ESPN AFC West Blog

Posted by ESPN.com's Bill Williamson

Weekend mailbag:

Leawood KS: Bill, last sunday was tough on this bronco fan now living in chiefs country...that said, how can you overlook Ryan Clady's rookie impact for the broncos? Without time to throw, Cutler isn't going to get those balls to Royal...
BW: Clady has been excellent. It is remarkable what he and right tackle Ryan Harris have done this season. Cutler, like you said, has gotten great protection. Clady, the No. 12 overall pick from Boise State, has been a terrific pick thus far.
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Jamie from San Diego: Bill, I read your article about impact players from the draft, and I thought you overlooked someone in the AFC West. In my opinion, despite being a nickel back, Antoine Cason has become an impact player for the Chargers. In the first game of the season he forced the fumble that led to what should have been the game-winning touch down. He made a big hit on Mushin Muhammad and knocked the ball loose. In week 2, he picked off Jay Cutler in the fourth quarter as the Broncos were driving for a late score. The Chargers wond up scoring on the ensuing drive, which would have been the decisive score if not for on Ed Hucculi. He also defensed two passes. Last week he made two of three key tackles in the redzone to force field goal attempts on plays they may have resulted in scored. I believe one of them was made on Russell on a designed 4th down run near the goal line. He has proven to be an asset in coverage, and is extremely physical in a secondary that often lacks toughness. He is also a very sure tackler. He is seeing more and more time. He has already made an impact and will become more and more of a factor as the season wears on. I think he deserves mention over Schillens in the "under the radar" section, as he is impacting the outcome of games for an expected contender.
BW: Hi Jamie, first off, I love Antoine Cason. I have been singing his praises since the draft. He is a great ball hawk and he is going to be a playmaker for years. I couldn't agree with you more. The reason why I chose Schilens as the "under the radar pick" is because Cason is not under the radar. He is a first-round pick and he is pretty well known. Schilens is a fourth-round pick. Thanks for reading.
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Kyle from Gilbert, AZ: Hey Bill, First of all, great job and thanks for all of the wonderful updates. I am wondering how Ryan Torain's rehab is coming along? Do you see him making a splash in the rotation and competing with goaline touches? I appreciate your time and response. Thanks!
BW: Thanks, Kyle. Torain is hoping to play Oct. 20 at New England. He was hurt in early August when broke his elbow. The Broncos expect him to be a big boost to the running game.
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Sal from Las Vegas: Do you think the Chiefs should blow the rest of the season in order to have a shot at Tebow, Stafford, and the kid from Missouri? We really need a franchise quarterback and now is as good as any.
BW: No way. They need to fight. This team probably won't win more than five games anyway. The Chiefs are going to get a good draft pick so they can go after a young quarterback if they choose and they probably will. But they need to keep working hard now.
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Ralph from Clintwood: Hey Bill sent you an email earlier and never got no reply. My question was do you think the Broncos will turn back to running the ball as they should have and i wished they would have against the chiefs?
BW: They will try to get it going. The return of Torain will help.
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Jared from Las Vegas: Are the Chiefs better off leaving Brandon Carr as one of their starting corners? He played against Brandon Marshall, one of the hottest receivers in the game, and did a remarkable job. Should Surtain stay benched?
BW: The Chiefs like Carr and he will likely continue to play. It's all about the future in Kansas City and Carr, a fourth-round pick, is a big part of it. He needs to continue to play.
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Rob from NY: Shanahan must be filing away the asterik comment by Davis as further motivation
BW: It's just more ammunition for Shanahan. He has been hearing Davis rip him for years. Shanahan's best revenge has been to beat Davis' team and he's gone a pretty good job of it. No current head coach has beaten one team more than Shanahan has beaten Oakland.
Thanks and keep them coming.