Schefter: AFC West will produce three playoff teams

Through almost 11 weeks of the NFL season, there’s a strong argument to be made that the AFC West is the toughest division in the league.

Should the playoffs start today, the division would send three teams to the playoffs — the Kansas City Chiefs as the AFC West winner and the Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos as the wild card teams.

And through Week 10, only three teams in the NFL had better winning percentages than the Broncos, Chiefs, and Raiders — the Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks.

So it’s no stretch of the imagination for ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter to pick all three AFC West teams to make the playoffs following the home stretch of the regular season.

Talking with Sports Radio 104.3 The Fan’s “C.J. and Stokley” on Friday, Schefter said not only all three should make the postseason but also any combination of the three could win the division.

“I think ultimately the AFC West is good enough and talented enough and compelling enough that all three of those teams wind up going to the playoffs,” Schefter said.

Teams from one division taking both wild card slots is actually a more frequent occurrence than some may expect, with the AFC North doing it the last time in 2014.

In fact, since the NFL split into four divisions in 2002, three teams have earned playoff berths six times.

The AFC West last sent three teams — the Broncos, Chiefs, and San Diego Chargers — in 2013.

On Sunday, Kansas City dropped its matchup with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, moving them into a tie with the Broncos at 7-3. Oakland, who takes on the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football, is favored to win its Week 11 tilt, which would move them into first place of the AFC West at 8-2.

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.