The Kansas City Chiefs will try for back-to-back wins for the first time since last December when they travel to Indianapolis Sunday to take on the winless Colts.

For the Chiefs to do that, they are going to need to continue to rely on various play-makers to give them the spark they lost when guys like Jamaal Charles and Eric Berry were lost for the season.

Here are five players to watch this Sunday.

Branden Albert

Branden Albert may be having his breakout season. Albert has always been solid at LT for the Chiefs but he has never been able to dodge the offseason talk that he should be moved to RT or G. The fact of the matter is, Albert may not be a Pro Bowler yet but he is clearly the best tackle the Chiefs have. Moreover, he is pretty consistent and usually isn’t a liability like a guy like Barry Richardson.

Branden has played well the last couple of weeks, and he actually helped spark KC’s stagnant running game last week as well. Runs behind Albert averaged over seven yards.

The Chiefs will need him to continue his hot streak vs. the Colts. He’ll likely be dealing with Dwight Freeney, a player he was able to hold pretty well in check when these teams met a year ago. If Albert can do it again, he’ll give Matt Cassel a chance.

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The Kansas City Chiefs look to get their first win of the season Sunday when the 0-3 Vikings come to Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs are running out of time if they want to save their season and they will likely have to overcome more injuries this week as there is a chance both Brandon Flowers and Jon McGraw could be out.

Here are five players that will need to step up if the Chiefs want to defeat the Vikings.

Matt Cassel

The Matt Cassel bandwagon is slowly sinking into the sea. If there is anyone left on it, this could be Cassel’s last chance to save them.

The Chiefs offense is in a bad way. They only have one running back that can produce, and he can only do it part time. Without a productive passing game, the Chiefs won’t be able to produce points. The Vikings are pretty soft against the pass. Cassel will have to watch out for Jared Allen, but the Vikes are vulnerable in the secondary.

When Jamaal Charles was in the lineup, the Chiefs were able to lean on him and the running game if Cassel was struggling. Unfortunately, Charles is gone, and he isn’t coming back this year. Guys like Bowe and Breaston are play-makers but they can’t throw the ball to themselves. As such, the offense and maybe the season, lies in the shoulders of the QB.

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Houston showed up in preseason. Now he needs to show up against the Lions.

Matt Cassel

The entire team is playing like garbage and that isn’t putting Matt Cassel in a very good position to succeed. That being said, the dude has to step up. The line play may be inconsistent and the running game non-existent but he has enough weapons at his disposal now, Moeaki or no Moeaki, that he should be getting the job done. He’s missing wide-open receivers in favor of check-downs and passes to the flat.

We’ve seen Cassel play well. His game against the Titans last season was fantastic. The Chiefs need that Matt Cassel to show up and pull them out of this funk. He’s the only one that can do it. Jamaal Charles, remarkable as he is, isn’t going to be able to get much going if teams don’t fear Cassel. If Matt can’t step up and make defenses pay by making accurate passes and smart reads over the middle of the field, the Chiefs are in for a long season.

And they’ll be in the market for a new QB.

Jim Zorn, I’m looking at you.

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The Kansas City Chiefs will kick off their 2011 season tomorrow at Arrowhead Stadium when they face the Buffalo Bills.

The 2011 preseason left more questions than answers heading into the regular season. Fortunately for the fans, the waiting is over. We’ll have a much better idea of who the 2011 Chiefs are after tomorrow’s game.

Here are five players you should keep an eye on.

WR Steve Breaston

Breaston was KC’s “big” free agent pickup. He failed to really light things up in the preseason leading many to wonder how big of an impact he’ll have on the team’s offense.

With injuries to Tony Moeaki and Jonathan Baldwin, Breaston becomes even more important. Somebody has to help keep the heat off of Dwayne Bowe. If Breaston can step up and make some plays things will be a lot easier for Matt Cassel.

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