Kansas City Chiefs: Four bold predictions for the 2020 season

The Kansas City Chiefs will be the top-ranked offense

At this juncture, this point should be a given. If the Kansas City Chiefs even come close to boasting both the Offensive Rookie of the Year in Clyde Edwards-Helaire and the NFL Most Valuable Player in Patrick Mahomes, there’s little doubt the offense would rank number one in most if not all major categories.

The biggest caveat I could see here is one that requires discussion. The 2018 offense was incredible in part because it simply had to be as the supporting unit to an incredibly challenged defense. It’s easy to argue if the 2018 Chiefs had a defense like the 2019 Chiefs, then those offensive numbers would have taken a sizeable hit.

In stark contrast, in 2019 the Baltimore Ravens were able to maintain the top-ranked offense while boasting the fourth-ranked defense according to Football Outsiders DVOA. Unfortunately, this is the exception rather than the rule.

In the last 10 seasons, the only teams to maintain the top offense while maintaining a top-10 defense are the 2019 Baltimore Ravens and the 2015 Seattle Seahawks. On average for that period, the top offenses’ counterpart on defense averaged a ranking of 18.3. The Chiefs defense ended the 2019 season ranked 14th, but they were much better at the end of the season than the beginning.

Even so, the Chiefs remain uniquely poised to duplicate the results of the Ravens and Seahawks next season. Their talent on offense is second to none, and especially in a season where familiarity will play a massive role, the Chiefs have a huge advantage returning almost every starter from their Super Bowl team.