One of the better debates among fans of teams in the AFC West is "who is the better quarterback - Philip Rivers or Jay Cutler?"

Both of these players were top draft picks who were selected by teams that needed a franchise quarterback to lead them to a Super Bowl. Of the two, Rivers has compiled more wins and has gotten to the playoffs twice but Jay Cutler posted a fantastic year in 2007, his first full year as the starter. Both Quarterbacks are on the rise, however Rivers has the advantage of being surrounded by far better players in San Diego than those that support Cutler in Denver.

Because of the discrepancy in roster talent, I've decided to approach the Rivers vs Cutler debate by looking at how they both played in losses in 2007. I hope that this approach will shed some light on how these guys affect their team's ability to win. And as a result of these findings, hopefully a definitive argument can be made as to who the better QB truly is. So lets take a look at the numbers:

In Philip Rivers' six losses (including the playoffs) last season, he averaged a passer rating of 66.4 with 6 touchdowns to 8 interceptions. Lets take it one step further and truncate the average by removing Rivers' highest and lowest ratings. We'll toss out Rivers' week 3 loss against the Packers (116.2) and his playoff loss to the Patriots (46.1).


Philip Rivers:

Passer rating in losses (truncated average) = 59.3 - 3 TDs, 3 INTs
Passer rating in regular season (average) = 82.4 - 21 TDS, 15 INTs, 460 Att

We'll use the same math to find Jay Cutler's numbers by removing his week 3 loss (96.6) and his week 16 loss in San Diego (32.7).

Jay Cutler:

Passer rating in losses (truncated average) = 80.7 - 5 TDs, 5 INTs
Passer rating in regular season (average) = 88.1 - 20 TDS, 14 INTs, 467 Att


The regular season numbers are very similar between the two quarterbacks. They are so close in fact that you can call it a wash. However, when looking at how these guys fared in losses, Jay Cutler generally played better...at least thats what the numbers tell us. So you can make an argument that despite Cutler playing well (80.7 truncated average passer rating in losses), the Denver Broncos still lost ball games.

Philip Rivers on the other hand, seemed to have the greater effect on his team's chances. When Rivers struggled, the team struggled. When the Chargers won despite Rivers playing poorly (30.6 passer rating) it was usually by squeaking one out, like the 23-21 win over the Colts in week 10.

Of course there are also a couple of other important factors to consider; the intangibles like experience, leadership, passion, and knowledge of the game. You could argue that Philip Rivers has more of each, having grown up the child of a football coach and then going on to play (and win) a ton of games in college and the pros. We've seen the kind of passion the Philip Rivers plays the game with, and we've seen his determination to play, even through tremendous pain.

So with all things considered, I would have to say that Philip Rivers is indeed the better quarterback and judging by the votes here at BoltHype, I think a significant majority of you would agree. If anyone wants to speak on this topic, feel free to drop a comment in and give your take!

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There was a time when the AFC West was considered one of the more competitive divisions in football. While that time has certainly passed, thats not to say that we don't have some talented football players out here. One group in particular, defensive secondaries, is actually pretty stacked. The Chiefs, Chargers, Raiders, and Broncos all have at least one starting cornerback who has made it to the Pro Bowl. Those teams have also invested first or second round picks in recent years on defensive backs, with the Chargers heading into the season with three cornerbacks who were former first rounders! However, the AFC West doesn't really have a lot of top flight linebackers and the defensive linemen as a whole are good, but not great.

When the BoltHype All AFC West team was assembled, the idea was to find guys who could play in any defensive scheme, but an emphasis was certainly on the 4-3 because thats the type of defense this division is mostly built for.

