Heading into the 2020 season, the AFC West appears to be as strong as ever. The Kansas City Chiefs are coming off a Super Bowl win and their roster is ready to defend their title. Denver and Los Angeles each have star-studded defenses and their offenses have a lot of intriguing talent, as well.
As for the Raiders, they are looking to find their role in the division as the Chiefs are still clearly the top team. But behind them, the rest of the division is up for grabs and the Raiders could easily grab the No. 2 spot in the AFC West.
But just how well does the division stack up with the rest of the league? In a recent article by Ben Linsey of Pro Football Focus, the AFC West was named the fourth-best division in football. Here is a snippet of Linsey’s thoughts on the division entering the season:
“The division gets more interesting after Kansas City. There are arguments to be made that each of the Denver Broncos, Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers could push for a playoff spot. The Broncos sport one of the league’s most underrated rosters and have brought together a lot of high-level talent on offense for Drew Lock to work with. Meanwhile, the Raiders have taken steps to improve their defense through free agency and the 2020 NFL Draft and have some intriguing young pieces on offense around Derek Carr. Lastly, the Chargers have one of the most talented defenses in the NFL on paper, particularly with Derwin James and Chris Harris Jr. in the secondary.”
With the amount of talent inside the division, it wouldn’t be a shock if two or more teams went to the playoffs this season from the AFC West. And for that team to be the Raiders, they are going to need to have success within the division.
Last season, the Raiders went 3-3 in the division and will likely need to improve on that this year to make the tournament. However, that will be a tough task considering how much better the Broncos and Chargers got this offseason.
Look for the AFC West to be among the most competitive divisions in football this season.
