AFC West Roundup: Week 4
Photo Credit: Las Vegas Review Journal
It was another action packed week in the wild AFC West. We had a divisional battle, a Sunday night thriller, and an exhilarating road comeback this week. Without further ado, let’s take a look at how each team in the division is faring entering Week 5.
Chiefs
Photo Credit: Kevin Sabitus, Getty Images
The Kansas City Swif- er, Chiefs- find themselves victorious and at the top of the division again this week, but they didn’t cruise to victory like many expected. Instead, they got the Jets’ best punch in what will go down as one of the better Sunday Night games of the year. This game was full of surprises: Zach WIlson had perhaps the best game of his career, the Jets defense made Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce look human, and the Chiefs barely escaped Metlife Stadium with a win. By the end of the game, the sheer talent of Kansas City was too much to let them lose, but New York had an effort to be extremely proud of. It’s also impossible to talk about this game without discussing the questionable officiating throughout, especially in some of the game’s biggest moments. The refs were certainly not the only reason why the Jets lost this game, but for the officiating to garner national attention after one of the best games we’ve had all season is a rough look, to say the least.
Chargers
Photo Credit: Ryan Sun, AP Photo
The Chargers played the Raiders this week, and it was sneakily one of the better games of the slate. It ended up as a tight battle that went down to the wire, with solid offensive and defensive play at points. It also had the intensity and toxicity required of any good divisional game, with the entire Chargers roster trying to fight Jerry Tillery and Khalil Mack turning into Godzilla against his former team. The Chargers won this game on the back of Justin Herbert’s heroics and a ferocious pass rush, and the win was even more impressive given LA’s laundry list of injuries. The Chargers still came dangerously close to Charger-ing this thing up and let Vegas back into the game, but Asante Samuel Jr. saved the day with a goal-line pick as the Raiders were driving to tie the score. Even more beneficial for LA is the fact that they get to carry this win into the bye this week, with an opportunity to get healthy before week 6’s showdown with Dallas.
Raiders
Photo Credit: Robert Gauthier, Los Angeles Times
“It could’ve been worse!” Is quickly turning into the motto for this Raiders season. They came into this game with pretty bleak prospects, as Jimmy Garoppolo was forced to sit out with a concussion. Rookie QB Aiden O’Connell got the start, and the game started about as everyone expected it to. A couple O’Connell fumbles led to Chargers scores and Las Vegas found themselves in a 24-7 hole. The Raider offensive line didn’t do the rookie any favors, conceding six(!!!) sacks to former Raiders superstar Khalil Mack alone. But O’Connell settled in, the defense got some stops, and the Raiders found themselves with a chance to tie the game right before the two minute warning. But then O’Connell threw a goal line interception, and the Chargers would escape with a win. While there was some encouraging play for Vegas in this one, the loss proved that the Raiders season is still going in the wrong direction, and some major changes are still on the way.
Broncos
Photo Credit: Denver Post
The good news is that Denver finally got their first win of the year! The bad news is that it was a close win against the comically inept Chicago Bears. And when I say comically inept, I do mean comically inept. Still, a win is a win, and the Broncos have a lot to be happy about with this one. Russell Wilson looked great down the stretch, and the defense got what felt like their first stops of the year to help get Denver Back into it. It’s not ideal that Denver found themselves down by three scores to the NFL’s doormat, but you’d be hard pressed to find someone upset about a thrilling comeback victory. Still, Denver is coming up on perhaps the most difficult part of their already unforgiving schedule. They have one of the season’s more anticipated matchups on Sunday against the Jets, a team that just gave the defending champs a run for their money. If they want to emerge victorious- and save themselves from the wrath of old takes exposed- they’ll have to be a whole lot better than this.
