Why the Chiefs' Offense Will Shock the World in 2012

Finally, Dwayne Bowe has returned to the Kansas City Chiefs and the offense is back in balance.

According to the Associated Press via ESPN.com last week:

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Perhaps Dwayne Bowe was just waiting for the Chiefs to break training camp to finally sign his franchise tender.

The team said in a statement Friday that Bowe had signed after missing the entire offseason program and training camp in St. Joseph, Mo. 

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With that, K.C. now fields a much more potent offensive unit to challenge for the AFC West title.

Ahead, let's break down how the Chiefs look for 2012 and what to expect with Bowe on board.

Best WR in the AFC West

With Vincent Jackson in Tampa Bay, Dwayne Bowe immediately became the undisputed best receiver in the AFC West.

Kansas City, though, still needs him to produce as the division's best target. The past two seasons have certainly been his best with 153 combined receptions, 2,231 yards and 20 touchdowns.

His presence out wide opens up the door for Steve Breaston, Jonathan Baldwin and rookie Devon Wylie to more favorable situations. Bowe will also draw the occasional double coverage and he's consistently productive when facing one-on-one.

Plus the guy's averaged 15.2 yards per catch between 2010 and 2011. Whether it's stretching the field on the outside or pressing the deep middle, Bowe allows the rest of K.C.'s offense to fall into place.

In turn, this takes pressure off the ground game and creates a stronger play-action. No other receiver in the AFC West—at least right now—can force a defense to acknowledge him this well and impact a game like Bowe.

Not to mention the Chiefs now have the luxury of attacking from multiple dimensions.

Running Game Possesses the Most Potential

Willis McGahee will be 31 years old this season for the Denver Broncos, Ryan Mathews has durability concerns despite being the best back for the San Diego Chargers and Darren McFadden is the Oakland Raiders' only offensive threat.

In short, Kansas City has a running back tandem in Jamaal Charles and Peyton Hillis to bowl over opponents in 2012. Although unfortunate, the bright side of Charles' 2011 injury was that it happened early on, so more time was available to recover.

As for Hillis, we saw a glimpse of his potential in 2009 with the Broncos and how much he can impact an offense from 2010 in Cleveland. Last season was certainly a disappointment, but the Chiefs are still presenting another back with proven NFL success and as a dual-threat contributor.

Both ball-carriers are also young and have similar running styles.

Each has the vision to make that one cut in a zone-blocking scheme and make any defender miss in open space. Charles is definitely the better of the two, however, as he did average 6.4 yards per carry in 2010 and has been the Chiefs' main Brahma Bull since 2008.

We can also include rookie Cyrus Gray and Dexter McCluster to this mix. Gray has the ability to develop as a third-down back and McCluster can widen a defense to take some carries on jet sweeps and direct snaps.

All together Kansas City's running game is loaded with dynamic options to keep the playbook open.

Schedule Not Overloaded With Elite Defenses

Other than the Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals, the Chiefs don't face any outlandishly stellar defenses in 2012.

Yes, the Buffalo Bills made upgrades, but they still have much more to prove by comparison. As does the Indianapolis Colts and the rest of the AFC West. Additionally, K.C. lines up against the entire NFC South, which failed miserably at defense in 2011.

The entire division, much like Buffalo, did make some improvements, but none were so overwhelming that Kansas City will get demolished. If anything, anticipate the Chiefs trying to control the game tempo early on.

On the flip side, most of their opponents, like the NFC South, have more potential offensive explosiveness than given credit for.

Expect KC to hang around. The Chiefs aren't going to burn up 30-plus points each game, but their offense will remain quite efficient.

On the other side, Romeo Crenell's defense will be solid across the board, so it's a matter of slowing the pace down a bit to limit an opponent's opportunities.

The best offenses aren't necessarily the ones that rack up the most yards. More so are the ones that score touchdowns instead of field goals and help the defense by controlling field position and limiting turnovers.  

Against a rather favorable schedule in 2012, the Chiefs are well-balanced and experienced to quietly contend in the AFC.

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