It's never a bad thing for people to feel optimistic about your favorite NFL team, and in the case of the Kansas City Chiefs, NFL Network's Jeff Chadiha is a believer.
"Right now, the AFC west is open for business," Chadiha explained after the Chiefs first training camp practice on Wednesday. "Denver won the Super Bowl last year, but with their quarterback issues? Oakland's a rising team, but they have to prove themselves. I look at where the Chiefs were last year—if they had been healthy and beat New England?
"If they're able to fix some of those things, they should be right in the mix."
For Chadiha, most of the belief in what this team can accomplish centers around the man leading them—head coach Andy Reid.
"If you look at [Reid's] track record the first three years in Philadelphia, [he had] a lot of success," Chadiha explained. "The fourth year they went to the Super Bowl. They didn't win it, but they actually got there. This team is tracking in the same direction.
"You look at experience, you look at talent and you look at coaching—they've got everything needed to win a championship."
The Chiefs have put together three straight winning seasons under Reid's leadership, including two playoff appearances and a 30-0 victory over the Houston Texans in the AFC Wild Card matchup last year. The win was the franchise's first in the playoffs in more than two decades.
Things have been moving in the right direction over the past few years and there's plenty of optimism about this team heading into 2016.
When asked which player he's most excited to watch on the Chiefs this season, Chadiha went with an offensive playmaker.
"Travis Kelce. I really look at him and where he's come as a player, being in his first Pro Bowl last year," Chadiha noted. "I look at what Greg Olsen did for Carolina last year, what Tyler Eifert did for Cincinnati. [Kelce] can be that kind of player in this offense and certainly Reid loves tight ends. Alex Smith has made a living throwing the ball to tight ends.
"I expect [Kelce's] numbers to go up quite a bit to getting that 85-90 catch category, 1,000 yards and double-digit touchdowns. I think he should have a pretty good year."
Photo highlights of Travis Kelce
When asked which team he believes will win the AFC West this year, Chadiha went with the team that has finished second for the past three seasons.
"I like the Chiefs," he proclaimed. "I think they're going to win 12 games if Justin Houston and Eric Berry— those things work themselves out, and Jamaal [Charles] is who he is.
"I see them being a 12-4 team and winning the AFC West."
