We’re officially through Week 1 of the 2019 NFL season. It’s a small sample size, but the AFC West looks to be one of the top divisions in football this year. Along with the NFC West, they’re one of only two divisions to come away with three winning teams. Here’s a look at the standings through the first week of play:
| Place | Record | Team | Next Opponent |
| T-1 | 1-0 | Kansas City Chiefs | at Oakland Raiders |
| T-1 | 1-0 | Los Angeles Chargers | at Detroit Lions |
| T-1 | 1-0 | Oakland Raiders | vs. Kansas City Chiefs |
| 4 | 0-1 | Denver Broncos | vs. Chicago Bears |
Let’s take a look at the Chiefs’ AFC West opponents and some of their top performers from Week 1:
Denver Broncos
Peak performers:
- QB Joe Flacco – 21/31 for 268 yards and one touchdown.
- WR Courtland Sutton – 7 catches for 120 receiving yards.
- LB Josey Jewell – 14 tackles
The Broncos were the only team in the AFC West to start the season out with a loss. On offense, they couldn’t get any sort of rhythm going against the Raiders. The first play of the game was a failed end-around to Noah Fant and it felt like they never recovered from it.
Flacco wasn’t great, but at times he showed veteran poise that the Broncos haven’t seen at the QB position since Peyton Manning. He’s not going to be the reason that the Broncos lose games, but he won’t be the reason they win them either. He did a good job of not turning the ball over and managing the game.
Perhaps the most shocking part of this game was that the Broncos defense really struggled. They only stopped the Raiders four times on third down. They didn’t get any pressure on Carr with no QB hits or sacks in the game. Considering that Vic Fangio is known as a defensive head coach, well, that’s not an encouraging sign.
This feels like it will be a learning experience from a first-time head coach and a first-time offensive coordinator for the Broncos. Fangio gets his old team next week, the Chicago Bears, in the Broncos home opener. They’ll need to be better prepared for that game.
Continue…
Los Angeles Chargers
Peak performers:
- QB Philip Rivers – 25/34 for 333 passing yards, three touchdowns and one interception.
- WR Keenan Allen – Eight receptions for 120 receiving yards and one touchdown.
- RB Austin Ekeler – 154 scrimmage yards and three touchdowns on 18 touches.
- DE Joey Bosa – Eight tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss and two QB hits.
- DE Melvin Ingram – Two tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss and three QB hits.
The Chargers basically won this game on a coin flip thanks to the NFL’s antiquated overtime rules. Despite lucking into a win, they looked the part of a good football team.
Austin Ekeler proved that he’s worthy of the No. 1 running back job in Los Angeles. They won’t be calling for Melvin Gordon to come back anytime soon if Ekeler continues performing as he did against the Colts. Keenan Allen looked healthy for the first time in recent memory, which makes for a formidable offense.
On defense, Melvin Ingram and Joey Bosa looked the part of perhaps the most dominant duo in the AFC West. It’s going to be a challenge for teams to choose which of the two players to block moving forward.
The one area that looked exploitable was Philip Rivers and the offensive line. Rivers can’t move in the pocket like he used to and took four sacks against the Colts. If he gets pressured he starts to press and makes poor decisions with the football.
Continue…
Oakland Raiders
Peak performers:
- QB Derek Carr – 22/26 passing for 259 yards and one touchdown.
- RB Josh Jacobs – 23 attempts for 85 yards and two touchdowns.
- WR Tyrell Williams – 6 catches for 105 receiving yards and a touchdown.
- DE Benson Mayowa – Three tackles, two sacks, a tackle for loss and a forced fumble.
The Raiders looked better than most expected in their 2019 NFL debut. Carr was accurate and poised against what everyone expected to be a good Broncos defense. Williams looked prepared to step up in Antonio Brown’s untimely departure. Jacobs looked explosive in the run game and like he hadn’t missed a beat from playing for the Alabama Crimson Tide.
What perhaps was the biggest surprise, was that the Raiders defense played a physical game and had good coverage on the back end. They’ve had some struggles with that for a few seasons now. Rookies Jonathan Abram and Clelin Ferrell both looked as advertised too.
Even though the Raiders had a good game against the Broncos, I don’t expect them to be able to keep up with the Chiefs in a shootout in Week 2. The Broncos were a mess during this game and still managed to hold the Raiders to just three touchdowns.
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