Starting Secondary:
CB Antonio Cromartie (SDG)
CB Champ Bailey (DEN)
CB Nnamdi Asomugha (OAK)
FS Eric Weddle (SDG)
SS Michael Huff (OAK)

Reserves:
CB Dre Bly (DEN)
CB Quentin Jammer (SDG)
SS Bernard Pollard (KAN)

Starting Defensive Linemen:
DT Jamal Williams (SDG)
DT Luis Castillo (SDG)
DE Derrick Burgess (OAK)
DE Elvis Dumervil (DEN)

Reserves:
DT Igor Olshansky (SDG)
DE Tamba Hali (KAN)

Starting Linebackers:
LB Shawne Merriman (SDG)
LB D.J. Williams (DEN)
LB Thomas Howard (OAK)

Reserves:
LB Derrick Johnson (KAN)
LB Shaun Phillips (SDG)
LB Donnie Edwards (KAN)

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The San Diego Chargers are clearly head and shoulders above the rest of their division, but who will challenge them? Will it be the Denver Broncos or the Kansas City Chiefs that emerges as the Chargers biggest threat this year? Can the Broncos take another step towards respectability, or will they continue to rebuild? The Chiefs are basically starting over, but they should have a young and talented defense; is that going to be enough to keep the Bolts in check? And the Oakland Raiders certainly have star power, but will those individuals be able to come together as a team?

The ESPN guys at NFL Live break down the AFC West:



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Bill Williamson has a nice piece over at ESPN.com where he breaks down the current balance of power in the AFC West and why the draft has been the primary reason the Chargers remain at the top of the heap.

"San Diego, player per player, is probably as good as anybody in the National Football League and is probably one of the top-five teams," said Denver coach Mike Shanahan, whose team was outscored 64-6 in two games against the Chargers last season. "Personnel-wise, I would say they're right at the top, No. 1. That's saying a lot."

Read: Draft hits and misses have shaped AFC West hierarchy

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The Chargers couldn't have picked a better year to hire Norv Turner. As crazy as that sounds, .500 in the AFC West this year is good enough for first place and in spite of all the turnover among the coaching staff from just a year ago, some how the Chargers have managed to hang on for dear life in the division.

So while the Chargers might technically hold the top spot in the West, how do they stack up against the rest of the NFL?

The official NFL standings have the Chargers holding the 18th spot among 32 teams. Now keep in mind the official standings are primarily based on wins versus losses. The Denver Broncos and the San Diego Chargers both hold 5-5 records (tops in the division) however the Chargers have a win over Denver so they barely hold first place.

Over at the sports media monopoly, a polling of writers has the Bolts coming in as the 13th best team in the league. This is down from their week 11 ranking of 9th.

Troy Aikman has developed a grading system he calls the Aikman Efficiency ratings. According to his system, the Chargers have the 19th ranked offense (21st ranked by the NFL) and the 8th ranked defense (25th ranked by the NFL). I'm not totally sure how he comes up with his rankings, but according to Aikman, the Chargers are better than what the numbers say. Combined, the Chargers are the 12th best team in the NFL according to Troy.

But where the Chargers rank the highest is with the Football Outsiders. Their proprietary system, DVOA, places the Chargers in the 7th overall spot. The chief reason for such a high ranking is that according the Football Outsiders, the Bolts posses the 2nd best Special Teams unit in the NFL.

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The Denver Broncos have a star in the making and his name is Brandon Marshall (and his nickname is 'Baby T.O.'). Marshall is a big physical player who has a little bit of Anquan Boldin and Terrell Owens in him. As a prospect in the 2006 NFL Draft, I really liked Marshall and was hoping the Chargers would pick him up. But when the fourth round came by and the Broncos were sitting on the clock, they decided to select Marshall as a guy who could hopefully one day emerge as Rod Smith's replacement as Denver's go-to guy.

Fast forward to today and Marshall is on pace to break 1000 yards receiving. To go along with his impressive play is a confidence (maybe a little brashness) that the AFC West is the Denver Broncos' to lose:

"This is our division," Marshall said. "It's always been our division. It's time for us to take it back. San Diego, Kansas City, they don't have the talent like us in the locker room. They have star players but can't get it done like us."

