Kansas City Chiefs: AFC West is a toss-up in 2018

KANSAS CITY, MO - DECEMBER 10: Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Kevin Pierre-Louis (57) and defensive end Rakeem Nunez-Roches (99) celebrate holding Oakland Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch (24) to a 1-yard gain in the second quarter of an AFC West showdown between the Oakland Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs on December 10, 2017 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, MO. (Photo by Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

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Wide receiver Amari Cooper #89 of the Oakland Raiders (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) /

OAKLAND RAIDERS

WHY THEY CAN WIN THE AFC WEST

The Oakland Raiders are probably the trickiest team in the division. By that I mean they’ll either be really good and compete for the AFC West title or they’ll be 6-10, 5-11, 4-12, you get the idea.

We saw just two seasons ago that the Raiders actually CAN be competitive. The silver and black went 12-4, which matched the Chiefs’ record, and just missed out on the division title, which would have been their first since 2002.

The Raiders had their best season in 15 years and it was due to their prolific offense led by Derek Carr and Amari Cooper. Oakland had arguably the best offensive line that year too, which kept Derek Carr upright and allowed him to make plays. That led to him having a near MVP-like season until he got hurt.

Had Carr remained healthy, the Chiefs would not have won the AFC West that year, the Raiders would have. There’s no doubt in my mind or anyone else’s mind that would have been the case.

That same offense is the reason Oakland COULD win the AFC West this year. It all depends on how Carr performs because we’ve seen if his offensive line isn’t elite, he’s not worth writing home about.

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