Ranking the AFC's Top 6 Teams After Deshaun Watson, Davante Adams Trades

The AFC leveled up this offseason after an influx of talent via blockbuster trades and splashy free-agent signings.

Some of the more notable deals include the Las Vegas Raiders nabbing superstar wideout Davante Adams from the Green Bay Packers and the Denver Broncos securing quarterback Russell Wilson from the Seattle Seahawks.

The Cleveland Browns also entered the discussion as an elite AFC team after they got Deshaun Watson from the basement-dwelling Houston Texans.

With a franchise quarterback and a generational receiver entering the mix and high-end defensive talent such as Von Miller and Chandler Jones switching conferences to join stacked AFC contenders, it will be quite tough to win the conference in 2022.

The margins between the top squads appear to be razor-thin, but a hierarchy will emerge.

With that in mind, here's an early attempt at projecting how it will shake out among the AFC's top six teams.

Editor's Note: After publish, the Colts acquired QB Matt Ryan in a trade with the Atlanta Falcons per Fox Sports' Jay Glazer. 

No. 6 Las Vegas Raiders

Jeff Dean/Associated Press

The Las Vegas Raiders have made massive changes over the past few months.

After Jon Gruden stepped down as head coach in late October, Las Vegas went on a surprising run to make the playoffs. While the club couldn't get past Wild Card Weekend, there is a real chance it makes a deeper foray in the 2023 NFL postseason.

Not only did the Raiders trade for star receiver Davante Adams and ink him to a record-setting five-year deal, but they also hired a new general manager in Dave Ziegler and new head coach in former New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels to help turn this organization into a contender.

Vegas bolstered its pass rush as well by signing Chandler Jones.

Still, they have to show they can win with quarterback Derek Carr.

Per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the team is working to lock the signal-caller into an extension, keeping Carr reunited with Adams—his collegiate teammate at Fresno State—for the foreseeable future.

Carr has a concerning 57-70 record as a starter and guided the team to just two postseason berths during his eight seasons at the helm. It won't be easy to make a third playoff appearance this year given the immense amount of talent in the AFC West.

Carr is arguably the worst starting quarterback in his division. He'll be regularly asked to outduel Russell Wilson, Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert to keep the Raiders afloat.

According to DraftKings, Las Vegas is +700 (bet $100 to win $700) to win its division, which are the longest odds in the AFC West, and +2200 to be crowned AFC champions next season.

While their odds may not be great, the Raiders still have the pieces to make noise and could be a sneaky contender.

No. 5 Cleveland Browns

Nick Cammett/Associated Press

Quarterback Deshaun Watson faces 22 civil lawsuits from women accusing him of sexual misconduct or assault, and he could still face NFL discipline. But after a grand jury declined to indict him on criminal charges related to the allegations, the door opened for the Houston Texans to trade him.

Barring a lengthy suspension, it seems the Cleveland Browns will be set for the foreseeable future at the position thanks to its acquisition of Watson.

It was a costly move in terms of assets—the Browns gave up a trio of first-rounders plus several other picks while also deciding to move on from 2018 No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield—but it's one that could give the organization on-field stability at a position it has been unable to fill with reliable talent over the last two-plus decades.

The Browns have arguably the league's deepest running back platoon, with Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt and D'Ernest Johnson able to take heat off the quarterback.

The team also dealt for star wideout Amari Cooper. Cleveland acquired the veteran receiver from the Dallas Cowboys for a fifth-round pick and a sixth-round pick swap, getting a player who has racked up over 7,000 yards and scored 46 touchdowns during his first seven campaigns.

Even with Cooper serving as his top wideout, it might take Watson some time to find his footing after spending a year on the sidelines. Still, the Browns are clearly committed to the signal-caller for the long haul after offering a five-year, $230 million contract.

Watson threw for 4,823 yards and 33 touchdowns against seven interceptions while adding 444 yards and three scores on 90 carries in 2020.

He made the Pro Bowl in each of his last three active seasons and is only 26 years old.

If Watson gets on the field and rekindles that form, he represents a massive upgrade over incumbent starter Mayfield and makes the Browns a serious contender in 2022.

The odds suggest he will. Cleveland is the favorite to win the AFC North at +150 and is third at +750 to be crowned AFC champs next year.

No. 4 Cincinnati Bengals

Steve Luciano/Associated Press

The Cincinnati Bengals pulled off one of the most stunning turnarounds in NFL history last year, going from a basement-dweller to narrowly missing out on raising the Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl LVI.

Joe Burrow's meteoric rise was a major reason for Cincinnati's ascension. The quarterback, who's heading into his third year, was brilliant and projects to have his team contending for the foreseeable future.

Some holes still must be patched for the Bengals to be a consistent threat, however, especially along the offensive line and in the secondary.

Burrow—who had his rookie season cut short by a torn ACL suffered on a scary hit—was absolutely battered in '21, taking an NFL-high 51 sacks.

The team also relied on Eli Apple to start at cornerback, which haunted it in the Super Bowl. Apple was exposed by the Rams in the contest, notably giving up the game-losing touchdown to Cooper Kupp in the fourth quarter.

Despite those shortcomings, the team retained Apple on a one-year, $4 million deal, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. The Bengals could take a cornerback with the No. 31 pick in the upcoming draft to shore up the position.

Cincinnati has started taking steps to rectify the glaring offensive line issues, signing a pair of interior offensive linemen in Ted Karras and Alex Cappa. The club also came to terms with Hayden Hurst, a quality blocker at tight end.

The team is reportedly in talks to bring in right tackle La'el Collins, per James Rapien of All Bengals, a move that would further bolster the offensive line.

With over $17 million in cap space remaining, the Bengals should make a few more moves in the coming weeks.