Even as a die-hard Chargers fan, Marshall's statement doesn't bother me all that much. I actually kinda like hearing a little bit of trash talk come from regional opponents. And its true that the Denver Broncos have historically dominated the division. They are the last team in the AFC West to actually win a Super Bowl. And if nothing else, Marshall's comments might provide the stumbling Chargers with some much needed bulletin board fodder...

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It was an honest mistake, but I still have to give Chris shit about it. We chatted about the Chiefs and Chargers over at his site, Arrowhead Pride (which, by the way, is probably the best Chiefs blog on the net).

AHP - How has Booger Davis looked thus far? Does he have a better future than our own LSU receiver, Dwayne Bowe?

BH - Booger? Ooooh, you mean BUSTER. Buster has been looking real good. He has excellent route running abilities and makes all the catches. The team seems to be bringing him along slowly, but I expect his opportunities for balls is going to increase as the season progresses. I'm not in the position to say Davis is going to be better than Bowe, but I will say that Davis fits what our team needed more than Bowe did. We need a stretch-the-field type guy who can get deep and provide speed down the sidelines. Bowe seemed more of an endzone, over-the-middle type guy who is big and strong. Between Antonio Gates and Vincent Jackson, he have plenty of that already on the team. Both players seem to be helping their teams, and that's a testament to the talent level that LSU is putting out in the NFL.


Read the rest of the transcript here: ArrowheadPride.com

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It wasn't easy for Broncos fans to watch something they hadn't ever seen before last season; LaDainian Tomlinson running wild up in Denver.

It was a shock to the system, and helped further illustrate that their defensive line experiment failed badly. I guess the experiment wasn't a total failure. We did, at least, learn that if you need defensive linemen, you'd better not go shopping at the dawg pound. But Martha Stewart probably could have told us that.

Denver took Jarvis Moss with their first round pick and Marcus Thomas with their fourth. These two players were teammates at the National Championship winning Florida University. They helped form arguably the most talented D-line in college football. And if you need some d-line help, it's probably a good idea to grab some guys from the best in football, rather than the worst.

With their second round pick, the Broncos snatched up defensive end Tim Crowder from Texas. But even after addressing the need at defensive line in the draft with three of their first four picks, Shannan didn't stop there.

Nope, they needed more beef to stop the Chargers offensive line from running them over. Rick Jussel has a fun little read over at The Daily Sentinel in Colorado:

Prior to last season, Tomlinson had been held in check by Denver, especially in Denver, where he averaged only 53 yards per game rushing.

Something happened last season, however, that changed all that.

What happened was the addition of Marcus McNeil, a rookie left tackle — make that road grader — who combined with a huge young group to pave the way for Tomlinson.

Denver once could slow Tomlinson by swarming all over him with their quick front line and quicker linebackers.

Last season, Tomlinson simply ran behind McNeil and his buddies at will, especially down near the goal line.

In two games against Denver, Tomlinson scored seven touchdowns and piled up 300 all-purpose yards in helping the Chargers score 88 points.

Here are the bare facts:

McNeil goes 6-foot-7 and weighs in at 340 pounds at left tackle.

Left guard is 6-4, 310-pound Kris Dielman.

Center is the runt of the group in 295-pound Nick Hardwick.

Mike Goff is a 6-5, 311-pound right guard and Shane Olivea is a 6-4, 312-pound right tackle.

Add to that 260-pound tight end Anthony Gates, 290-pound second tight end and blocking specialist Brandon Manumaleuna and All-Pro blocking fullback Lorenzo Neil, who goes nearly 260 pounds, and you can see Shanahan’s realization that his defense had to get bigger.

Read: Let's bulk up with the Broncos

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From the outside looking in, the AFC West doesn't really look like a place of pass-happy offenses. Running the ball is something this division prides itself in being able to do successfully to win games. The San Diego Chargers, Denver Broncos, and Kansas City Chiefs were all ranked in the top 10 at the end of the year in rushing yards. Teams that run the ball well tend to stick with what works, and you will generally find that offensive coordinators like to win games on the ground if they are able to.

