Each week of the NFL season, I’ll grade each AFC West team’s performance with a report card that tells the truth. Offense, defense, and overall performance will be measured accordingly. My grades aren’t about the box scores, though – they’ll reflect how well a team plays each opponent, adapts and adjusts (situational football), and whether they’re flying the W or the L. Consider this my running weekly audit of each team, dabbed with observations and armchair insight.
Los Angeles Chargers
Justin Herbert
Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) passes the ball against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the fourth quarter of the game at SoFi Stadium. Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Offense: F
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Ninety-three passing yards, forty-two rushing yards, and just 135 total yards tell you everything about how lifeless this offense was, as the Jaguars turned a supposed high-powered attack into a three-hour punt drill. Justin Herbert and Trey Lance combined to go 13-26 with one interception and three sacks, and outside of Keenan Allen’s 53 yards, no one else looked like they belonged on the same field. Two field goals from Cameron Dicker were the only points on a day where the Chargers never cracked the end zone and rarely even threatened it, which is an automatic failing grade for a team that sells itself as an AFC contender.
Defense: F
The Jaguars hung 35 points and five total touchdowns while rolling up 192 rushing yards, and it looked as if Jacksonville could call whatever run concept they wanted and get four yards on demand. Trevor Lawrence was kept clean with no sacks allowed, and Jacksonville did not punt once, which is a defensive coordinator’s nightmare. Even with one interception and a few individual flashes, this unit spent four quarters reacting instead of dictating, and that is how a supposedly physical front gets labeled soft on the broadcast and on the tape.
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Overall: F
For a 7-4 team that wants to be taken seriously in both the division race and the wild card picture, getting blown out 35-6 by another AFC hopeful is as bad a statement as you can make in mid-November. The Chargers were outcoached, out-hit, and out of juice from the opening drive, and by the time Herbert was knocked out of the game in the second half, it already felt like garbage time. Brandon Staley and this roster now limp into a Week 12 bye needing a hard reset on both sides of the ball, because another performance like this against a stretch run schedule that still includes divisional showdowns will turn a promising start into another wasted season.
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Denver Broncos
Nov 2, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) scrambles during the second half against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images
Offense: C+
Bo Nix was calm and clean, going 24-37 for 295 yards with zero turnovers and only two sacks against a Chiefs defense that has given up just 181 points all season. The run game offered almost nothing, with 21 carries for 59 yards at a clip of 2.8 yards per carry, which meant Nix and his receivers had to carry the load through explosive plays to Troy Franklin and Pat Bryant. Red zone bog downs and five drives stalling out for Wil Lutz field goals keep this from being a higher grade, but putting 22 on the board while also overcoming 147 yards in penalties against a proud champion still feels like a flex for this offense.
Defense: A-
Denver turned Patrick Mahomes into a plodding, off-schedule operator, holding him to a 56.4 QBR on 29-45 passing with only one touchdown and one pick despite Kansas City chasing the game late. Ja’Quan McMillian headlined a swarming effort with six tackles, two sacks, two tackles for loss, two quarterback hits, a pass breakup, and the red zone interception that flipped the script in the third quarter. The Broncos still gave up a couple of explosives, including the 61-yard shot to Tyquan Thornton and Travis Kelce’s record-breaking score, but when it was time to get off the field in the fourth quarter, they forced a three-and-out and handed the ball back to their closer at kicker.
Overall: B+
This was the eighth straight win for Denver, and it put them at 9-2 with a two-game cushion over the Chargers and a three-and-a-half game gap over a wobbling 5-5 Kansas City, which is exactly how a real contender steps on a division rival. It was not pretty with all the flags and red zone stalls, yet they still closed like a veteran outfit, draining the final 2:59 and walking off the field on a(nother) game-winning kick. Sean Payton’s group now hits the bye on an eight-game heater, a perfect 6-0 home mark, and the kind of defensive identity that travels, which makes this performance more about playoff trajectory than just a nice rivalry win.
