Early Thoughts (Week 16): Kansas City Chiefs Serving Notice

The Kansas City Chiefs are back in the postseason for the second time in three years. Could they still capture the AFC West?

The Kansas City Chiefs are one of this year’s poster children for those ridiculous pundits who like to “end the season” before it’s truly over. After an opening-day win and a subsequent five-game losing streak, the team is riding a nine-game winning streak and is headed to the playoffs for the second time in three years.

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Sunday’s 17-13 win over the visiting Cleveland Browns obviously wasn’t a work or art or easily accomplished. But it once again showed how well this team’s defense is playing and how this club can win those grind-it-out kind of contests.

“We still have one more week left and there’s still a lot to play for,” said Kansas City quarterback Alex Smith to Dave Skretta of the Associated Press (via The Columbus Dispatch).

Then again, this is a team that has had a lot to play for all year. When you dig yourself a 1-5 hole, it takes you four more wins just to get back to the .500 mark. Obviously Andy Reid’s club got that winning feeling and hasn’t let go of it for more than two months.

“We didn’t panic, that’s the most important part,” said Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson to Skretta. “You can’t get too far in the hole, and we got as far as you can get to still make the postseason.”

It is funny that we mention the defense and it was a day in which coordinator Bob Sutton’s unit allowed 232 yards on the ground, 108 by Browns’ quarterback Johnny Manziel and another 88 and a score by running back Isaiah Crowell. All told, Cleveland rolled up 368 total yards in the contest but still only managed a 13 points.

Dec 27, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel (2) is called for intentional grounding while pressured from Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Dee Ford (55) in the second half at Arrowhead Stadium. Kansas City won the game 17-13. Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports

A few weeks ago at a rainy Arrowhead Stadium, the Chiefs held on for an ugly 10-3 victory over the San Diego Chargers. Once again, it was far from a masterpiece but a win is a win.

A team that gave up 125 points in their first four games this season (31-plus points in 3 straight outings) has surrendered only 145 points in their final 11 contests. The Chiefs’ defensive unit has allowed only 16 offensive touchdowns in their last 11 outings after this same unit surrendered 15 touchdowns during a 1-3 start.

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At 10-5, Reid’s team is still not out of the running for the AFC West title. We shall all see what happens Monday night when the 10-4 Denver Broncos host the Cincinnati Bengals.

The key here for the Chiefs is obviously momentum, something they appear to have plenty of these days. And that’s pretty important for a franchise that has not had any success in the postseason since 1993, a year the club won a pair of playoff contests and then succumbed to the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship Game. That was the start of eight consecutive postseason losses, tied for the longest-such streak in NFL history…and counting.

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In a league where there are more teams with losing record than winning ledgers, the Chiefs have as good of a chance to win a Super Bowl than any of the other contenders.

Don’t let the team’s recent history in the playoffs fool you. It would be like assuming that this club’s season was over after that 1-5 start.