Predicting The Outcome Of Every Division - AFC West

To help pass the time between now and the start of training camp, I thought it would be fun to do a regular season and playoff simulation of the 2023-2024 NFL Season until a Super Bowl winner is crowned. I divided the teams into their respective divisions and I will be posting a new article each day for each division, plus each round of the playoffs. That amounts to 12 articles that I can milk out of one idea in the dead of the offseason, which makes my job so much easier. I’ll be sure to link my previous predictions below.

Previous Predictions

AFC East

NFC East

So without further ado, here are my predictions for every division. Continuing with...

The AFC West

The Kansas City Chiefs are the closest thing the NFL has had to a dynasty since the New England Patriots had Tom Brady in his prime with a stacked roster around him. Case in point, the Chiefs have appeared in three of the last five Super Bowls, having won two of them. I expect them to continue their dominance.

After a disastrous 2022 season, the Broncos wooed former Saints head coach Sean Payton out of retirement. Denver sorely lacked leadership, and now they have a coach who will command respect from QB Russell Wilson and the rest of the team. The Broncos have a good defense, and most of their key pieces on offense are returning. Add in some investments to the offensive line including OT Mike McGlinchey and OG Ben Powers, and you have a team that is poised for a bounceback season in 2023.

In Los Angeles, Justin Herbert did his best to carry the franchise on his back last season. Too bad the coaching was highly questionable. Brandon Staley fired offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi, while defensive coordinator Renaldo Hill left to join Vic Fangio’s staff in Miami. The Chargers are hoping that these coaching changes will improve the team in 2023.

Finally, Josh McDaniels and the Raiders are doing their best to re-create the New England Patriots by signing former Pats WR Jakobi Meyers who gave them a free win last season after a botched lateral pass. They also traded Darren Waller for a 3rd round pick and scapegoated Carr for all their problems, replacing him with a worse quarterback in Jimmy Garoppolo. Now Davante Adams is disgruntled, and McDaniels is still arguably the worst head coach in the league. Las Vegas deserves better than this.

The Projected Standings

1. (13-4) Kansas City Chiefs

2. (10-7) Denver Broncos

3. (8-9) Los Angeles Chargers

4. (2-15) Las Vegas Raiders

Next up: NFC West