Raiders lead All-AFC voting

The Raiders are being recognized as one of the better teams in the AFC despite not making the playoffs.

Oakland counted five spots of the Professional Football Writers of America, with Khalil Mack being the first player ever to make the squad as both defensive end and outside linebacker.

The Raiders led all AFC teams with five All-AFC selections, counting Mack as two, while the Patriots had four AFC honorees.

Taiwan Jones made the list as kick returner, Rodney Hudson at Center, and Latavius Murray at running back.

Mack was also voted All-NFL at end and linebacker.

How I voted

Neither Gabe Jackson or Brandon Scherff made the final vote for the All-NFL team, though they got my vote. I considered Scherff one of the most impactful players in the league and credit him as a large reason that Washington was able to turn things around despite playing in a weak conference.

Robert Griffin never had as many clean pockets.

I also gave David Amerson the nod at All-AFC corner, though I may have been the lone vote there. He isn’t a household name, but might be the best waiver claim of the last 20 years.

Amerson finished 2015 second in the NFL with 25 passes defensed and also picked four passes. He was a force, and was deserving in my mind.

Cam Newton was my All-NFL quarterback with Julio Jones and Antonio Brown on the outside sans Todd Gurley and Adrian Peterson in the backfield.

Charles Woodson and Eric Berry got the nod at safety on my ballot, and in total, seven Raiders made my ballot including special team leaders Sebastian Janikowski and Marquette King.

Muhammad Wilkerson and Leonard William, both of the New York Jets, led at defensive tackle — the Jets use an odd front, so scrutinize if you must. AFC Linebackers Justin Houston and Von Miller were my outside linebackers, while Whitney Mercilus gets the middle.

The balloting has finished, and the results of the 2015 PFWA vote will be rolled out every day this week, including rookie of the year and executives of the year.

2015 PFWA ALL-NFL TEAM

Offense

QB – Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers

RB – Doug Martin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers; Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings

WR – Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers*; Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons

TE – Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots*

C – Ryan Kalil, Carolina Panthers

G – Zack Martin, Dallas Cowboys; Marshal Yanda, Baltimore Ravens*

T – Tyron Smith, Dallas Cowboys*; Joe Thomas, Cleveland Browns#

Defense

DE – Khalil Mack, Oakland Raiders; J.J. Watt, Houston Texans***

DT – Geno Atkins, Cincinnati Bengals; Aaron Donald, St. Louis Rams

OLB – Khalil Mack, Oakland Raiders; Von Miller, Denver Broncos*

MLB – Luke Kuechly, Carolina Panthers#

CB – Josh Norman, Carolina Panthers; Patrick Peterson, Arizona Cardinals

S – Eric Berry, Kansas City Chiefs; Tyrann Mathieu, Arizona Cardinals

Special Teams

PK – Stephen Gostkowski, New England Patriots

P – Johnny Hekker, St. Louis Rams

KR – Cordarrelle Patterson, Minnesota Vikings

PR – Darren Sproles, Philadelphia Eagles*

ST – Justin Bethel, Arizona Cardinals

* – repeat selection from 2014

# – consecutive selections in 2013, 2014 and 2015

*** – consecutive selections in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015

2015 PFWA ALL-AFC TEAM

Offense

QB – Tom Brady, New England Patriots*

RB – Chris Ivory, New York Jets; Latavius Murray, Oakland Raiders

WR – Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers#; DeAndre Hopkins, Houston Texans

TE – Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots*

C – (tie) Rodney Hudson, Oakland Raiders; Alex Mack, Cleveland Browns

G – David DeCastro, Pittsburgh Steelers; Marshal Yanda, Baltimore Ravens*

T –Joe Thomas, Cleveland Browns#; Andrew Whitworth, Cincinnati Bengals*

Defense

DE – Khalil Mack, Oakland Raiders; J.J. Watt, Houston Texans***

DT – Geno Atkins, Cincinnati Bengals; Ndamukong Suh, Miami Dolphins

OLB – Kahlil Mack, Oakland Raiders; Von Miller, Denver Broncos#

ILB – Derrick Johnson, Kansas City Chiefs

CB – Chris Harris Jr., Denver Broncos*; Marcus Peters, Kansas City Chiefs

S – Eric Berry, Kansas City Chiefs; Reggie Nelson, Cincinnati Bengals

Special Teams

PK – Stephen Gostkowski, New England Patriots

P – Sam Koch, Baltimore Ravens

KR – Taiwan Jones, Oakland Raiders

PR – Jarvis Landry, Miami Dolphins

ST – Matthew Slater, New England Patriots**

* – repeat selection from 2014

# – consecutive selections in 2013, 2014 and 2015

*** – consecutive selections in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015

** – consecutive selections in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015

2015 PFWA ALL-NFC TEAM

Offense

QB – Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers

RB – Doug Martin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers; Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings

WR – Odell Beckham Jr., New York Giants; Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons

TE – Greg Olsen, Carolina Panthers*

C – Ryan Kalil, Carolina Panthers

G – Zach Martin, Dallas Cowboys*; Josh Sitton, Green Bay Packers#

T – Tyron Smith, Dallas Cowboys*; Trent Williams, Washington Redskins

Defense

DE – Ezekiel Ansah, Detroit Lions; Michael Bennett, Seattle Seahawks

DT – Aaron Donald, St. Louis Rams; Kawann Short, Carolina Panthers

OLB – Thomas Davis, Carolina Panthers; Lavonte David, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

MLB – Luke Kuechly, Carolina Panthers#

CB – Josh Norman, Carolina Panthers; Patrick Peterson, Arizona Cardinals

S – Tyrann Mathieu, Arizona Cardinals; Earl Thomas, Seattle Seahawks***

Special Teams

PK – Dan Bailey, Dallas Cowboys*

P – Johnny Hekker, St. Louis Rams#

KR – Cordarrelle Patterson, Minnesota Vikings

PR – Darren Sproles, Philadelphia Eagles*

ST – Justin Bethel, Arizona Cardinals#

* – repeat selection from 2014

# – consecutive selections in 2013, 2014 and 2015

*** – consecutive selections in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015

Jason Leskiw is SFBay’s Oakland Raiders beat writer and member of the Professional Football Writers of America. Follow @SFBay and @LeskiwSFBay on Twitter and at SFBay.ca for full coverage of the Oakland Raiders.