It’s day 2 of the NFL preview and I am already making changes to the schedule. With some uncertainty around the injuries to Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman in New England (according to reports its nothing too serious), I wanted to hold off on previewing the AFC East until next week. So rather than leave you all high and dry with no preview for today, I’m going to give the people what they want. I’m going to look at the AFC West, home of the defending Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos.

Denver Broncos

Before the confetti could even settle down in Denver following its Super Bowl victory over Carolina the Broncos were faced with some uncertainty going into its title defense. Peyton Manning rode off into the sunset into retirement. His heir apparent, Brock Osweiler, left in free agency to lead the new look Houston offense. Now the Broncos are left with even more question marks at the most important position in the game. Mark Sanchez and Trevor Siemian are locked in a battle for the starting job, and you have to wonder how it even got to that point.

As last season showed the Broncos defense could carry this team to the Promised Land but can they do it again? The short answer is yes. This defense has “all-time great” potential as they showed last season. Resigning Von Miller to a huge contract should be evidence to this team’s commitment to the defensive side of the ball.

This is a team that should squarely be in playoff contention in a perfect world, but as professional wrestling icon Sting used to say, “the only thing for sure is that nothing is for sure.” The Broncos have won this division five years in a row for the first time in franchise history, but a sixth is not quite a forgone conclusion.

 

Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs looked dead in the water last season following a 1-5 start and losing star running back Jamaal Charles to a torn ACL. Just as everyone seemed to write off Kansas City, the regrouped and rattled off ten straight wins to clinch a Wild Card spot. The emergence of running backs Charcandrick West and Spencer Ware certainly played into that winning streak. The Chiefs backfield is loaded this season so expect to see a little bit of Charles, West and Ware each week. Jeremy Maclin produced another solid season in his first year in Kansas City finally giving Alex Smith an outside weapon to rely upon.

KC is rock solid on the defensive end, but the offense doesn’t exactly torch opposing defenses. The playoff loss to New England exposed this team’s biggest problem as currently constructed. The Chiefs need to play with a lead in order to rely on a dangerous defensive unit. That defense can be lethal to opposing offenses when they are let loose. Tamba Hali and Justin Houston are a pincer move waiting happen on the ends. Both can make life a living hell for opposing quarterbacks. Eric Berry anchors the secondary and is in a contract year after winning Comeback Player of the Year last season. Not to be forgotten is Marcus Peters, last season’s Defensive Rookie of the Year. Peters had an incredible season for the Chiefs and looks like a star in this league already.

The schedule could become a bit of a concern. An early bye week could spell some trouble for Andy Reid’s team since there won’t be an opportunity to regroup if they get off to another slow start. The make or break stretch comes midseason playing at Carolina, Denver and Atlanta with a home game against an upstart Tampa Bay. That being said this is a playoff team that will need to recapture that fire from last season to carry themselves deep into the playoffs. Kansas City is the team that can dethrone Denver in this division, and I believe they will.

 

Oakland Raiders

It is a little ironic that the Raiders are considering a move to Las Vegas in the future, and currently find themselves as the wild card of this division. Derek Carr and company showed promise last season, staying in the playoff hunt until late in the season. Amari Cooper showed flashes of stardom last season. Michael Crabtree is coming off a rebound season. The rankings from last season were nothing special but they looked good based on the eye test. Things are looking up for the silver and black, especially if they can improve in the running game which ranked near the bottom in every category last season.

On the other side of the football, All-Pro Khalil Mack anchors the Raiders. Mack emerged as one of the leagues premier defenders last season in the mold of Denver’s Von Miller. This defense did lose a future Hall of Famer in Charles Woodson but the front seven can hold up its end of the bargain. The loss of Woodson may mean a drop in the takeaway numbers, which will be a major area to watch for this defense.

The schedule down the stretch is downright scary, bookended by Carolina and the regular season finale in Denver. A hot start for the Raiders could be the key to getting into the playoffs for the first time in over a decade.

 

San Diego Chargers

San Diego will need some divine intervention to contend in this division. The defense lost its captain Eric Weddle to Baltimore in a Hollywood style divorce. Now they find themselves in a contract standoff with Joey Bosa, the team’s top draft choice. This is a defensive unit that lacks the ability to rush the passer (2^nd fewest sacks in the NFL) and ranked in the bottom half of the league in other key defensive categories.

Offensively the outlook doesn’t look too bright either. Phillip Rivers racked up good numbers on a bad team, but fell off the map as the season progressed. A sub-par offensive line and a litany of injuries held back this offense that showed some promise. The return of a healthy Keenan Allen and the acquisition of Travis Benjamin should help return some of the explosiveness on the outside. This is a team that is going to have to throw a ton to stay in games.

The Chargers look poised to finish at the bottom division again and find themselves drafting in the top five next May.

 

Check back Monday when I’ll look at the NFC North. Tomorrow I’ll be debuting the Weekend Viewer Guide. Keep the conversation going in the comments section. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmoney and give the Facebook page a like.