Chiefs aren’t who we thought they were

Make no mistake; the season is far from over. There are still a dozen games to play and few teams on the remaining schedule present the kind of challenge that a pissed off Steelers team did on Sunday. That said, these kinds of problems rarely sort themselves out without significant change. The way this Chiefs team is currently playing, it’s entirely possible that they finish third in the division and find themselves on the outside looking in when the postseason rolls around.

It’s time for Reid to reconsider his stranglehold on an offense going nowhere. Alex Smith can no longer hide behind his reputation as little more than a good steward at quarterback. Low expectations are killing this offense at a time where Kansas City should be having success. It should be noted that Reid and Smith aren’t the only guilty parties. Some of the responsibility has to fall on general manager John Dorsey.

His offensive line is still an issue after three full seasons, Dee Ford has yet to live up to his draft promise and the defense doesn’t have anything that remotely resembles a pass rush.

Hopefully, there will be serious reflection at One Arrowhead Drive over the bye week. It’s not time to panic, but it’s 20 minutes past “time to worry.” The team is approaching a more manageable portion of its schedule, but beating bad teams is great deodorant for a group that isn’t playing good football on a regular basis.

The Chiefs shouldn’t settle for surviving their schedule and backdooring the AFC playoff picture. In the event that they even get there, they should expect to stick around a while. Beating teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers, in their stadium, is how you become that team. It’s clear that right now, the Chiefs aren’t.