Chiefs New Year’s wish: Health and a date with the Texans

I do think the Chiefs could survive the loss of Abdullah if he was unable to play (though they would miss his coverage ability). Yet, without Houston and Hali at 100 percent, then their Super Bowl hopes are slim to none. The only team they could likely beat without them beating without are the Houston Texans.

Whether it’s Brian Hoyer or Brandon Weeden, neither quarterback would have much success against the Kansas City secondary, especially since the last time they played Sean Smith was sitting out for his three-game suspension. Even with a weakened pass rush, the front seven could still generate enough problems that Hoyer or Weeden wouldn’t be able to overcome them.

However, quarterbacks like Ben Roethlisberger, Ryan Fitzpatrick and even Brock Osweiler will find ways to exploit the defense if given enough time, especially since each of them have multiple options to target.

The Steelers have a bevy of weapons including Antonio Brown, Martvis Bryant, Markus Wheaton and Heath Miller.  The Jets have benefitted from having two legitimate wide receivers in Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker.  The Broncos best receiver is Emmanuel Sanders but Demaryius Thomas can still be a dangerous player.  The Texans? They’ve got DeAndre Hopkins, the only legitimate pass-catcher on a below-average offense.  You can’t stop Hopkins completely but defensive coordinator Bob Sutton will come up with schemes to prevent him from making those highlight-reel grabs that seem to happen every game.

Maybe all the worry is for nothing.  Maybe Houston, Hali, Abdullah and any other players dealing with injuries (such as Jah Reid, who hasn’t practiced all week with knee inflammation) all play and nobody gets re-injured.  Maybe they win end up winning the division and are able to use that victory as a driving force to get to the Super Bowl.  My hope is that we’re not sitting here next week wishing that Andy Reid had just held out a couple of his key players just one game longer.