NFL Teams Betting - Kansas City Chiefs - AFC West

Jamaal Charles tore his ACL in Week 3 last season, effectively ending the Chiefs year. He is back healthy this year, and the team signed former Browns cult hero Hillis to spell him. 'The White Rhino' is a mamoth of a man who gets short yardage with ease. This tandem should be something to behold in 2014. Kansas City has the 11th easiest schedule in 2014, their opponents winning .492 of their games in 2011. The start is not easy for the Chiefs, but I will be crucial. Atlanta, Buffalo, New Orleans and Baltimore provide a stiff test that KC will need to pass to be in the mix.

The chaos calmed finally, and when it did, the Chiefs were eager to return to football — with one of the NFL’s more talent-rich rosters. The 2011 season was stained by injuries to key players, disagreements between former coach Todd Haley and general manager Scott Pioli, and ultimately the replacement of Haley with defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel late in the season. The Chiefs hope 2014 will be a calmer time, a period that finally sees permanent results from four years of rebuilding.

Quarterback Matt Cassel is seen in Kansas City as one of the few unproven pieces, and the grousing was highlighted when the Broncos signed former Colts star Peyton Manning — and likely shot to the top of preseason AFC West predictions.

In the meantime, the Chiefs spent their offseason building around Cassel. They fortified a weak offensive line, brought in veteran running back Peyton Hillis, and gave Cassel one more vote of confidence that, if all goes right, he can be the quarterback to lead the Chiefs to their first Super Bowl in more than four decades. Even with better days seemingly on the horizon, this could be Cassel’s last chance.