the nod.

With New England, the champs are still loaded with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick steering the ship. The defense took some major hits, however, with the losses of Vince Wilfork, Brandon Browner and Darrelle Revis. Ultimately, New England has to be respected and accounted for.

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Many might be surprised I believe the Chiefs are better than the Broncos, but it has been a brutal offseason in the Mile High City. Denver fired the coaching staff and brought in a new one led by Gary Kubiak, which is a fairly underwhelming hire. In nine years with the Houston Texans, Kubiak had plenty of talent and only managed to win two playoff games, both coming against Andy Dalton and Marvin Lewis.

The Broncos also lost a truckload of players in the offseason including tight end Julius Thomas, nose tackle Terrence Knighton, receiver Wes Welker, inside linebacker Nate Irving, safety Rahim Moore, guard Orlando Franklin and center Will Montgomery. But hey, Denver landed Owen Daniels and Darian Stewart, so everything will surely be fine.

What say you, Addicts? Are the Chiefs currently the AFC West’s best? Where do you rank them in the AFC?

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