2016 NFL Draft grades: Chargers, Raiders make waves in AFC West

With the 2016 NFL Draft over, it's time to take a look at how each team did addressing its needs. This time, we'll take a look at the AFC West.

Despite winning the Super Bowl, the Denver Broncos faced a big hole at quarterback when Peyton Manning retired and a deal for Colin Kaepernick fell through. John Elway ultimately found his man in the first round, trading up for Memphis' Paxton Lynch. Denver also had to shore up its league-best defense after losing a few key pieces in free agency, in addition to finding offensive role players that better fit Gary Kubiak's scheme.

Fresh off their first playoff win since 1994, the Kansas City Chiefs entered the draft mostly looking to keep the band together. Their top-shelf defense is getting up there in years, and Alex Smith isn't getting any younger, so some injection of youth will be needed. In addition, Justin Houston's ACL injury casts his entire 2016 season into doubt. Kansas City has more question marks than you might expect from a 11-5 team that made the Divisional Round.

After years of toiling in the basement, the Oakland Raiders are finally heading in the right direction. Derek Carr looks like the real deal as a franchise quarterback, while Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper lived up to their extraordinary hype. The Raiders entered the draft needing to add the right pieces on defense if they want to keep their momentum going and make a real playoff push.

Despite having Philip Rivers, the San Diego Chargers are a team without much of an identity. Injuries ruined the team on both sides of the ball as it stumbled to a 4-12 record in 2015. With the team trying to sell a stadium proposal, the on-field product must improve in order to rejuvenate fan enthusiasm. Thankfully, they made the right start by drafting defensive stud Joey Bosa with the No. 3 spot.

It's an open question as to whether Lynch is ready to start Week 1, but the analysts generally liked Denver's aggressive move up to grab him. DE Adam Gotsis is a nice value pick at No. 63 and could help ease the loss of Malik Jackson. Analysts also liked the fourth-round pick of RB Devontae Booker, who is a big upgrade over Ronnie Hillman as the change-of-pace back behind C.J. Anderson. Overall, the Broncos didn't hit a home run, but analysts have few outright criticisms of this class.

The Chiefs went out of their way to get value, trading out of the first round and then drafting DT Chris Jones in the second round. Jones should be an immediate contributor in the Chiefs' rotation, but analysts were less impressed with their later picks. Kansas City took two cornerbacks in KeiVarae Russell and Eric Murray, although neither player projects as a 2016 starter. They also used a fifth-rounder on QB Kevin Hogan, who seems kind of redundant when they already have a pair of long-term projects in Aaron Murray and Tyler Bray. Outside of NFL.com's enthusiastic grade, this draft didn't do much to wow the analysts.

The Chargers pulled the first real surprise of the draft, taking DE Joey Bosa at the No. 3 spot. It ended up being a pleasant surprise, because Bosa is one of the best overall defenders in this year's class and should immediately upgrade San Diego's defense. They built on that pick by drafting TE Hunter Henry, the heir apparent to Antonio Gates, in the second round. Third-round center Max Tuerk should be a boon to the offensive line. San Diego's draft haul was fairly impressive, although some analysts docked them for not doing enough to address the safety position after losing Eric Weddle in free agency.

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