Best team in AFC West?

Excluding the Raiders (As I am inclined to say they are the best) , going into the 2012 season who is the best team in the AFC west?

The Broncos? - The Broncos won the division on a tie-breaker last year and now have this new quarterback called Peyton something.. The Broncos won most of their games last year due to Dennis Allen, their defense and Matt Prater. With the addition of Manning on offense most people will assume that Denver are now the best team in the AFC west. Along with Manning, Tracy Porter, Joel Dreessen and Jacob Tamme are just a few of the other free agents Denver brought in. However Denver had a quiet draft, even trading out of the first round and there is no one from their draft that stands out as an immediate starter. In addition the loss Brodrick Bunkley is massive, he was very important to the Broncos defense. Denver got lucky with Tebow last year. Had Kyle Ortan remained the starter the Broncos would have had a losing record and even with Manning I don't see Denver winning any more than 10 games this year.

The Chargers? - The Chargers had a late resurgence last year to finish 8-8 and spoiling the Raiders chances to win the division. The Chargers have a good team and many are saying that San Diego improved the most out of any team in free agency and the 2012 NFL draft. I'm not sure that is quite the case as although they added Robert Meachem, Jarret Johnson among others and came up big in the draft grabbing highly rated LB Melvin Ingram they did lose key players like Vincent Jackson and Mike Tolbert. Furthermore while adding talent to positions like OLB and WR they didn't really do much to help where they were weakest last year, the O-Line and Cornerback and until they address those key positions I don't see them making a playoff run. Phil Rivers will quickly become agitated and without Jackson, he will have another poor year. I expect the Chargers to finish about where they did last year at 8-8.

The Chiefs? - Kansas City were very unlucky last year losing several key players to injury early on in the season. However they still went on to finish 7-9. The Chiefs are a bit of a mystery, with Jamaal Charles back in the backfield and a healthy Matt Cassel who knows what they could achieve. They have also had a successful offseason picking up Peyton Hillis and Eric Winston as well as former Raiders Stanford Routt and Kevin Boss. There is a strong possibility that the chiefs could go from worst to first in the division this year and if they stay healthy they could easily get 10+ wins.

Two years ago the Raiders went 6-0 in the division. This year I don't see why the Raiders cannot repeat that however it will be hard. All teams have aspects of their game that if used effectively could dismantle the Raiders team and all 6 games will be close.

To answer the question 'Who is the best team in the AFC west excluding the Raiders?' I would have to say the Chiefs followed by the Broncos and then the Chargers. All 3 teams are close in talent and I wouldn't be surprised if come the end of the year, the teams will be ranked in reverse order.

The Oakland Raiders Soccer Team

Being English I have grown up watching Soccer, or football as we call it over here, and it is only recently that I have started watching American Football. It is just a week to go till the UEFA Euro 2012 tournament and it has got everyone over here very excited. England will probably have another disappointing campaign but I also wondered what American Football players would be like playing soccer. This being a Raiders blog, I have decided to name a team of Raiders players and their positions if they were to switch over to soccer.




Goalkeeper - Denarius Moore - D.Moore has the ability to adjust to the throw which will help him at Goalkeeper.  While he is not the tallest option, I still put him at GK due to his hands which glue to the ball (Just look at his fingertip catch) and his arm length is 33 in which is longer than most other receivers.

Central Defenders - Tyvon Branch and Jared Veldheer - Branch will be very good at reading the play and dealing with corners and crosses into the box. On the other hand Veldheer, who is 6'8", will be an intimidating and physical obstruction to opposing attackers and he will help protect the goal like he protects Palmer's blind side.

Fullbacks - DeMarcus Van Dyke and Chimdi Chekwa - The Future (fingers-crossed) for the Raiders at CB. Both DVD (4.28) and Chekwa (4.40) are incredibly fast and both can defend from opposing attacks as well as having the ability to push forward, speeding down the wing and helping with the attack.

Center Midfielders - Darren McFadden and Shane Lechler - McFadden will open up defences with his all-round ability and play making skills setting up many goal scoring plays and scoring a few as well. Lechler is the David Beckham of this team. He has got experience and a very good shot on him.

Wingers - Jacoby Ford and Darrius Heyward-Bey - Both quick receivers than will use their speed to their advantage while playing soccer. Jacoby will use some flash skills to get round defenders and Heyward Bey might be better suited to soccer as he won't have to use his hands which have been a headache for Raiders fans since we drafted him !

Forwards - Sebastian Janikowski and Terrelle Pryor - Seabass will play the role of the strong power forward who has the strength to run through defenders and has a very powerful shot, a bit like Wayne Rooney (He looks like him too!). Pryor will play in a role more similar to Lionel Messi and he will be the one providing all the assists and doing all the hard work.