The AFC West sits atop the league with a 26-14 record on the backs of the 9-1 Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs. But despite the strong record, should it really be considered the best division in the NFL?
At first glance you might believe so.
The AFC West boasts the best offence in the NFL, with the Broncos managing 455.5 yards per game. They’re not alone, however, as the San Diego Chargers also make it into the top 10 with their seventh-ranked offence, boasting their own 399.4 yard per game average.
Quarterbacks Peyton Manning and Philip Rivers have surprised this season, and both are in the top five of ESPN’s total quarterback ratings (first and fifth, respectively).
Make no mistake, there’s little doubt that the Broncos are a top-two team, if not the best in the NFL.
The division also boats a quality defence in the Kansas City Chiefs, who so far this season have an astonishing +15 turnover differential, good for best in the league.
While the Broncos success was written in the stars, the Chiefs’ unbeaten record is arguably the biggest surprise of the season.
Even the 4-6 Chargers have outplayed expectations after their quarterback was all but written off this offseason.
Now, Rivers is having a career year and has led his team to some surprise wins over the Dallas Cowboys and — most significantly — the Indianapolis Colts.
Lest we forget the 4-6 Oakland Raiders, considered to be one of the worst teams in the NFL coming into the regular season, now with more wins than both the Atlanta Falcons and Houston Texans.
Yep.
The AFC West has certainly improved this year, and we should keep in mind that the division only managed 26 wins all season in 2012 (with the Chiefs going 2-14).
However, one major criticism can still be made.
The Broncos have only beaten two teams with winning records this season: the Chiefs just last week and the now 6-5 Philadelphia Eagles back in Week 4.
The Chiefs have also beat the Eagles – and I’m not even convinced Eagles can be considered a good team, anyway – but otherwise, like the Broncos, every other team they’ve overcome has failed to win more than they’ve lost.
In short: they’re not beating good teams.
It might be unfair to criticise two winning teams because of the caliber of their competition.
After all, they didn’t set their schedules themselves. But the fact is while the AFC West has two 9-1 teams, it’s very hard to place a lot of value on those victories.
So which division should we consider the best in the NFL?
The NFC West is certainly a strong candidate, and currently stands with a 26-15 record.
The 10-1 Seattle Seahawks have beaten the Carolina Panthers, San Francisco 49ers and Arizona Cardinals, all winning teams.
The 6-4 49ers lost by a combined four points to the Panthers and the Saints, but they also beat the Aaron Rodgers-led Green Bay Packers as well as the Cardinals this season.
Heck, somehow the Cardinals are 6-4, and beat both the Lions and Panthers to get there.
The NFC West, in fact, is the only division in the NFL with three winning teams.
You might even consider the NFC South. Both the 8-2 New Orleans Saints and the 7-3 Carolina Panthers have beaten some high-caliber teams this season, including the Bears, 49ers and Patriots.
As I said before, it might be unfair to judge the almost perfect Broncos and Chiefs based on their soft schedule. But the fact is we’ll know for sure whether or not the AFC West is for real as early as next week.
The Broncos play the Patriots on Sunday Night Football. Peyton Manning versus Tom Brady is always a season-defining match-up for both quarterbacks.
The Chiefs still have to play their rivals from Denver once more in two weeks, and will face the Colts in Week 16.
Till then I’ll respect their records – they’ll both make the playoffs anyway – but need to see how they perform against quality opposition and in the playoffs before I start jumping up and down about the resurgent AFC West.
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