Patriots vs. Chiefs: Kansas City opens as 3-point favorites over New England

The Kansas City Chiefs opened as three-point favorites over the New England Patriots as both teams prepare to face each other on Sunday.

At this point, it seems as though bettors, or at those who set the lines for them, aren’t ready to begin to pick a winner between the Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots. The odds for the AFC Conference Championship game opened with the Chiefs as three-point favorites. Given that they are the home team, that’s basically saying the match-up is a wash.

The three-point line is certainly understandable. Both teams have significant reasons to believe that they have what it takes to move on to Super Bowl LIII. The teams already faced off once this season, back in Week 6, and the Patriots won on a last-second field goal for a 43-40 final. The Chiefs looked slow in the early going, but late game heroics from Patrick Mahomes made for a thrilling ending.

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The way the Chiefs are playing these days should have most teams scared. Instead of the porous defense seen through the first 15 games of the season, the Chiefs have played inspired football on the defensive side. They’re tackling better and cornerbacks are locked down in coverage. The Chiefs front seven led the NFL in sacks this year, and they’re continuing to dominate in the postseason.

That alone should have the Patriots thinking differently about this game than last time, but it’s also here in the playoffs that New England shines. The Patriots have a Super Bowl ring for each finger on one hand, an incredible feat that will likely remember them as the greatest dynasty in NFL history. Here they are once again on the brink of a Super Bowl appearance. Is anyone really ready to bet against Tom Brady?

Therein lies the quandary for bettors. Do you go with the Hall of Fame veteran making yet another run? Do you go with the league’s newest QB sensation, an elite 23-year-old who threw for 50 touchdowns in his first year playing in the NFL? Is it Andy Reid’s time or will Bill Belichick collect yet another trophy?

For now, the line is basically even. That’s likely the right line for two teams so evenly matched.