Where did Chargers’ AFC West rivals improve the most in offseason?

The Chargers, Broncos and Raiders look to keep pace with the Chiefs in 2020.

The AFC West is one of the more polarizing divisions in the NFL as there appears to be a slew of headlines from each team on a consistent basis, and it contains the reigning Super Bowl champions – Kansas City Chiefs.

In order to keep up with the Chiefs, the Broncos, Raiders and Chargers had to do some retooling to their roster this offseason. Where did each team improve the most with the hopes of keeping up?

Let’s take a look.

Chiefs: Backfield

Kansas City’s offense was among the league’s best, where they averaged nearly 30 points per game. However, the majority of their points came through the air, as quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his pass-catching weapons carried the majority of the load. On the other hand, the running back group wasn’t much of a help, averaging only 101.5 yards per game on the ground, which ranked No. 22 in the league. That area should improve drastically with the arrival rookie RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who was the team’s first-round pick (No. 28 overall). Edwards-Helaire joins Damien Williams and Darwin Thompson, but the former LSU product will likely become the workhorse back.

Broncos: Wide receiver

In 2019, the Broncos boasted a top-10 defense, only allowing 19.8 points per game. On the other side of the ball, however, there wasn’t much of a compliment. As Denver transitioned from Joe Flacco to Drew Lock, they were near the bottom of the league in points per game scored with 17.8. General manager John Elway figured in order to fix their offensive woes he would go out and get Lock some more weapons, which is exactly what he did. In the draft, the Broncos selected Jerry Jeudy, who was pegged as one of the top offensive players to many, in the first-round. The work didn’t stop there, as they drafted K.J. Hamler in the second-round. The route-running savvy from Jeudy and speed from Hamler makes out to be a deadly combination to go alongside the ascending Courtland Sutton.

Raiders: Back seven

Oakland had a fine run defense last season, giving up only 98.1 yards per game on the ground. But to ensure that their production remained at a high level in that area they went out and signed linebackers Cory Littleton and Nick Kwiatkowski, both of whom were tabbed as some of the best at their perspective position in free agency. Their pass defense, on the other hand, was among the league’s worst as they gave up the fifth-most passing yards per game in 2019. General manager Mike Mayock addressed their glaring need to shore up the unit with the signings of veterans Prince Amukamara and Damarious Randall in free agency. In the draft, they selected Damon Arnette in the first-round and Amik Robertson in the fourth-round. Arnette and Robertson should be major contributors in their rookie seasons.