Kansas City Chiefs
Nov 16, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) scrambles with the ball in the third quarter against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Offense: C+
On the surface, 276 passing yards and a touchdown from Mahomes look fine, but it took 45 attempts, a red zone interception, and a modest 6.1 yards per attempt to get there, which is not the nuclear version of this offense. The run game was again more rumor than reality with 62 total rushing yards, and too many early down throws left them behind the chains and living in obvious passing situations. Kansas City still produced two long touchdown drives, yet for most of the afternoon, Denver dictated the pace and forced Mahomes into check-downs and bailout hero-ball, which is exactly how you drag this unit back to the middle of the pack.
Defense: B+
Steve Spagnuolo’s group did more than enough to win most weeks, holding Denver to one offensive touchdown, 59 rushing yards, and forcing five Wil Lutz field goal attempts. They generated pressure with four sacks and multiple hits on Bo Nix, and for three quarters, they kept the Broncos in field position purgatory while the offense tried to wake up. The grade drops out of A territory because they could not get the final stop, giving up a 10-play, 58-yard march in the last three minutes that set up the walk-off kick and turned a gritty road showing into another one-score gut punch.
Overall: C
The Chiefs are now 5-5 and, after going 12-0 in one-score games last season, they are 0-5 in those tight scripts this year, which is the exact opposite of the aura this dynasty has lived on. The defense looks championship caliber, but the offense is disjointed, the situational execution is sloppy, and the late-game magic that used to feel inevitable now looks like a coin flip they keep losing. Until Andy Reid and Mahomes rediscover a consistent identity that does not rely on miracle drives, this group is grading out like a fringe playoff team instead of the automatic AFC West champ they have been since 2016.
Las Vegas Raiders
Oct 19, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Geno Smith (7) passes the ball against the Kansas City Chiefs during the first quarter of the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images
Offense: D
Geno Smith’s box score looks halfway respectable at first glance – 27 of 42, for 238 yards with a touchdown and an interception – but that production translated into exactly one touchdown, three field goals, and 16 total points at home. The run game was a rumor: Las Vegas finished with just 17 first downs, 236 total yards, went 3-of-12 on third down and 1-of-3 in the red zone, and even managed to give up a safety. Chip Kelly’s script felt like chaos in slow motion, with Jeanty marginalized for long stretches, protection problems unsolved, and no real shift to tempo, quick game or max-protect answers once Quinnen Williams and the revamped Dallas front started teeing off. The only reason this isn’t a straight F is that they at least moved the ball enough early to let Daniel Carlson hit three field goals, but this was still another week where the Raiders’ offense looked offensive.
Defense: F
The defense got worked front to back: Dak Prescott went 25 of 33 for 268 yards and four touchdowns with zero picks, and Dallas hung 33 points while never really getting out of third gear. The Cowboys piled up 381 yards, 24 first downs, went 4-of-10 on third down and 3-of-5 in the red zone, methodically walking to a 24-9 halftime lead and a 31-9 cushion heading into the fourth. George Pickens absolutely torched the secondary with nine catches for 144 yards and a score, while the run defense let Javonte Williams control early downs, turning every Raiders missed tackle into another easy script for Dak & Co.. Maxx Crosby did his usual superhero routine with a sack and constant pressure, but when one edge is your entire identity and everyone behind him is late, soft, or lost, you get exactly what this tape shows.
Overall: F
At 2-8 with a 155-253 scoring margin on the season, this isn’t just a team losing games; it’s a team getting exposed as fundamentally unserious in a division where everyone else is at least pretending to chase January. Dallas walked into Allegiant Stadium with its own drama, benched CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens for the first series, and still spent three quarters dunking on a Raiders squad that responded with field goals, protection busts, and a safety. The coaching staff keeps talking about identity and toughness, but the product is a disjointed offense, a defense that folds the second it leaves Crosby’s orbit, and a home crowd that sounds more like a neutral-site event every week. When your brand is “Raider Nation” and you come out of a must-have prime-time game looking this flat, this sloppy, and this outclassed, the only honest grade you can write on the card is a big red F and a note that says, “Start over.”
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