AFC playoff picture: The Chiefs have real chance at No. 2 seed
By Grant Tuttle
After a rough start in Cincinnati, New England pulled away in a blowout. In K.C. there was never a doubt. Here is how the Chiefs could be the 2 seed in AFC.
In an NFL “snow game” on Sunday the Kansas City Chiefs put a beatdown on the Denver Broncos, who were flying high with consecutive victories against the Houston Texans and L.A. Chargers with rookie quarterback and Kansas City native Drew Lock at the helm.
Although Lock was met with cheers from 40 or more relatives and friends, he learned quickly about playing against a good defense. Denver was held to just 3 points just like they were when they played the Buffalo Bills three weeks ago. The snow was not easy to play in, I’m sure, but that was not a problem for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City passing offense.
Mahomes and company put up a total of 340 passing yards in the snow against a talented Broncos defense. The third-year quarterback hit Travis Kelce 11 times for 142 yards. Additionally, Tyreek Hill accounted for the Chiefs 2 touchdowns. Needless to say, both the offense and the defense played a solid game. Kansas City continues to trend in the right direction and looks better and better every week. It appears that the Chiefs are primed for deep playoff run. Now, it is all about where they will be seeded.
The New England Patriots are the only team that truly stands in their way and, for now, the Patriots look as vulnerable as ever. After losing two straight to the Texans and then the Chiefs, the Patriots started flat against the Bengals, allowing the 1-12 team to hang around in the first half. It wasn’t until Andy Dalton turned the ball over four times in the second half that the Patriots ran away with a victory. Winning in the NFL is never easy, but winning against the Bengals is the closest it should come.
The Bengals are not good in any facet of the game. In fact, offensively the team is 22nd in passing offense and 27th in rushing offense (yards per game). Defensively, the Bengals are just as pitiful with the worst run defense in the NFL and 15th against the pass. The Bengals essentially can’t move the ball or stop the ball moving on them. The Patriots are not falling apart, but they could certainly drop a game in the next couple of weeks and the Chiefs could certainly win the rest of their games.