Breaking down the AFC West schedules to predict final standings
By Drew Brooks
Based on the schedules, my predicted AFC West standings look like this:
- Kansas City Chiefs (13-3)
- Los Angeles Chargers (12-4)
- Denver Broncos (6-10)
- Oakland Raiders (5-11)
The Chiefs have been incredibly dominant in the AFC West, winning 23 of their last 26 games against AFC West opponents. There’s no reason to believe that this will change anytime soon. The game they’re in most danger of losing is against the Broncos in Week 7 on Thursday night, as they play statistically worse on those short weeks. (All 3 losses out of the last 26 AFC West games have come on Thursday night.)
The Chargers will again be chasing the Chiefs for first place, but fall short in the end. The Week 17 matchup between the Chargers and Chiefs will likely be flexed to primetime and will likely decide the AFC West. However, I predict that the Chargers will once again finish behind the Chiefs.
I also think that the Denver Broncos will claim third place and finish 6-10 for the second straight year. However, given their tough schedule, they will be relieved not to have finished in last place.
The Oakland Raiders will improve on their 4-12 season, but only by one game. Even though they made many offseason improvements, they will not be able to turn around their disaster of a team that quickly.