The AFC West may very well end up being the best and most competitive division in the NFL in 2025, although we have to be careful about crowning them too early.
Back in the 2022 offseason, the AFC West was also supposed to be the best division in football after the Broncos added Russell Wilson, and the division was seemingly loaded at quarterback with Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert, Wilson, and Derek Carr.
It's wild how quickly things change, isn't it?
Heading into the 2025 season, Mahomes and Herbert remain, but the Broncos and Raiders have changed course. Bo Nix helped lead Denver back to the playoffs for the first time since the team won Super Bowl 50 and the Raiders swung a trade for Geno Smith.
How does this division stack up against each other as we get ready for training camp in just a couple of weeks? What's each team's strongest and weakest area right now?
NFL Power Rankings: AFC West rankings before training camp
4. Las Vegas Raiders
After winning just four games last season, the Raiders should be one of the most markedly improved teams in the NFL in 2025.
The addition of head coach Pete Carroll raises the floor of this team in a big way, but the addition of Geno Smith at the quarterback position could end up making the Raiders an actual problem on a week to week basis.
This team won't be an easy out for anyone in the division this season, but their fatal flaw right now is their defense. After losing Trevon Moehrig, Robert Spillane, and Nate Hobbs defensively, the Raiders simply didn't do enough in NFL Free Agency to compensate for the loss of talent.
While the offense in Las Vegas should be significantly improved in 2025, the defense might legitimately finish dead last in points allowed.
3. Los Angeles Chargers
There was something so underwhelming about the offseason for the Chargers in 2025.
Defensively, losing Poona Ford and Joey Bosa is the dark cloud hanging over the group. Offensively, the Chargers seemingly got a lot better. But getting better offensively means what, exactly?
The Chargers have a style and brand of football under Jim Harbaugh that isn't going to be compromised. They will want to play ball control offense and stingy defense. What we saw from them last year with 11 wins and the #1 defense in the league might be as good as it gets. This is not an offense that is going to light up the stat sheet week over week, even though Justin Herbert is capable of it.
He's also been capable of some serious clunkers. Herbert hasn't thrown for more than 25 touchdowns in a season for the last three years in a row, but his TD percentage was the highest he's had since 2022 last season and his INT percentage was the lowest of his career.
The Chargers beat up on some really bad teams last season as well. How will they do when the heat is turned up?
2. Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos won 10 games last season with $90 million in dead cap thanks to a number of really bad moves, most notably the Russell Wilson trade.
The Broncos have played really well for Sean Payton and ended their playoff drought, which was the second-longest in the NFL behind the New York Jets. This is a team that had a great offseason on paper, adding Dre Greenlaw, Talanoa Hufanga, Evan Engram, and JK Dobbins to a team that was already in the top 10 of the NFL in scoring offense and scoring defense.
The Broncos also led the NFL in sacks last season, and have the Defensive Player of the Year in Pat Surtain II.
With the improvements they've made, the Broncos have one of the highest ceilings of any team in the AFC West and might be best positioned to dethrone the Chiefs in the near future.
1. Kansas City Chiefs
I'm not so sure the separation between the Chiefs and the other teams in this division is as big as it's been in recent years. The Chiefs were obviously great this past season, only losing two regular season games with one of them being when they benched most of their players in preparation for the playoffs.
Kansas City has been on a dynasty-like run, but it feels like that particular window is closing. That doesn't mean the Chiefs won't still be title contenders going forward, but the gap between the Chiefs and every other team in the division is closing.
This team's biggest strength is the way it plays in situational football. Their biggest weakness, on paper, appears to be the offensive line. How much will that affect them in one-score games going forward?