NFL betting predictions 2024: Why the Chiefs will win the AFC West over Raiders and Broncos

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Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes, Chris Jones
(Getty)

Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and the Chiefs have become one of the NFL's greatest dynasties of all time. They have won two consecutive Super Bowls and three in the past five years, a span during which they have won four AFC titles. They're not just the favorite to win their ninth straight divisional crown in 2024 — they're a massive favorite to become the first team to ever win three Super Bowls in a row.

Of course, divisional newbie and prized Chargers offseason hire Jim Harbaugh will have something to say about all that. Pro Bowl quarterback Justin Herbert finally has a Super Bowl-caliber head coach — and Los Angeles finally has some structure on the defensive end of the field. Could the Bolts shock the world and halt Kansas City's decade-long dominance in the AFC West?

Let's take a look at the odds for the Chiefs, Chargers, Raiders, and Broncos, and unveil the best bet to win the AFC West in the 2024 NFL season.

MORE: Where Mahomes and Herbert sit in SN's QB rankings

AFC West odds 2024: Chiefs heavily favored (again)

All odds courtesy of Sports Interaction.

Team Odds
Kansas City Chiefs -300
Los Angeles Chargers +375
Las Vegas Raiders +1100
Denver Broncos +2200

To nobody's surprise, the Chiefs serve as heavy favorites to win the AFC West. They yield the shortest divisional odds of any team in the NFL. The Chargers rank second, while the Raiders and Broncos both serve as long-shots.

Los Angeles will likely pique the interest of many bettors in the divisional runner-up market. At last glance, L.A. was -110 to finish second in the AFC West. If you're certain Kansas City will win its ninth-straight divisional crown and you think Vegas and Denver have no shot, you're better off wagering on the Bolts to finish second than the Chiefs to finish first. 

AFC West odds 2024: Best bet to win the division

Chiefs (-300)

Big surprise: the Chiefs are the best bet to win the AFC West once again. Considering some analysts and pundits have been talking about "Chiefs or the field" props for the Super Bowl, it shouldn't shock anyone in the football world that Andy Reid's squad is the team to beat in the division. 

Harbaugh should do great things for the Chargers, who desperately needed a jolt after years of big-talent rosters with underwhelming results. But Rome wasn't built in a day, and Los Angeles lost a ton of skill-position strength this offseason. Plus, you can't guarantee the health of Herbert, who played just 13 games last season. 

Vegas and Denver should be revitalized, too — passionate self-described 'lifelong Raider' Antonio Pierce hypes the black-and-silver up like few coaches since John Madden has, and Bo Nix brings new hope to the Mile High after a couple of disastrous seasons with Russell Wilson. 

But these teams would still be a long way from contending in any other division in the NFL, never mind the division of the team with +500 odds to three-peat the Super Bowl.

Kansas City has the most talented QB of all time in Mahomes, the best pass-catching tight end ever in Kelce, an elite pass-rusher in Chris Jones, a Hall-of-Fame coach in Andy Reid, and plenty of explosive weapons in violent RB Isiah Pacheco and wide receivers Rashee Rice, Hollywood Brown, and rookie speedster Xavier Worthy. The rich got richer — and this team, like Taylor Swift — isn't leaving the limelight in 2024.

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Sloan Piva is a content producer at The Sporting News.