Projecting AFC West starting rosters for 2022

It’s been a busy offseason to say the least in the AFC West.

Teams have been through the draft and the majority of free agency. So we should be able to see the fruits of their offseason labour.

There are still quality free agents available which will end up somewhere, and camp battles to be won. But in this article series, we will take an early look at what each team’s starting line-up should look like for the season. Are these teams any better? Let’s find out. 

The AFC West has been dominated by the Chiefs for a while now. And rightly so! But this year, they face a challenge from each team in the division.

The AFC West has been the darling of the offseason and has some people (incorrectly) thinking that all four teams will make the playoffs. Let’s be clear, there is no way that is happening!

But, all three other teams in the division have dramatically made improvements. There are no easy wins for anyone here.

Each team has win now mode activated and every matchup will be a lot of fun to watch. 

Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs have put a ton of resources into their WR room this year with three new potential starters. It is going to be fascinating how the offense operates without Tyreek Hill – who was traded to the Dolphins – but with superstar QB Patrick Mahomes throwing the ball you just trust it will work.

However it plays out, I expect Kelce to play as the figurehead of this team and catch plenty of balls from the TE position. I love the addition of Ronald Jones and think he will take the lion’s share of the snaps ahead of Edwards-Helaire who has been the feature back for the past few years but has been a little underwhelming.

The overhaul of the line last year worked, no question, as a result not too many resources were placed there this offseason (other than resigning Brown), I expect Niang to return from injury to reclaim the RT spot but this could be the only spot up for battle in camp.

George Karlaftis has the potential to be the day one draft steal at the bottom of the first round as he will benefit from Frank Clark getting the majority of the attention and could really rack up those statistics – possibly even entering the conversation for defensive rookie of the year.

Trent McDuffie – also a first round selection in this year’s draft – will start immediately for the team that needed quality players at the cornerback position.

At safety there is a complete transformation as they let both starters from last year leave in free agency. One was expected (Sorensen), but the big surprise was Tryann Mathieu leaving. Justin Reid comes over from the Texans and will be the leader of the room. There should be competition between Deon Bush and Juan Thronhill for the other Safety spot.

I expect Bush to get the nod. But both will be logging plenty of snaps throughout the season. 

Las Vegas Raiders

The biggest question on offense is how far can Derek Carr take this team? Personally, Carr is a great starter, just short of elite.

He is absolutely underrated across the league and would be an immediate upgrade to a lot of teams. It is good to see the new leadership recognise this and give him a deserving contract.

Even saying all this, at the moment he still looks like the worst QB in this division. However, he has never played with the talent around him before – and yes I’m including the play caller in that – so perceptions could change by the end of the season.

Davante Adams is one of the best WRs in the game, and he left Green Bay and the safety of Rodgers to come play with his college QB, so he clearly thinks that Carr has been underrated. Looking forward to seeing these two light it up this year!

With so much attention going to Adams, the rest of the group should get easier matchups and feast. I can easily see Renfrow having the most catches in the league this year while Waller just continues to stack up highlight plays.

Robinson is a nice addition to the WR room as well, a speedster who was overshadowed when playing for the Chiefs will look to bring a much needed element to the attack. 

On defense, there are some new faces up front, with Bilal and Butler joining Hankins who resigned with the team. It looks like there will be a competition at the ILB position to see who gets the start and personally I like the look of Perryman and Young.

Perryman came from a career year last year and Young should complement him nicely. Rock Ya Sin (who is a strong candidate for greatest name in the league) was a smart add, coming over from the Colts as part of their trade for Yannick Ngakoue.

Ya Sin will log plenty of starting snaps and will bring solid play. Bringing in Jones to pair with Crosby offsets the loss of Ngakoue and in theory will be an improvement as well.

Both Abram and Moehrig return as starters at the safety position. 

Los Angeles Chargers

The Chargers have one of the better WR duos in Allen and Williams, who have already developed an elite understanding with their uber-talented QB Herbet. Beyond those two though it does drop, with Guyton primed to take the majority of any WR3 snaps.

DeAndre Carter was signed in the offseason, but this looks like a move to improve their special teams and depth. Ekeler again returns as the starter in the running back room, but will look to share time with 4th round draft pick Isaiah Spiller who was drafted to complement Ekeler’s style. In the draft, the Chargers 1st round selection was a wise move with Zion Johnson who will start immediately at RG.

Storm Norton (who is another candidate for greatest name in the league) should be the week 1 starter at RT with Bryan Bulaga no longer on the team. This is a big opportunity for Storm who was drafted into the XFL in 2020.

I think this shows that there is a place for a league like the XFL as it gives players like Storm those opportunities.

At TE, Gerald Everett was signed to start and should bring solid production.  

The team’s biggest moves this offseason come on the defensive side of the ball. Upfront, the big move was luring Joseph-Day over from the Rams.

He was injured for the majority of the season but returned in time for the Super Bowl and showed his play has not declined as a result. Khalil Mack is the highlight of their offseason, and returns to the AFC West to form one of the best OLB pairs with Bosa.

JC Jackson comes over from New England as another highlight free agency signing which will improve their coverage. The safety duo of James and Adderley is as solid as they come.

The Chargers are hoping this year they can get more pressure upfront, with the linebackers causing absolute havoc, while improved play in coverage will lead to more turnovers! I like it.

Denver Broncos

The biggest addition to this team is Russell Wilson, no question! He is arguably the biggest addition to any team this offseason.

In the past few years we have started to see top tier QB’s move teams more than anytime in history, and for the past two years the team winning the Lombardi Trophy had a QB they did not draft (Tom Brady and Mathew Stafford).

The Broncos know that the Super Bowl is a long shot, but with Wilson being the latest big time QB to swap teams they stand a much better chance than last year. RT looks like it is Tuners job to lose, but this will absolutely be a battle in camp.

In fact, the alot of the O-line looks like it might be for battle in camp as Meinerz and Muti both played well last year when filling in for starters and they currently are sitting as great depth pieces.

Bolles looked lost in the league before turning it around under legendary coach Mike Munchak, hopefully he doesn’t regress to his former self under the new regime. Losing Noah Fant in the trade for Wilson was worth it, but he was a good TE and a reliable option for past QB’s.

Albert Okwuegbunam flashed with his chances and now will look to take a big leap as the starter at the position. Melvin Gordon (RB) has returned to the team, but expect the roles to swap this year so Javonte Williams will take the slight majority of the reps.

Jeudy was recently arrested on second-degree criminal tampering charges with a domestic violence enhancer, so he may miss time this year. 

On defense, the team tried to bring back Von Miller but he was too costly. Perhaps that trade mid-season wasn’t worth it after all? They replace him with Randy Gregory who hopes to form a tantalising duo with Bradley Chubb. Nik Bonitto was Denver’s highest draft pick and looks to play in rotation at OLB as well.

The line will look different from last year with the addition of DJ Jones in free agency, and Williams stepping up to the starting line. ILB looks like a weakness on this team, but if they can get solid – but not great – play from Jewell and Singleton then hopefully that will be enough.

Jackson’s return will ensure elite play from the safety positions alongside Simmons. Last year Surtain played well above his lofty expectations, and there is no reason to think his play will slide this year.