Looking at the top 10 rushing teams in the NFL last year, only the Denver Broncos had a player with over 1000 yards receiving. Sure there were plenty of players hovering around the 1000 yard mark, but only Jevon Walker was able to eclipse that number.

Now to bring the focus back to the AFC West, the departure of Randy Moss from the Raiders makes Jevon Walker the biggest primary receiving threat in the division (By singling out a primary receiving threat, I am eliminating runningbacks for the sake of the argument. You could certainly argue that Larry Johnson and LaDainian Tomlinson catching the ball out of the backfield is certainly dangerous for defenses). Even though Moss had his worst year statistically last season, it was mostly the fault of the anemic Oakland offense unable to move the ball consistently. And up until his recent move to New England, Randy Moss was considered the most dangerous pass catcher in the AFC West.

1. Javon Walker DEN 69 1084 15.7 8 83
2. Antonio Gates SD 71 924 13.0 9 57
3. Tony Gonzalez KC 73 900 12.3 5 57
4. Eddie Kennison KC 53 860 16.2 5 51
5. Ronald Curry OAK 62 727 11.7 1 39
6. Eric Parker SD 48 659 13.7 0 38

The Chargers leading receiver was Tight End Antonio Gates. As dangerous as any Tight End in the game, Gates is expected to have a better season this year as Philip Rivers makes leaps in his development as a second-year starter.

Tony Gonzalez remains a force to be reckoned with in the division, and is still a top 3 tight end in the league. But with a new Quarterback under center in Kansas City, his production and opportunities may be limited somewhat.

It is possible that Ronald Curry remains the primary receiving target in Oakland, but that is still an uncertainty, and there are bound to be growing pains with rookie QB JaMarcus Russell running rookie Head Coach Lane Kiffin's offense.

So as far as the AFC West is concerned, the two biggest playmaking pass-catchers are unarguably Denver's Jevon Walker and San Diego's Antonio Gates. Gates is a guy who is difficult to deny the football, as well as tough to tackle. Walker is a blazer who can beat people deep, and has great hands and leaping ability. By virtue that Walker is on a team where he is the best player on offense, combined with his better speed and propensity to make plays of 20+ yards and 40+ yards gives Walker the slight edge over Antonio Gates as the most dangerous primary receiving threat in the AFC West.

2006 Jevon Walker: 20+ yards 16 times, 40+ yards 4 times, long of 83 yards, 8 TDs
2006 Antonio Gates: 20+ yards 14 times, 40+ yards 1 times, long of 57 yards, 9 TDs


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Dwayne Bowe ended the Chiefs' three day minicamp with ice on his leg. Coach Herm, whats up with Bowe's leg?

"He actually got what you call – or what I tell my daughters is - a boo-boo. He has a little boo boo. He’ll be fine."

So does the leg explain the hands? I mean, he's been dropping some balls in practice.

"He’s a guy that is very excitable. He wants to make things happen and he was probably pressing. I could see that. But you could see that he could do very, very well and that’s why we drafted him. There are some things you know that when you watch him you go, ‘wow.’ He’s got a chance to be a very good football player."

Dropping passes was a knock on Bowe coming out of college, so this is not a good sign if you are a Chiefs fan. I know its still early but he isn't even in full pads running around the field, with defensive backs ready to explode on him like a heat-seeking missile. That's okay, because as Coach Herm put it, he's got a 'chance' to be a good player.

Meanwhile, in San Diego, things are going swimmingly for Bowe's former LSU teammate, Craig 'Buster' Davis. While Davis too battled an injury in practice, for the most part Coach Turner seemed very impressed.

"Craig Davis, in the three practices he was in, was outstanding. He's got great hands...strong hands. He's got great speed and he's a strong route runner."

Hmmm...Davis has great hands, you say? And he's faster than Dwayne Bowe? Tell me, why exactly was Bowe drafted ahead of him? Oh yea, it's because Bowe looks better in shorts.

Read - Q&A With Herm Edwards