Training camps opening around the NFL are drawing nearer by the day, which makes this a perfect opportunity to take stock of the talent scattered across every division in football.

There might not be a more balanced division than the AFC West, where a genuine case can be made for the Denver Broncos repeating, the Los Angeles Chargers finally ascending to the top, or the Kansas City Chiefs, buoyed by Patrick Mahomes’ return, reminding the rest of the NFL what makes them one of the decade’s truly elite franchises.

Each Tuesday, through camps opening in mid-July, we’ll be breaking down the five best players in each division, continuing today with the AFC West.

Additionally, I asked a veteran NFC Personnel Executive his choice as the one non-quarterback that he would choose first from this division to build his team around.

Here’s an in-depth look at the AFC West, and the players who will likely set the tone for the season.

There are few quarterbacks in the league blessed with more intimidating or polished traits than Justin Herbert.

Herbert, 28, has averaged 4,136 passing yards and 27 touchdowns through his first six NFL seasons, since being chosen No. 6 overall by the Chargers back in 2020, despite Los Angeles struggling to consistently field a well-rounded and balanced collection of pass catchers capable of maximizing his best traits.

Beyond his ability to thread the needle, Herbert is as efficient as they come, as Pro Football Focus points out that last season he made 22 big-time throws with 15 turnover-worthy plays, while finishing as the outlet’s tenth-highest-graded quarterback in the league.

Detractors will point to Herbert’s 0-3 postseason record, and the unfortunate reality is that, to this point, his career has been intertwined with “Chargering.”

However, it is debatable how much of Los Angeles’ big-game struggles are a byproduct of his performance rather than not having the pieces at key positions to close the deal on the biggest stages.

There might not be a more valuable player to the Kansas City Chiefs’ trajectory as a modern dynasty not named Patrick Mahomes than Chris Jones, who is one of the most dominant players at his position across the sport.

Jones is a wrecking ball along the interior, and the key to mad scientist defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo’s rush concepts, but equally dominant as a stonewall against the run.

Last season, Jones produced seven sacks, while garnering an elite 90.7 pass-rush grade from Pro Football Focus (second-highest among defensive tackles), and is in the midst of a career where he’s posted 87.5 sacks through his first ten seasons on the path to an eventual Gold Jacket.

Whether it’s Jones’ value to the Chiefs, his disruptiveness up front, or the fear that he strikes in opposing quarterbacks by relentlessly generating the kind of disruptive pressure up the middle that creates chaos for passing games, his dominance is undeniable.

It’s impossible to miss Joe Alt’s dominance when you turn on a Chargers game, but his value to Los Angeles was never more evident than the impact his absence had on the offense at large, last season.

Alt, who checks in at a colossal 6-foot-8 and 322 pounds, not only paves the way for the Chargers’ ground game, where he picked up a 79 grade from Pro Football Focus last season, but finished as the outlet’s No. 6 ranked pass-blocking tackle with an 82.3 mark.

Last season, when Alt was sidelined due to an ankle injury, the Chargers’ offense sputtered. In his career, the Chargers are 16-6 in games that he’s started, while Los Angeles is a mere 6-6 in games that he’s missed due to injury, underscoring his value to the entire operation.

A Pro Bowl selection last season, Alt is still ascending, and the more that he refines his technique and continues to gain experience, the more there’s a genuine chance he could climb into the rankings among the top-five tackles in the league.

In a league where dominant cornerback play has become tantamount to contending for championships, Patrick Surtain may just be the standard-bearer at the position.

Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph has the luxury of planting Surtain opposite just about any wide receiver Denver matches up against, confident that the quarterback won’t have many opportunities to even glance at that side of the field.

Last season, in 566 snaps in coverage, Surtain only allowed 31 receptions, while breaking up nine passes. Pro Football Focus points out that quarterbacks only managed a 66.1 passer rating when throwing against him; which includes two matchups apiece against Justin Herbert and one against Patrick Mahomes.

The 2024 Defensive Player of the Year, Surtain is a ballhawk who can play lockdown cornerback as well as anyone, and the league’s power brokers consistently stand up and take notice, not just ranking him as the premier player at a premium position but widely viewing him as one of the top-10 overall in the sport.

Patrick Mahomes sitting atop this particular list almost goes without saying, right?

Beyond Mahomes’ three Super Bowl rings and a resumè led by being a three-time (and counting) Super Bowl MVP, his impact on the Chiefs’ entire trajectory as a franchise simply cannot be quantified.

Don’t just take my word for it, though.

“He changes everything,” a rival AFC Scouting Director told me earlier this offseason. “He’s the best quarterback in the NFL. Without him, the Chiefs are one of the bottom teams in the league. With him, they compete for championships. The roster isn’t that good. Mahomes just hides major flaws.”

Mahomes will look to return to form and reignite Kansas City thanks to his patented MahomesMagic, as he works his way back from a torn ACL after passing for 3,587 yards with 22 touchdowns to 11 interceptions in 14 games last season.

The face of the Chiefs’ franchise, and arguably of the league, there’s a reason Kansas City has committed $504 million to Mahomes over the next eight years. He’s the definition of an elite game-changer at the most important position in all of sports.