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Published on 06/29/2008 at Sun Jun 29 17:41.
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AFC West- Still the Best

Posted Sun Jun 29th by

Ian Henson is the lastest guest blogger for BroncoTalk; he’s helping us wrap up Smack Talk Week by looking at the AFC West.  You can check out his work at his Broncos Denver Broncos Blog,  Enjoy!

So Kyle did it, he effectively sat the rest of the AFC West down after attentive back slaps to their collective faces. We may have had a bad year or two, but we’re still the best. The Chargers might be good now, but in reality, we’ve been doing it for years. Don’t forget it San Diego. Phillip Rivers can lead you to the door, but he hasn’t a clue how to get you in.

But I’m onto a bigger lily pad, I keep hearing the national media skimming over the AFC West, referring to us as: Weak, formerly strong, once great… It goes on and on. It made me think take a step out and look at the entire division… REALLY? The only reason we looked week in the last couple of years is because we’ve had to play each other for half of our schedule. Right?
Let’s look at it like this. If we were to have an all star game, yet it was a divisional all star game. Let’s just call it a Pro Bowl, but a pro bowl that featured just the individual conferences. We have the AFC West, the AFC North, AFC South, AFC East and the NFC West, et cetera… Who’s going to compete with us? A healthy Larry Johnson and LaDanian Tomlinson? Featuring a line that is made up of Broncos, Chargers, Chiefs and Raiders? Quarterbacked by Jay Cutler (sorry Phyllis, it may be Monday, but you still suck), Receivers like Javon Walker (sorry guys a broken jaw doesn’t affect your hands/leg work), Brandon Marshall, Chris Chambers and Dwayne Bowe. Don’t get me started on the Tight Ends, would we even need receivers? Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates, with Tony Scheffler as a THIRD STRINGER?
That’s just the offensive side, we’d run a 3-4 because the Chargers do and they have two All Pros on the defensive line, but we’d top that off with Elvis Dumervil at the other end. Derrick Johnson, Shawn Merriman, DJ Williams and maybe another Chargers inside linebacker somewhere in there (just because Niko hasn’t started yet). OH! And Champ Bailey and  Nnamdi Asomugha, with Dre Bly and DeAngelo Hall backing up! Are you kidding?!?
So let’s move on, who’s topping that? AFC East? It would literally be the Patriots with maybe a couple Bills, Jets and Jason Taylor. NFC East? hmmm TO and Plaxico vs. Champ and Nnamdi, Jessica Simpson’s boyfriend wouldn’t be able to find someone within the three seconds he had to throw it to them, dump it off to Brian Westbrook in time to get smacked sideways by Merriman. Really, who else is there? AFC South, AKA the Colts would lose based on the fact that the Chargers helmets on the defense would make them choke.
So what do you say NATIONAL media? Want to give our division a little credit? Maybe with the fact that our division pulled the AFC East and NFC South this year we can show you. It’s still the toughest division to beat in football. It’s still the most competitive and you’re still going to respect us.
  • T-Money

    Enough said

  • http://espn.com Kyle

    What a terrible article. To rate the competitiveness of a division has nothing to do w/ what type of all star team it would have if you combined them all. Its the quality of all the teams and this division only has one, San Diego. The AFC South and NFC East by far beat this division even the NFC North has better teams. With Denver going 7-9 KC and Oack 4-12 how can you say its a good division. Give me a break.

