Although it was a fun ride to begin the 2026 NFL season undefeated, Las Vegas Raiders fans will probably never overreact to the first few games of a given campaign again. That 3-0 start feels miles away from the current Silver and Black, especially given the landscape of the AFC West.
Nobody predicted that the Raiders would even compete in the division, let alone be tied for the lead after a few weeks. But now that a bigger sample size is available, things are balancing back out, with the exception of Las Vegas still being a much better team than the Los Angeles Chargers.
But the Kansas City Chiefs seem to be back, even though they had a setback this week, and the Denver Broncos have hit their stride again following a rough start. Fans should be caught up on the Raiders' loss to the Los Angeles Rams, but let's see how things went around the AFC West in Week 7.
Week 7 AFC West roundup: Raiders drop four in a row, Chiefs lose their first, Broncos rallying
Here are the current standings in the AFC West:
Kansas City Chiefs 5-1
Denver Broncos 5-2
Las Vegas Raiders 3-4
Los Angeles Chargers 0-6
Let's start with the most important team in the division: the Raiders. On Sunday in Las Vegas, Klint Kubiak's team came out exceptionally flat and trailed 28-3 before the game even reached halftime. The final score, 35-21, doesn't look all too bad, but it was a vibe-killing, disappointing result.
Los Angeles entered the game with so many key injuries and a one-track game plan, but the defense was unable to provide any resistance. They got manipulated by Sean McVay in the passing game, could not stop the run and had abundant miscommunications. Tackling was also an issue yet again.
Offensively, Kirk Cousins and Co. did not come alive until the game was over in the second half. The run game was putrid yet again, and outside of Tre Tucker, nobody had a performance to remember from the skill position group. It was an all-around bad performance for the Silver and Black.
Well, with the exception of special teams. Matt Gay missed a field goal, but Dylan Laube had two big kick returns and A.J. Cole completed a pass to Connor Heyward on a fake punt, so that was a fun element of the game. But it was nowhere close to enough to tilt the balance in this one.
Denver handily beat the Arizona Cardinals in the late window as well, carrying a 27-13 lead into the fourth quarter and extending it to as much as 17. Bo Nix had somewhat of a revival throwing the ball, and he actually had a huge rushing touchdown from 62 yards out, showing signs of his old self.
Jonah Coleman continues to look like a good young running back as well. And no one pass-catcher really stood out for the Broncos, but it was a balanced attack through the air. The Denver defense, of course, brought their "A" game and stifled the Cardinals despite getting no takeaways.
The Broncos have now won three games in a row and are a half-game out of first place in the AFC West. They'll have a chance to sit atop the division by themselves after next Sunday because they play the Chiefs in Week 8.
Speaking of Kansas City, Andy Reid's team finally looked human on Sunday Night Football against the Seattle Seahawks, losing 20-3. Kenneth Walker III's old team knew exactly how to shut him down, and it really tore the Chiefs' whole offense down. They are painfully reliant on Walker III at this stage.
Patrick Mahomes couldn't get anything going through the air, as he totaled 165 yards and an interception. The Kansas City defense had a fine effort, but they could not get stops when they needed to. Harrison Butker continues to hold the Chiefs back, as he missed two more field goals.
Jim Harbaugh and the Los Angeles Chargers had a bye in Week 7.
Brief preview of the Raiders and the AFC West in Week 8
Las Vegas will look to get back on track and claw their way to .500 in Week 8 as they take on the New York Jets on the road. Trips to the East Coast are never easy, and the Raiders got smoked earlier in the year during an early kickoff, but the Jets just handed the winless Miami Dolphins their first victory.
Just like in Week 4 between the Raiders and Chiefs, Denver and Kansas City will battle for AFC West supremacy on Sunday afternoon. With their records just a half-game apart at this juncture, the second matchup between these two teams will be a pivotal one both now and down the road.
The Chargers will try to avoid a disastrous 0-7 start on Sunday in a cross-town "road" rivalry game against the Rams. McVay's team still looked good in Week 7 despite being decimated by injuries, so Harbaugh and Co. will have their hands full, and a win is nowhere close to a guarantee.
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