Week 5 of the NFL season provided another shake up in the AFC with the New England Patriots bouncing back with a dominant win over the Cincinnati Bengals while the San Diego Chargers and Indianapolis Colts continued to roll. Here is a quick look at the AFC division leaders and whether they are legitimate contenders or pretenders.
New England Patriots – Contenders
Super Bowl Futures: +1250
The Buffalo Bills pulled off a dramatic comeback win over the Detroit Lions to improve to 3-2 last week but that was as much about the Lions hurting themselves as Buffalo pulling out the victory with Kyle Orton under center. Meanwhile, the Patriots put together a dominant statement victory against the previously undefeated Bengals as they rolled to a 43-17 win. Tom Brady and the offense showed what they could do against a very good opponent while their defense forced three turnovers and held Andy Dalton and company to just two scores. New England still has work to do on both sides of the ball but last week’s win was proof that this team is still a legitimate contender in the AFC.
Cincinnati Bengals – Pretenders
Super Bowl Futures: +1250
It’s important not to overreact to one bad game but the reality is that this Bengals team has consistently come up short in big games over the past three years, so there is going to be some fallout after their loss to the Patriots. Cincinnati has the weapons on both sides of the football to win the AFC but until Dalton proves that he can win big games against some of the top teams in the conference, it’s impossible to consider the Bengals anything more than a pretender.
Indianapolis Colts – Contenders
Super Bowl Futures: +2250
The Colts did Cincinnati a favor last week when they pulled out a close win over the Baltimore Ravens for their third straight win. That moved them in to a tie with the Houston Texans for top spot in the AFC South but we’ll take Andrew Luck over Ryan Fitzpatrick any day of the week. Luck was 8-for-9 for 129 yards, including 4-for-4 on throws at least 15 yards downfield, in the fourth quarter of last week’s victory. Another encouraging sign in the win was the Colts defense, who has helped the team post the second-best point differential in the AFC to this point.
San Diego Chargers – Contenders
Super Bowl Futures: +925
The largest point differential in the league belongs to a Chargers team that has won four straight games. They now have the best record in the conference and there is no doubt that this team is a legitimate contender. Philip Rivers and the San Diego offense proved its ability with 30 points in a Week 2 win over the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks while an improved defense has not allowed more than 14 points in three straight weeks, and ranks second in the NFL against the pass and ninth against the run. The Chargers have everything they need to make a Super Bowl run and as long as Rivers continues to perform at an elite level they cannot be overlooked.
