Is the Nikon 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S VR DX Nikkor Lens sharp? This page visually answers that question. Shown above are 100% crops from a lab-captured 16mm f/11.0 test image. Observe the contrast and resolution of these results.
Is the Nikon 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S VR DX Nikkor Lens set to 16mm f/11.0 sharper than the Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX VR II Nikkor Lens set to 35mm f/5.6? The image quality comparison above also answers that question. Switch between the results to see the sharpness differences between these lenses.