2012 AFC West Preview: Can Peyton Manning Help Denver Broncos Win the Division?

Like the AFC North, the AFC West is wide open. The Kansas City Chiefs made the most of the offseason, and could be the favorites. But what if the San Diego Chargers get a bounce-back season from Philip Rivers? What if Peyton Manning is the Peyton of old? Can the explosive Oakland Raiders provide a dark horse?

Oakland Raiders (3^rd in 2011, Predicted Record in 2012: 7-9)

I really like the Raiders as a football team, but I don’t think they’re a complete enough football team to compete with their division rivals. They lost corner Stanford Routt to the Chiefs, and they couldn’t improve their roster much due to them mortgaging their future for Carson Palmer. They didn’t have a pick until the third round this draft.

They have their work cut out for them if they hope to compete. Their best hope is that Denarius Moore and their other speedy receivers finally break out, and Darren McFadden finally stays healthy for a season.

San Diego Chargers (2nd in 2011, Predicted Record in 2012: 8-8)

I like Philip Rivers to have a bounce-back season statistically. It’s not that I don’t like the Chargers. I just like the Broncos and Chiefs more. They made some good moves on both sides of the ball, with electric linebacker Melvin Ingram via the draft, fullback Le’Ron McClain and some new weapons for Rivers in Robert Meachem and Eddie Royal.

I don’t know that receivers are what they needed, though. Antonio Gates’ foot problems persist, and they have no viable tight end to replace him in the somewhat likely event he goes down. I have doubts that Meachem can replace Vincent Jackson’s production, and Malcom Floyd doesn’t stay healthy enough either.

I’m most excited about third year back Ryan Mathews, who will see a great season running behind the vet McClain. Norv Turner wants to use him as a workhorse, and he’s a big man with speed. If he can stay healthy, Rivers will once again have a great running game to back him up.

Kansas City Chiefs (4th in 2011, Predicted Record in 2012: 9-7)

They finished last in 2011, but they had their moments. They upset the Green Bay Packers, ending their bid for an undefeated season, by showing off their tremendous pass-rush without bringing extra men.

They picked up Eric Winston, an outstanding right tackle. They get back explosive running back, Jamaal Charles, and pair him with a big bruiser in Peyton Hillis. They figure to be the lightning-and-thunder combination that will form an effective running, short dump-off and screen game that will work great for the Chiefs but frustrate fantasy owners.

On defense, they get back potential All-Pro safety Eric Berry. They replaced Brandon Carr with Stanford Routt, and Derrick Johnson’s linebacking crew is still here to wreak havoc. This is a good football team that is itching to prove it’s better than the 7-9 record last season shows. My only question is, can quarterback Matt Cassel keep up?

Denver Broncos (1st in 2011, Predicted Record in 2012: 10-6)

You look at Peyton Manning’s stats outdoors and they aren’t all that great. His passer rating goes down from 99.8 to 84.9, his completion percentage drops two percent and his yards per attempt go down by almost a whole yard. His TD-to-INT ratio goes from 20-8 to 13-9.

Let’s couple that with the fact that he spent his whole career in one system. Now he’s got to start over. He’s unfamiliar with his wideouts, Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker. Can they be the new Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne? Can Jacob Tamme do the Dallas Clark impression he did for half a season in 2010?

There are questions, but nobody works harder, is more cerebral, knows how to win and can adjust better than Peyton Manning. This is still possibly the greatest quarterback of all-time. Let’s not be so quick to doubt what he can do with a team that was able to upset the Pittsburgh Steelers last season.