Chargers: Power ranking the AFC West after the Tyreek Hill trade
By Jason Reed
2. Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos could absolutely win the AFC West with Russell Wilson under center. The quarterback position has been the one thing that has really hurt the team in recent years and Wilson is a massive improvement over what Denver has dealt with.
That being said, Wilson's numbers have not been all that special over the last year and a half. Granted, Seattle does not have the best offensive line in the league but he still had elite weapons to throw to. While Wilson is still a very good quarterback and undoubtedly top-10, I think it is important to note that he is not prime Russell Wilson.
He is still great and the roster around him is built to succeed. His weapons in Denver are not as good as they were in Seattle but they certainly are not bad. If Courtland Sutton can go back to his pre-injury form and Jerry Jeudy continues to develop as a pro then that is a solid 1-2 combo in Denver.
The offensive line is better than Seattle's (although I would not say it is great) and the defense has some serious blue-chippers in Patrick Surtain, Bradley Chubb, Justin Simmons and now Randy Gregory.
The one thing holding Denver back is depth. The roster does not have a lot of depth outside of those big-name guys (similar to the Chargers over the last two years) and there is a world in which the Broncos get dealt a bad injury hand and are the worst team in the division.
However, the chances of that happening to Denver are just as high as any team. If we are talking about the best version of each team in the AFC West, the Broncos deserve to rank above the Chiefs.