Patriots, Steelers, Colts, Broncos are AFC division leaders entering Week 9 | FNIA | NFL on NBC

And we are now going to go around the league. And I think we start with the AFC studs. And I’ll preface this by saying that these really are just the division leaders uh in the AFC because the Steelers are like the rest of this group. New England’s won five in a row. Denver’s won five in a row. Indie now four in a row. In Pittsburgh, they’ve lost two straight at Censey. And then home against Green Bay. So coach, I’ll start with you. When you look at this group, who do you feel like is real? Who are the real contenders in this bunch right here? Well, I I look at Denver and I look at that defense. I think they’re definitely a contender. The Colts have been playing outstanding football all year long and seven and one. You can’t argue with that. Um New England, they’re there and I think they’re a contender. I’m surprised you want to know the most surprising one to me that is them. I thought they would come and turn it around under Mike Brael. I didn’t think it would happen this fast. surprised me. Yeah, I agree with you, coach. And I think Mike Brael’s doing a great job of just, you know, just capturing that locker room so quickly and getting the right people in that locker room. And when I look at Indie, man, I look I was watching their tape last night, coach, and I I believe they got the best offensive line in all of football. Daniel Jones, he sits back there. He seems very comfortable. Um Jonathan Taylor, he’s running the ball quite um quite well. But to me, the the disappointment in that in that whole division leader, it has to be the Pittsburgh Steelers. What we saw on Sunday night was absolutely disappointing. The way they got done at home, Jack, it’s pretty hard to argue with that, especially now that you’ve seen, you know, the Bengals just beat that team and then the Bengals go lose to the Jets who were over and so you have some point of reference as to who and what the Bengals are. I mean, the Steelers at this point, coach, it’s back-to-back games. They really didn’t hang in there very tough in that second half with Green Bay. Biggest concern would be what here? Oh, no question the defense. I think Aaron Rogers has helped the offense out, but I am not happy at all watching that defense give up 30 points week after week after week. A lot of talent there, but not playing together and not not being on top of their fundamentals. Yeah, I agree with you, coach. And you know, for me, I’m concerned about their defense, especially without their safety, Deshawn Elliott. No discipline back there. We’ve seen them struggle with miscommunications. And you see a guy like Darius Slay supposed to be a veteran player that you can count on. He’s turning down tackles. I just I I tell you, and I said this to you guys on that postgame show, Mike Tomlin, he’s gonna have to go have a conversation with his defensive coordinator and all his defensive guys because they got to get this back on track. And to me, it starts with the head coach. Coach, I I agree with you. And they better do it quick because Indianapolis coming in there, they’ve got a diversified attack. They can run the football. They’re hitting deep passes. They’ve got a misdirection game. All the things that Pittsburgh has struggled with, they could put up 40 points uh in this game. It would not surprise me at all. Yeah. Rod, if you had to say of those four, New England, Pit, Indie, and Denver, who you have the most faith in for the remainder of this season, who would that be? Woo, that’s a tough one. Um, woo, that’s a tough one. I I have to go with two. I have to go with the New England Patriots and I’m going with the Indianapolis Colts. And it’s, you know, you got, you look at both of these, they’re both quarterbacks are playing on the MV MVP level. Both coaches have done a really good job. It looks like these quarterbacks are very comfortable and familiar with their offensive coordinators. Coach, it’s hard to pick one. So, I’m picking two. I’m going with both of them. Well, I’m going to pick one and I’m going to go opposite of you. I’m going to say the Denver Broncos. Uh, and just with my defensive roots, I watch what they’re doing on defense. They can pressure the passer. They’ve got speed. They play hard. They’re playing very good defense. And I I have faith in defense. I love the Colts, but their injuries to their corners really concerns me. Um I I just think Denver has the best defense going right now and that’s where I’d put my my marbles. And even without Patrick Tan, huh? Yeah, he’s going to be out for a while and that that definitely is going to hurt him, but I think that defensive front is uh man, they they can suffocate you. It’s real, Jack. All right, different question, but a real one. Would you take any of these four teams over the Kansas City Chiefs? Rod, I’ll start with you. No, absolutely not, man. Patrick Mahomes, he looks like a different quarterback when he start get starts getting his weapons back. Rashi Rice, coach, we’ve talked about him and his impact. He just gives the entire team confidence. Even their left tackle, I still don’t know his name. I I mentioned him as number 77. He’s still playing solid. So, I got to give it to the Chiefs. That That’s my top team in the AFC right now, coach. Yeah. I’m I’m watching the Chiefs on Monday night and I’m sending you guys notes. Oh, they look sloppy. They’re back to their old ways. They look terrible. Well, they give up seven points and about 150 yards. They score 28. Um, and at the end of the game, it’s 28-7 and they’ve dominated. And you say, “Yeah, I I think these guys might be back.” I agree with you. Uhhuh. I’m taking Kansas City over both over all four of those teams, too. Jaylen Moore is his name. Josh Simmons is the tackle that could be coming back. So, there could be three of those guys here soon. Jaylen Moore continues to earn his right to have his name said, so we’ll continue to say it. Hi, I’m Mike Taro and thanks for watching. Make sure to hit subscribe for the latest news and highlights from NBC Sports.

Rodney Harrison, Tony Dungy and Jac Collinsworth take a deep dive into the four AFC division leaders, but note that no one should be counting out the Chiefs yet. #NFL #FNIA #NBCSports
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Patriots, Steelers, Colts, Broncos are AFC division leaders entering Week 9 | FNIA | NFL on NBC
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