State of the AFC West: Week 3 Review, Week 4 Preview
After three weeks of play, the AFC West still looks like any of the four teams could end up winning it. To be honest, nobody has looked good for four quarters. There have been bright spots, but not many. Right now, I wouldn’t argue with anyone who said the AFC West was the worst division in the NFL from top to bottom.
Let’s take a look at what went down last week.
Chiefs defeat Saints
The Kansas City run-game, specifically Jamaal Charles, looked great on Sunday. Why shouldn’t it have? After all, the Saints are dead last in the NFL against the run. It was a tough win on the road for the Chiefs, but they’ll have to string together a few more to win back my respect.
Falcons defeat Chargers
San Diego looked awful at home against the Falcons, who are now 3-0 vs the AFC West. The Chargers were exposed at every level by a superior Atlanta team. Philip Rivers still doesn’t look like himself, then again, it’s not like he has a lot to work with. The defense showed it can’t stop an upper-echelon NFL offense.
Texans defeat Broncos
Sooner or later Denver is gonna have to stop digging themselves into double-digit holes if they want to be competitive in 2012. This games wasn’t as close as the score. Don’t look now, but that schedule doesn’t get easier.
Raiders defeat Steelers
This was a giant step in the right direction for Oakland. The offense spread the ball around evenly and the defense made some big stops. That said, there still seems to be something missing with this bunch, but I can’t put my finger on it. If the Raiders can put together a few more well-rounded performances like this, they’ll be right in the thick of what looks to be a tight divisional race all season.
WEEK 4 PREVIEW
Chargers vs Chiefs
Who knows what can happen week to week and how each team will respond? I don’t claim to know for sure, but my best guess is that Kansas City plays off the momentum of the New Orleans win and puts on a show for the home crowd against a Charger team still feeling the after-effects of a homefield beatdown.
Prediction: Chiefs 24-20
Raiders vs Broncos
No offense to Raider Nation, but after taking on Pittsburgh, Atlanta, and Houston to start the year, Denver must be breathing a sigh of relief to catch the Raiders at home this weekend. I have a feeling Peyton Manning and the Denver offense use this game to tighten up some things in the passing game. On the other side of the ball, Oakland’s receivers will get open against this Bronco secondary, however, I’m not sure Carson Palmer will have the time to find them against this pass rush.
Prediction: Broncos 27-13
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