AFC West QBs Give Bettors Passing Prop Options
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Fans and bettors looking for teams that can move the ball through the air should keep an eye on one division stacked with talented quarterbacks — the AFC West.
The division is gearing up for a high-flying year with four starting quarterbacks among the NFL’s best.
The action starts soon.
The NFL preseason, and the launch this year of NFL betting, kicks off Aug. 4 with an 8 p.m. ET game between the Las Vegas Raiders and Jacksonville Jaguars at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio. Caesars Sportsbook has the Raiders as a 1.5-point favorite in that game.
Top Signal Callers
Last season, the following quarterbacks led the NFL in passing yards. Only Tom Brady (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and Matthew Stafford (Los Angeles Rams) do not play for AFC West teams:
Three of these quarterbacks are on AFC West teams: Herbert, Mahomes and Carr.
The fourth team in the AFC West, the Denver Broncos, traded for quarterback Russell Wilson, a Pro Bowler who has been among the league’s top players over the past several years with the Seattle Seahawks. Last season, he threw for 3,113 yards.
Strong-armed Herbert Leads Chargers
The Chargers just missed the playoffs last year in a season-ending loss to the Raiders.
This year, the Chargers have added some offensive line heft to put the strong-armed Herbert in position to guide his team on a hoped-for deep run into the playoffs.
Last season, Herbert threw 38 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. In just his second season, the 6-foot-6 former Oregon Duck led the AFC in passing offense at 282.4 yards per game.
The Chargers’ No. 1 draft pick this year, 6-foot-3, 316-pound offensive guard Zion Johnson of Boston College, is considered NFL ready. He and others on the improved offensive line should buy time for Herbert and a wide receiver corps that again includes Keenan Allen.
In their Sept. 11 season opener, the Chargers host the Raiders at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. BetMGM Sportsbook has the Chargers as 3.5-point favorites.
Can Carr Drive Raiders To Playoff Win?
The Raiders were bounced from the playoffs in the first round last season by the eventual Super Bowl runner-up Cincinnati Bengals.
Not wanting to leave well-enough alone, the Raiders brought in a new coach, Josh McDaniels, and added star wide receiver Davante Adams on a five-year contract worth more than $141 million.
Adams is rejoining his Fresno State teammate, Carr, who has re-upped in Las Vegas with a three-year $125 million extension.
Carr won’t lack targets. In addition to Adams, Hunter Renfrow is returning, bringing a resume that includes 1,038 receiving yards last season.
The Raider Nation is ready for Carr to get his first playoff win — and maybe more. So far in his career, the 31-year-old Carr is 57-70, a record that includes the most losses by an NFL quarterback in his first eight seasons.
Mahomes-Kelce Duo Hard To Match
In Kansas City, Chiefs fans hope the newly married Patrick Mahomes has settled in for another Super Bowl-winning season, like the team’s 2020 title win over the San Francisco 49ers. Mahomes and high school sweetheart Brittany Matthews were married in March.
Coming off foot surgery last season, Mahomes posted the fewest yards per game (284.6) of his career, but also recorded a personal-best completion rate — 66.3%. He threw for 37 touchdowns with 13 interceptions.
Speedy wide receiver Tyreek Hill is now with the Miami Dolphins, but one of Mahomes’ favorite targets, tight end Travis Kelce, is returning. Last season, Kelce had as many touchdown receptions as Hill (nine) and a higher yard-per-catch average — 12.2 (Kelce) to 11.2 (Hill).
In their season opener, the Chiefs travel to Arizona to face the Cardinals. At FanDuel Sportsbook, the Chiefs are 3-point favorites.
New Day In Denver
Things are looking up in mile-high Denver. The Broncos have a new coach, Nathaniel Hackett, and a franchise quarterback in Wilson, a Super Bowl winner with Seattle.
The 5-11 Wilson is expected to spark an anemic offense that hasn’t averaged 21 points per game over the past six seasons.
An improvement over last season’s 7-10 record will have to include more productivity from 23-year-old wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, the Broncos’ first-round selection in the 2020 NFL draft.
After the draft, hopes were high for Jeudy, a top route-runner at Alabama, where he won the Fred Biletnikoff Award in 2018 as the nation's best wide receiver.
Hobbled by an ankle injury that caused him to miss six games last season, Jeudy finished the year with no touchdowns. His arrest this spring in an incident involving the mother of their infant daughter apparently has been resolved. A judge in Colorado has signed off on a motion to dismiss charges in the matter.
With an improved passing game, and a solid running attack that includes Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon III, the Broncos, after years of frustration, are finally looking to control the ball and win games.
Denver opens the season with a Sept. 12 Monday night road game in Wilson’s old stomping ground, Seattle, against the Seahawks. At Caesars Sportsbook, the visiting Broncos are 5-point favorites.
AFC West Super Bowl Odds
Below are the sports betting odds for each AFC West team's chance of winning this season’s Super Bowl. The odds are provided by BetMGM Sportsbook.
The Super Bowl is set for Feb. 12, 2023, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
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