Peter King picks Chiefs to win AFC West

The Kansas City Chiefs are getting some more love from national writers. Last week, NFL Network polled their writers on who would win the divisions, and in the AFC West, six of the 13 chose Kansas City, including Gil Brandt. Over at Fox Sports, Alex Marvez believes that the Chiefs will also take the division, while the Denver Broncos won’t see the postseason.

Then, on Monday, Peter King of Sports Illustrated released his projections, and they also have Kansas City beating out Denver in the AFC West. King sees the Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore Ravens, New England Patriots and Chiefs winning their respective divisions, with the Broncos and Miami Dolphins slotting in with wild cards. For the record, I completely agree with King.

Kansas City is getting some respect this offseason because of a few factors. First, the Chiefs have a top-notch coaching staff led by Andy Reid. Reid commands respect around the league, and has 20 wins in his first two seasons with Kansas City. In addition, the offseason moves – along with players returning from injury – look to have the Chiefs as a much-improved team. With Derrick Johnson, Eric Berry, Mike DeVito and Jeff Allen returning, plus the signing of Jeremy Maclin and the trade for Ben Grubbs, Kansas City appears loaded.

Ultimately, the Chiefs need to go out and prove that they can get the job done. Kansas City has not beaten the Broncos since 2011, the year before Peyton Manning showed up. Of course, Denver looks completely different this season after firing John Fox and his staff, replacing them with Gary Kubiak.

We will get an early look at how the two teams stack up when they square off in Week 2 on Thursday Night Football at Arrowhead Stadium. If the Chiefs are ever going to get over the proverbial hump, it will be on that night.