  • http://www.kwanzoo.com Matthew Kimel

    Raid ERS
    Raid ERS
    Raid ERS

    haha, they aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

  • DesertBoltFan

    I also agree we get a bad rap as a conference mainly because the Chiefs and Raiders have had very bad teams lately. This year it appears on paper anyway that all the teams got better personnel wise. The Chiefs will have a much tougher time of it this year simply because the lack of veterans at skill positions and a very green QB leading them. The Raiders should finally move up out of the cellar but only one spot, swapping with the Chiefs.The Broncos are a very good team and Cutler should only get better and when more weapons are brought in to help him the Broncs and Chargers will do battle for the division for a long time to come. The Chargers just simply have more talented players all around and also on the bench waiting to go in. They have spent the last 5 or 6 years building it adding a piece here and there and doing in the draft mostly and not the FA market.
    Nothings for certain in this league and anything can happen, but as it is right now I see the Chargers winning the division the Broncos getting a Wild Card berth and the Raiders and Chiefs battling for the 3rd spot.
    I doubt I will find many takers but that’s my take.
    I know you guys don’t think much of Rivers and that’s your right, but has been very consistent since taking over as the starter, has improved and has more playoff experience then any other QB in the division. He has led them to two straight division titles and has advanced in the plays every year. I will no way predict a SB because anything can nhappen in a season, but he is the best QB in the division currently, yes he has a great supporting cast around him, but that is the managements job isn’t it?

  • http://yahoo nano

    You 4got to mention the top corner in Antonio Cramarti.

  • http://www.broncotalk.net Josh Temple

    Welcome aboard Ian. The only reason the AFC West doesn’t get the love is that we don’t have the huge name QBs and WRs of other divisions. The media gravitates toward those positions, because who cares if a running game and defense wins championships, throwing the ball is sexy!

  • http://broncos-denver-broncos.blogspot.com/ Ian Henson

    I wasn’t really writing about the competitiveness of the division, more addressing comments that we were a weak division. Which we are not. As an example you did not see Kansas City making a run at New England, but they did beat San Diego. Likewise San Diego beat Indianapolis in the playoffs, no less. Denver was an overtime slip up from beating Green Bay, back to those 4-12 Chiefs, remember them coming within three points of beating Indianapolis? Even 4-12 Oakland squeezed by beating one of the better Cleveland Brown teams in recent years.

    Just not a weak division to me. I just approached the article this way because I assume everyone already knows who the division won and lost to, especially football analysts. We’re a young division, who got significantly younger, without a starting quarterback who started before 2004. We’ll show and prove soon enough.

  • http://espn.com Kyle

    If I’m reading correctly this is how the article finishes.
    It’s still the toughest division to beat in football. It’s still the most competitive and you’re still going to respect us.
    Honestly what division isnt going to look good if you put an allstar team together. Like you said they got he NFC South and AFC East both which are weak besides New England. Still I think SD is the only winning team in this division but I think Denver does have a shot.

    Oh and take Dre Bly off he is terrible.
    And why didn’t you mentino safeties in this All Star Team, oh yeah thats right the only one they have close to ALL Star Status is and old john lynch

  • http://broncotalk kyle

    All 4 teams have a sick secondary so that would be the hardest to assemble. And how could you forget cromartie. Him and champ would start for sure

  • http://www.broncotalk.net Josh Temple

    I think we need a better way of telling the Kyles apart, but that’s just me.

  • http://broncotalk.net Kyle

    Just FYI, Kyle the site owner’s comments always show up in orange.

  • http://broncos-denver-broncos.blogspot.com/ Ian Henson

    haha, I was wondering, it was beginning to feel like a scene from a movie. Where the character’s head keeps turning with a gun in hand, because he has to shoot the clone, but which is real!? =P

    In that case Safeties would be one Pro Bowler from last season (John Lynch), a new comer to the West, but I like him (and wanted him in Denver because I saw him play often in NY) Gibril Wilson, I think Michael Huff will do well with Wilson and I also like Eric Weddle. Everyone’s pretty young in the AFC West at Safety, it’s hard to say, but if I was making a list today those three would be on it.

    It was a fun article, article to write and I’m grateful for the opportunity.

    ps- I love Dre Bly, fans always think the OTHER cornerback in Denver is terrible. Darrent Williams was an incredible young athlete and it would be difficult for anyone to replace him, Bly did finish with one more interception than Williams had in 2006, although Williams managed an impressive 75 solo tackles to Bly’s 42 (in 07).