Kansas City @ Carolina - 1:00 PM
The Kansas City Chiefs finally lost a football game, and if it was not for an unlikely blocked field goal, the Chiefs would have lost two games in a row. Now 9-1 on the season, KC still does hold the first seed in the AFC, so they will have home-field advantage during the playoffs if this current standing holds. The AFC West and NFC South play each other this season, so we have the Chiefs traveling to face the Carolina Panthers, a team now riding a two-game winning streak.
Honestly, the Chiefs do sometimes play down to their opponents, so the Panthers may be able to do enough to hang around in the game for at least the first half. Carolina was on their bye this past week, so they’ll come into this game well-rested for what that is worth.
However, there is a reason why the Panthers are 3-7 and why the Chiefs are 9-1. These two teams could not be further apart. Kansas City is looking to become the first team in the history of the NFL to win three Super Bowls in a row, and the Panthers would probably be lucky to win another game this season.
Patrick Mahomes has not be all that efficient in 2024, but the defense has definitely held their own. Mahomes could run into a turnover or two at the hands of the Panthers defense, so Carolina could benefit from some short fields here and there.
But the Panthers offense simply does not have enough to keep up with the Chiefs, so while they can hang around early, this could be a game where KC pulls ahead at the start of the second half and never looks back.
It would be the upset of the season if the Panthers found a way to beat the Chiefs.
Just kidding! Let’s do it.