Future transactions could improve their odds, which sit at +225 to win the AFC North—tied with the Baltimore Ravens and behind the Cleveland Browns—and +1200 to make the Super Bowl again.

No. 3 Denver Broncos

Jack Dempsey/Associated Press

It's hard to envision a team having a better offseason than the Denver Broncos.

After going without a franchise signal-caller since Peyton Manning retired after the 2015 Super Bowl title, the team traded for one in Russell Wilson.

Although the cost was steep—Denver coughed up five draft picks, including a pair of first-rounders, and sent three players to the Seattle Seahawks—Wilson instantly elevates the Broncos to contending status.

That move vastly improved Denver's Super Bowl odds. The team was +1800 to win a championship and +450 for the AFC West title before jumping to +1200 and +250, respectively.

Wilson joins an offense that boasts some intriguing wideouts in Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton plus an emerging running back in Javonte Williams.

The Broncos brass didn't rest on their laurels after getting Wilson. They went on to make some significant free-agency acquisitions that could push this club to a Super Bowl.

The most notable pickup was Randy Gregory, who spurned the Cowboys to sign a five-year, $70 million deal with Denver. The veteran edge-rusher will significantly bolster the Broncos' ability to get after the quarterback after they recorded a middling 36 sacks last year.

Denver also came to terms with D.J. Jones, the hulking 6'0", 321-pound defensive tackle who can slide in to replace Shelby Harris, a player the Broncos shipped to Seattle in the Wilson trade.

With those defensive improvements and Wilson running the offense, the Broncos appear ready to enter the conference's upper crust and vie for a championship.

No. 2 Kansas City Chiefs

David E. Klutho/Getty Images

The Kansas City Chiefs have been the class of the AFC for the past several years. And although the other AFC West teams vastly improved, the Chiefs appear to be content to keep their core intact for another run.

It's hard to fault Kansas City's front office for believing in this squad. It has made four consecutive AFC Championship Games, won two of those and raised the franchise's first Super Bowl banner in 50 years.

Kansas City's most notable moves include signing safety Justin Reid and wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster, two upgrades that bolstered some problematic areas.

The team still boasts one of, if not the best, quarterbacks in the league in Patrick Mahomes. Although he had a relatively down year in 2021, he still completed 66.3 percent of his passes for 4,839 yards and 37 touchdowns while leading the club to its fourth consecutive 12-plus-win season.

Smith-Schuster—joining the team on a one-year, $10.8 million contract—represents a notable upgrade over Byron Pringle, who recently agreed to a deal with the Chicago Bears.

Although the former Pittsburgh Steelers receiver was injured for much of the 2021 campaign and has only had a single 1,000-yard campaign during his five-year career, he has flashed the ability to be an elite weapon and should see his talents maximized while working with Mahomes and superstar wideout Tyreek Hill.

Reid should also slot in as an adequate fill-in for safety Tyrann Mathieu, who's a free agent.

Although the Honey Badger was a popular player and leader of Kansas City's defense for the last three years, the team found a much younger replacement—Reid just turned 25, while Mathieu will turn 30 this offseason—who has plenty of upside at a relative bargain on a three-year, $31.5 million deal.

Kansas City might not be heavy preseason chalk like it has been over the past few offseasons, but the club is still a +150 favorite in the AFC West and has the second-best AFC title odds at +450.

The Chiefs will face their stiffest division competition in years and will face an uphill battle to get to the conference championship again, but this team has a wealth of experience and the talent to get it done.

No. 1 Buffalo Bills

Charlie Riedel/Associated Press

The Buffalo Bills were a trendy Super Bowl pick last year before they lost in the divisional round to the Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo's playoff nemesis.

Despite the disappointing finish, the organization didn't need to make many offseason changes. It has a strong core and has claimed back-to-back AFC East titles and won double-digit games for three straight years.

Buffalo will be improved next year, though, largely thanks to a single move.

The Bills scored one of the biggest surprise signings of the offseason when they came to terms with future Hall of Famer Von Miller on a six-year, $120 million deal.

While it seemed Miller would either stay with the champion Los Angeles Rams or return to Denver, where he spent the majority of his career, the edge-rusher said he couldn't pass up the chance to join a team he felt would win a championship even if he didn't sign there, per ESPN's Alaina Getzenberg:

"The only way you can walk away from [the Rams] is to walk into something special. And what they're doing here is extremely special. (The Bills are) gonna win a Super Bowl with or without me. They've built an amazing team."

Although the Bills have a top-tier roster, Patrick Mahomes has ended Buffalo's last two seasons by throwing for over 300 yards and a trio of touchdowns in each of the two most recent playoffs meetings. The Chiefs quarterback was only sacked three times total in those contests.

With Miller in the fold, the Bills have an elite pass-rusher to counter Mahomes and the other top-flight quarterbacks they'll face in the playoffs.

Miller has recorded nine sacks over his past two postseasons, including two in Super Bowl LVI.

It appears the missing piece has been found, and Buffalo—now the clear-cut favorite to win the AFC at +300—is finally ready to make that Super Bowl run.

All reported signings via NFL.com's free-agency tracker unless otherwise noted. Salary-cap info via Spotrac unless otherwise noted.

Gambling Problem? Call (877-8-HOPENY) or text HOPENY (467369).

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL/IN/MI/NJ/PA/WV/WY), 1-800-NEXT STEP (AZ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO/NH), 888-789-7777/visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), 1-877-770-STOP (7867) (LA), visit OPGR.org (OR), call/text TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN), or 1-888-532-3500 (VA).

Odds and lines subject to change. 21+ (18+ NH/WY). AZ/CO/CT/IL/IN/IA/LA/MI/NH/NJ/NY/OR/PA/TN/VA/WV/WY only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for full terms and conditions.