All season long, it was the same comments coming from fans and football analysts alike:
The Kansas City Chiefs weren’t very good, winning games but barley skating through their schedule with close victories that exposed who they were as a team.
You heard it. I heard it. We all heard it.
it was wrong.
As we enter the final week of the season, the Chiefs will rest their starters this week as they’ve locked up the top seed in the AFC. Kansas City is 15-1 and will need to win two home playoff games to get to the Super Bowl in their quest to three-peat.
Yeah, not the same team. Not any good. Not the same Chiefs.
All those who said that forgot the Chiefs aren’t about the regular season. We saw that last year when they went on the road and beat the Bills and Ravens in the playoffs on their way to winning it all.
This time, on their way to the top seed, they showed some flaws. But they still won games. That’s the sign of a good team. It’s also the sign of a team that will be playoff ready.
The Chiefs will end this season as the top team in my Power Rankings, no matter what happens this week. They earned it. It’s hard to win 15 games in the NFL.
The flaws have been there all season, but with Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid, this team always has a chance to win it all and always seems to right things at the right time — which is December into January. The three-peat possibility is real.
By moving left guard Joe Thuney to left tackle, the pass protection has been better. By getting Hollywood Brown back at receiver, they now have two players who can run on the outside in Brown and Xavier Worthy. That changes the dynamic of the offense.
The Kansas City defense hasn’t been as good this year, but with Chris Jones and Trent McDuffie, they have stars to carry it, and we know stars show up in the playoffs. Jones always does.
Mostly, though, the postseason will once again be about Reid and Mahomes. They are both on their way to being considered the greatest ever at their jobs. If they win it all again to make it three Super Bowls in a row, they are in the conversation.
So, like I said all season long, don’t worry about the Chiefs. The regular season is a tuneup for this group,. With two home playoff victories, they will be back to their third consecutive Super Bowl with a chance to win it.
Not very good, huh?
Yeah, sure.
Biggest Movers
Rk
Teams
Chg
Rcrd
1
Chiefs
They will rest guys this week to get ready for the playoffs. Win two and they are in the Super Bowl again.
—
15-1-0
2
Bills
They have locked up the second seed in the AFC and Josh Allen looks to be the MVP. The defense came up big against the Jets, and they will need to play like that in the playoffs.
—
13-3-0
3
Lions
They can score and score and score. With their defense, they have to score 40. But with their offense, they might just score that every game to get to and win a Super Bowl.
—
14-2-0
4
Vikings
They continue to keep on winning. If they beat the Lions this week, they have the top seed in the NFC playoffs. That would be a heck of a season.
—
14-2-0
5
Eagles
The defense bounced back against the Cowboys after a rough showing against the Commanders. Does Saquon Barkley play this week to try to get the rushing record?
1
13-3-0
6
Ravens
They went to Houston and crushed the Texans as Lamar Jackson continued to roll. He is squarely in the MVP race with an outstanding season.
1
11-5-0
7
Commanders
Two weeks in a row with Jayden Daniels winning games with touchdown drives late. They will be a tough out in the playoffs.
1
11-5-0
8
Packers
They waited too long to come alive on offense against the Vikings, while the defense left a lot of wide-open receivers. They have to fix that come playoff time.
3
11-5-0
9
Rams
They have clinched the NFC West title, so this week’s game with Seattle means resting players. The offense hasn’t looked good the past three games, which is a concern.
1
10-6-0
10
Buccaneers
They now control their playoff fate. Beat the Saints and they are into the postseason. The offense is rolling with Baker Mayfield.
1
9-7-0
11
Chargers
They are in the playoffs and will be a tough out if they play like they did at New England. Justin Herbert was cooking in that game.
1
10-6-0
12
Steelers
Three straight losses has this team reeling. The good news is they’ve lost to three good teams. But they have to be better this week against the Bengals and in the playoffs.
3
10-6-0
13
Broncos
They need to beat a Kansas City team that will be resting guys to get into the playoffs. That won’t be as easy as it sounds.
—
9-7-0
14
Texans
They got rocked by the Ravens on Christmas Day and seem to be limping into the playoffs. They are locked in as the fourth seed, but they don’t look like one.
—
9-7-0
15
Bengals
They are still alive in the playoff race, but need to beat the Steelers and hope the Broncos and Dolphins lose. Nobody will want Joe Burrow and gang in the playoffs.
—
8-8-0
16
Seahawks
They are out of the playoffs with the Rams now locked in as the NFC West champ. They faded big time down the stretch.
1
9-7-0
17
Falcons
Losing to the Commanders means they need the Saints to beat the Bucs to get into the playoffs, while they also need to beat the Panthers. It doesn’t look good.
1
8-8-0
18
Dolphins
They are still alive after beating Cleveland without Tua Tagovailoa. But they need to beat the Jets and get help. Tagovailoa’s health is still an issue.
4
8-8-0
19
Colts
What the heck happened against the Giants? The playoffs are done and so begin the questions about this regime. Is anybody getting fired?
3
7-9-0
20
Cowboys
The momentum from the past month came to a halt in the blowout loss to the Eagles. They’ve had way too many injuries this season.
1
7-9-0
21
Panthers
They need to get Bryce Young some weapons for next season to improve the passing game. They lack speed.
1
4-12-0
22
Cardinals
They showed well in the loss to the Rams, but didn’t make the plays late to win it. This is a team to watch for next season.
1
7-9-0
23
49ers
The injuries proved to be too much for them this season, but they showed some real fight against the Lions. That was veteran heart showing up.
—
6-10-0
24
Bears
One more game and then they can focus on finding a new coach to fix the culture. They have lost 11 straight games, which is brutal to think about for Bears fans.
—
4-12-0
25
Raiders
They have hurt their draft position the past two weeks, but this staff doesn’t care. They will almost certainly be gone.
3
4-12-0
26
Jaguars
They’ve won two of three, but does it matter? It still seems like big changes are coming — and there should be.
4
4-12-0
27
Saints
This season is ending badly, and this team has a ton of work to do this offseason. This might be a few years for a complete rebuild for this group.
1
5-11-0
28
Jets
The season comes to an end this week, and it’s been nothing but disappointment. The preseason expectations of a Super Bowl seem like years ago as they ready to find a new GM and head coach.
1
4-12-0
29
Browns
They could end up with one of the first two picks. Would that mean it’s time to draft a quarterback? It should.
4
3-13-0
30
Titans
They will have a real shot to take one of the top two quarterbacks in the draft. They will need to do so after what has happened this season.
1
3-13-0
31
Giants
They went out and won a football game and now might not get a chance to pick a quarterback. Bad move.
1
3-13-0
32
Patriots
The roster needs a lot of help to build around Drake Maye. It sounds like Jerod Mayo will be the coach for at least another year.
3
3-13-0
