The Kansas City Chiefs have run the AFC West for nearly an entire decade—the last time they didn't win the division was in 2015, two years before Patrick Mahomes entered the league. The Broncos, Chargers, and Raiders have tried everything to dethrone the Chiefs in the division—from adding new quarterbacks to bringing in some of the best available head coaches. Nothing has worked so far.
The latest plan to try and take down the Chiefs could be to do it through a strong rushing attack, especially after watching Saquon Barkley catapult the Philadelphia Eagles over the top in Super Bowl LIX.
A case could be made that this year's best running back prospects could all end up in the AFC West, making the run games in the division even more imposing.
The best running back prospect in this year's draft is Boise State's Ashton Jeanty who—let's just put it this way—when a running back is projected to go in the top 10 in today's pass-happy NFL, that means the guy is a beast. Jeanty is a scary player, and the Raiders not only own the sixth pick but have been linked to Jeanty frequently.
The AFC West could be an exhibition of the brightest young RBs in this draft class.
Another top running back that could be joining the AFC West is TreVeyon Henderson, who met with the Denver Broncos on Wednesday. The Ohio State running back rushed for over 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns and tallied 1,300 yards from scrimmage with 11 total touchdowns. It wouldn't be fun to have him join the division.
Ohio State actually had two running backs rush for over 1,000 yards with the other one, Quinshon Judkins, also entering the draft. He rushed for 14 touchdowns and had 16 total scores during his 2024 season with the Buckeyes. Judkins has also been linked to the L.A. Chargers in mock drafts with a recent one from ESPN tying him to them in the second round.
At this point, it feels like these other AFC West teams can add whoever they want. As long as Patrick Mahomes is the quarterback and Andy Reid is the head coach of the Chiefs, K.C. is going to be in control of the division. That being said, it is a tad concerning to see these teams projected to make good decisions (and the Broncos and Chargers deserve credit for making progress in the last year).
However, when it comes to AFC West ground games, the truth is that the Chiefs are going to add someone as well—maybe more than one prospect. The team already signed Elijah Mitchell in free agency, but mock projections are consistently giving K.C. top prospects as well. Names that have been tossed around include Omarion Hampton in the first round or Judkins or Cam Skattebo on Day 2.
Hopefully, when push comes to shove, even if the AFC West foes manage to land their running back superstars, they're still unable to pry the division away from the Kansas City Chiefs, who are going for their 10th straight division title in 2025.