Grading Each 2012 NFL Team: AFC West Edition

Since it's a little too early to look forward--and don't let all this combine and draft talk fool you--let's look back at how all 32 teams did in 2012.  These grades are quite obviously subjective, but I assessed a few things in my mind: 1) Did this team improve, maintain or decline in performance from previous years?; 2) Did this team maximize the talent level on its roster?; and 3) What does the quality of wins and losses say about these guys?

We now continue our series with the AFC West:

Denver Broncos, 13 - 3

Overall Grade: B+
It was a fantastic comeback year for Peyton Manning by nearly all measures except for that pesky postseason success that has eluded this Hall of Famer every season but one.  With a 13 - 3 regular season record, 11-game winning streak and #1 seed in the AFC, the Broncos have plenty to hang their hats on.  Even so, with the easiest record in the NFL this year and a playoff performance with flaws everywhere but special teams, it's hard to compare these Broncos to other teams that did more with less when it mattered most.

High Points: How about that 11-game winning streak?  True, it included only two teams with winning records, but if there was any question that Peyton Manning would skip a beat returning to the field, that was answered by Week 6.  If'n you don't rememer, that was when the Broncos came back in stunning fashion from a 0 - 24 halftime deficit to beat the Chargers on the road.

Low Points: There aren't many to choose from here since the Broncos played a great regular season against many a lesser team that was dealt their way.  Still, Denver lacked quality wins, going 2 - 3 against teams with winning records and losing out of the gate in the playoffs when many pundits had Peyton's place on the fast track to the Super Bowl.  These shortcomings will forever be symbolized by Rahim More's late game breakdown in the secondary that allowed the Ravens to take it to overtime with less than a minute left on the clock.

Homework for 2013: Start thinking about a backup plan for Peyton Manning.  There's no obvious reason that Manning will decline next season given his near-seamless return under center in 2012.  Even so, he'll be 37 when the 2013 season starts, and we really don't know how his durability will look in the long term.  Broncos fans need only to look to Curtis Painter's abysmal 2011 performance in Indy to know backups don't become great by osmosis, and Johns Fox and Elway need to lend a critical eye to current #2 Brock Osweiler's abilities.

San Diego Chargers, 7 - 9

Overall Grade: C-
On the bright side, the Chargers' woes this season finally forced shakeups in the front office, but this team created far more questions than it answered this year.  Has Philip Rivers lost his peak?  Will Ryan Mathews ever stay healthy for a whole season?  Can the Chargers learn to protect a fourth quarter lead?

High Points: Despite a very inconsistent season, the Chargers had no trouble routing many a lesser team by 20+ point margins, proving there's a foundation to build on with new management to propel this team back into contention in the AFC. 

Low Points: It's hard to believe, but the Chargers were only two epic collapses away from being a playoff contender this year.  Unfortunately these collapses were much more defining than San Diego's wins.  Collapse #1: The Chargers had a tremendous opportunity to make a statement against the Broncos in their first meeting by running up a halftime lead of 24 - 0.  Five Philip Rivers turnovers later, St. Manning brought Denver back from the dead with 35 unanswered points.  Collapse #2: The Chargers had the Ravens on the ropes trailing by 3 with less than 2 minutes and 29 yards to go on 4th down.  So of course they screwed that up on a Flacco-to-Rice checkdown with nearly 11 missed tackles.  Yep.

Homework for 2013: Find some healthy, battle-tested offensive weapons to shield the Chargers from Bad Philip Rivers and don't trade anyone else to the Saints, where they will thrive.  Kneel out every game with two minutes on the clock if you have to.

Kansas City Chiefs, 2 - 14

Overall Grade: F-
That's right, the poor Kansas City Chiefs invented the F-minus this year with some of the saddest football we've ever seen.  There is probably no NFL coach happier to be fired right now than Romeo Crennel, who has simply gone through hell in 2012.  On the bright side, there is almost literally nowhere to go but up.

High Points: The Chiefs had an ugly but resilient win against the Saints and then a less ugly and more resilient win against the Panthers.  The only other highlight is that at least the Chiefs stayed consistent enough with this awful season to land the top draft pick instead of wasting a huge opportunity on winning for pride late in the season.

Low Points: Where do we begin after 2 - 14?  Well, there's the fact it took the Chiefs 10 weeks to earn a lead at any point in regulation against an opponent, which comes to nearly 500 minutes of playing time.  Then there was the -24 turnover differential, most of which was singly attributable to QB Matt Cassel, who was later booed by his own fans in Arrowhead after he sustained a season-ending concussion only to be replaced by Brady Quinn.  There are also the fans who rented a plane with a banner message to fire GM Pioli and bench Cassel for some sum of money that could have been spent on charity or beer.

Homework for 2013: The Chiefs have already regained some serious offseason ground with the acquisition of coach Andy Reid and QB Alex Smith, who would sooner stay on the bench in San Francisco than produce a -24 turnover differential like Matt Cassel.  So more than anything else, this new band of midwestern brethren needs to forget 2012 ever happened and wipe the slate clean, now that they can use that #1 pick on someone other than a mediocre class of quarterbacks.

Oakland Raiders, 4 - 12

Overall Grade: D-
In the league's worst division by far, a D is actually not so bad.  In fact, it's still technically passing, as coach Dennis Allen found out on Black Monday.  But the Raiders had a lot of problems starting with Carson Palmer and ending with a depleted, woeful defense.  Riddle me this, do you have much confidence in a coach who didn't think to start Terrelle Pryor over Palmer until Week 17 when Oakland already boasted a 4 - 11 record?

High Points: Sebastian Janikowski's still playing for Oakland, right?  They didn't even have to post bail for him one time this whole year!

Low Points: Well, there was that span of 4 games where the Raiders D allowed an average of 42 points per game making Oakland nearly as bad as the Saints and Titans in that category.  Also, 50% of the Raiders' wins were against the Chiefs, just sayin'.

Homework for 2013: Get Terrelle Pryor ready for the starting job ASAP.  Another weapon or four in the receiving corps would help if the Raiders aren't forced to spend the whole draft on defense.