Ranking AFC West quarterbacks in 2026
The AFC West is expected to be one of the NFL’s strongest divisions in 2026.
Two teams from the division featured in last season’s playoffs. To the shock of many, one of these were not the Kansas City Chiefs. The reigning AFC Champions went from being a game away from a historic threepeat, to missing out on the postseason altogether thanks to a 6-11 record.
It was the Los Angles Chargers and Denver Broncos who instead made the playoffs. The Chargers fell short in the Wildcard Round. Whilst the Denver Broncos had the number one seed, they fell to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship. This was half the story.
After beating Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round, their ecstasy was short lived. The fans had barely left the stadium when head coach Sean Payton revealed that quarterback Bo Nix was out for the season with an ankle injury. Backup Jarrett Stidham had the task of trying to overcome the odds. In a heavily snowy affair, he and the Broncos fell short as Payton’s decision to not take the points in the second quarter came back to haunt them.
Meanwhile, the Las Vegas Raiders earnt the number one overall pick after a disastrous first season as head coach for Pete Carroll. The man who brought a very first Lombardi Trophy to the city of Seattle is not returning for a second season. With Klint Kubiak now at the helm, a shiny new franchise quarterback and a tonne of additions on defense, the Raiders fanbase have a lot to be excited about.
The AFC West is set to be a very competitive division, but how do their quarterbacks rank? Here is a ranking of every QB in the division, from fourth to first.
4th - Kirk Cousins (Las Vegas Raiders)
Whilst the team selected their new face of the franchise in Fernando Mendoza first overall in this year’s NFL Draft, Kirk Cousins is expected to be the starter for now.
Cousins comes in with a hefty amount of NFL experience, heading into his 15th season as a quarterback in the league. He arrived at the Raiders this offseason after an underwhelming two-year spell with the Atlanta Falcons.
Whilst he is the model pro and is the perfect person for Mendoza to learn alongside, he had his limitations even during his best seasons. Factor in his age and gradual decline, it is impossible to place him above any of the other starting quarterbacks in this division.
3rd - Bo Nix (Denver Broncos)
Nix has something that not every quarterback possesses, the ability to shine when it matters.
This is something that has been evident time after time when he has taken on the Chiefs and their quarterback Patrick Mahomes. So far in four meetings, albeit with two of these games not featuring the two-time Most Valuable Player (MVP), he has recorded 1,013 passing yards, seven touchdowns and just one interception.
Per game, this amounts to an average of 253.25 passing yards, 1.7 touchdowns and 0.143 interceptions per game.
Then there was the Bills win. Whilst it did not end the way that he wanted, he was still able to get it done when it mattered, outduelling the NFL’s current best quarterback.
Whilst doubts will creep in as to whether he can come back the same player, there is no doubt that Nix has the leadership and fundamentals to be a future franchise QB in Colorado.
Despite this, his sample size is a lot smaller than the two players ahead of him in this list.
2nd - Justin Herbert (Los Angeles Chargers)
Whilst Nix has managed to get his team over the line in the postseason, Herbert has struggled to do so.
So far in his six-year NFL career, he has played three postseason games and lost all three.
His most infamous playoff loss came in the 2022 season, where the Chargers allowed leads of 27-7 and 30-14 slip in a 31-30 loss.
Herbert also threw for more interceptions in their 32-12 Wildcard Round loss to the Houston Texans in the 2024 season. This was more than his entire total during that regular season (3).
He was also sacked six times in last season’s Wildcard Round loss to the Patriots. In three playoff games, he has recorded more interceptions (4) than touchdowns (2), a surprising statistic given that he has almost triple the number of touchdowns (163) compared to interceptions (58) in the entirety of his regular season career.
His shortcomings in the postseason will always surround him until he can lift the preverbal monkey off his back.
There is a feeling of inevitability in the air. With a head coach as good as Jim Harbaugh to play under, Herbert will surely win a playoff game sooner rather than later. After all, Peyton Manning had struggles early on in his career when it comes to postseason football. In fact, he also lost his first three playoff games.
Taking Herbert’s postseason resume aside, the talent of Herbert is too good to ignore and not put in the top two of this list. He has the perfect physicality for a quarterback, coming in at six foot six and 236 pounds. With an impressive arm strength, he has learnt to be pragmatic with the football, tallying up single digit interception totals in two of the past three seasons. In similar vein to Mahomes, he also knows when to use his feet at the right time. However, it is hard for him to topple his AFC West rival.
1st - Patrick Mahomes (Kansas City Chiefs)
Mahomes had a down year 2025, but this should not deter from the sheer talent that he possesses.
He has become a lot more methodical throughout his NFL career, but we all know his arm talent is still there and he can extend plays at the most crucial points like no one else.
Not only does Mahomes have three Super Bowls, but he also has two MVP’s and a Hall of Fame jacket from Canton in waiting.
Whilst it remains to be seen whether he will come back as the same player, but we have all learnt to stay clear of doubting him.
Every quarterback fall victim to difficult seasons, and there is a very strong possibility that Mahomes is once again winning MVP’s and appearing in Super Bowls. Even Tom Brady had these types of campaigns.
There is no doubt that Mahomes is still one of the top quarterbacks in the league and certainly reigns supreme in the AFC West.
Andy Davies