AFC West: Broncos vs Chargers, Monday Night Football

The time has come: the first Monday night of the regular football season is here. Two regular AFC West rivals of the Oakland Raiders will be facing off to begin their seasons.

Monday Night Football is finally here. Technically, the matchup between Adrian Peterson‘s New Orleans Saints versus his former employer in the Minnesota Vikings will be the first Monday night game of the season. They will be playing at 4:10 p.m. PT up in Minneapolis.

While everybody will paying attention to Peterson going against his former team, Oakland Raiders fans will want to see what’s up in the second of two games on Monday night. The late game should be a fun match-up of one high-powered AFC West offense vs a stout AFC West defense.

Week 1’s last game on the slate will be between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Denver Broncos. Kickoff from Mile High Stadium in Denver will be at 7:20 p.m. PT. ESPN will have the national telecast.

Location: Sports Authority Field, Denver

Time: 7:20 p.m PT

Network: ESPN

Let’s take a look at how the game may go.

Brock Osweiler is back, but he won’t play

When it comes to overpaid players in the NFL, none would be on the list higher than Brock Osweiler. After the 2015 season, the Broncos made the (now smart) move of not signing him to long-term deal with a lot of cash guaranteed.

So, Brock decided to make the move to Houston. That move did not pan out well, as he was arguably the league’s worst starter in 2016. According to Pro Football Reference, he finished the season with 2,957 yards, and an awful 15 touchdowns to 16 interceptions.

If a player has more interceptions than touchdown’s thrown in a season, it’s bad. Even a seven-year-old could tell you that much. After being traded to the Cleveland Browns in the offseason, mainly as a thrown-in for a second-round pick, Cleveland cut him before the regular season started.

The timing was perfect, the Broncos needed a quarterback as Paxton Lynch just got hurt, and could potentially be out until mid-October. Osweiler is back in the Mile High City, but unless a major injury happens to starter Trevor Siemian, he will not be playing much.

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Chargers, finally almost healthy….for now

There is no way a team can have as bad of luck as the San Diego Chargers had last season. They finished the season with an otherworldy 21 players finishing the season on Injured Reserve.

Those injuries included stud wide receiver Keenan Allen and All-Pro cornerback Jason Verrett. It’s safe to say that the 2016 was yet another wasted season of prime Philip Rivers.

Man, is it going to be tough to call them the Los Angeles Chargers this season. As you can see above, the mistake was made. It’s very likely that even on television, you will hear an announcer, or two, or three, or 10 make the mistake of saying San Diego Chargers.

The team finally appears to be healthy, although there was a good scare with Mike Williams missing all the preseason with a back injury. He may only miss a month of action. Barring any unforeseen injuries in the game, this should be a barn burner.

New D Coordinator, New D players

The architect, Wade Phillips, the creator of some of the league’s most ferocious defenses in recent memory, moved on in the offseason to the Los Angeles (there it is again) Rams. Given that the Broncos only spent two of their eight draft picks on defensive players, it’s hard to imagine that there could be so much turnover in just a matter of months.

With Shane Ray being put on injured reserve and T.J. Ward being cut just before the season began, this should be a young, inexperienced group to start the year. With veterans such as Chris Harris, Aqib Talib, and of course Von Miller, this defense should still be one of the best in the NFL. The No Fly Zone is here to stay, and should get even better once the newer players start to come in to their own.

Next: Oakland Raiders: 3 takeaways from win vs. Tennessee Titans

The first game of the season is always a great one to watch, it is even better when it is between two division rivals batting for supremacy. Whoever wins this game will be tied for first place with the Kansas City Chiefs, and the beloved Raiders. Tune in for a great matchup tonight. Let us know who you are excited to see on these two teams in the comments below, and if you are worried about either of the teams in the long run.