NFL analyst rules out Justin Herbert's Chargers to make noise in AFC West - "The king is still Patrick Mahomes"
Patrick Mahomes took over as that starting quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs prior to the start of the 2018 NFL season. In five years in his position, he's won the AFC West division title every year, while also adding two Super Bowl rings.
He extended the Chiefs' active streak of winning their division to seven consecutive years in the 2023 NFL season.
While the Chiefs have dominated the rest of the AFC West in recent years, many around the NFL believe that the Los Angeles Chargers can potentially end their streak. They have one of the most talented rosters in the league, led by superstar quarterback Justin Herbert.
NFL analyst Damien Woody recently appeared on an episode of "First Take" to explain why he isn't so high on the Chargers' chances of taking down the Chiefs:
"Well, here's why I say, 'Okay, the king is still Patrick Mahomes.' I think Patrick Mahomes still reigns supreme in the AFC West downfield. There's no question about that. As far as your point about the Los Angeles Chargers, you talked about injuries last year. They've been injured every year for like, I don't know, the past three or four years.
"Every year we talk about the Los Angeles Chargers. We talk about injuries throughout the year, every single year. And so as much as we talk about how talented their roster is, and it's a talented roster, until they can prove they can get over the injury... It's still Patrick Mahomes and again the Chiefs, and everybody else."
The Chargers took a step forward last year during the 2022 NFL season with Justin Herbert appearing in the playoffs for the first time in his career. They were defeated by Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Despite their relative success in the regular season, they still finished four games behind the Chiefs for the AFC West division crown.
Patrick Mahomes is favored to win the AFC West title again in 2023
The Kansas City Chiefs will understandably enter the 2023 NFL season as the convincing (-165) odds favorites to win the AFC West title once again. Mahomes has never lost a divisional race since becoming a starter, so the odds make sense.
The Los Angeles Chargers currently rank as the second favorite with (+340) odds. They are followed by the Denver Broncos at (+550) and the Las Vegas Raiders at (+1100) are currently the biggest longshot.
It will be interesting to see if LA, Denver or Las Vegas can unseat the Chiefs as AFC West champions in the 2023 season.