NFL power rankings: Stacking up all 32 teams amid 2018 training camp

The Los Angeles Chargers are still the likely favorites to win a weakened AFC West in 2018, although they suffered a major blow when they lost Pro Bowl cornerback Jason Verrett to an Achilles tear in training camp.

Verrett was a major piece to L.A. defense, and it’s going to be tough for the Chargers to replace his level of production.

The Chargers could cover it up, though, particularly if edge rushers Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram pick up where they left off last year. And there’s no reason to assume they can’t.

An even bigger question, however, will be if quarterback Philip Rivers can replicate his 2017 efforts and not revert back to the turnover-laden numbers he had the season before. While he throws one of the ugliest balls in football, there’s little questioning his effectiveness when he’s on.

And with second-year guard Forrest Lamp returning from a season-long knee injury suffered his rookie year, Rivers should be much better protected too.

Still, Verrett’s loss forces a drop in NFL power rankings.