We rank the seven teams remaining on the Chiefs schedule in terms of how big of a threat they pose to the Chiefs.
After a great first half of the season and a timely bye week, the Kansas City Chiefs are in a great position for the second half of the season. With the AFC’s third and fourth seeds dropping games this weekend, the Chiefs have a two win lead over the playoff seeds below them, while being only one game behind the top seed in the NFL.
The Chiefs are only a few wins away from locking up their playoff spot, and with some help from the top seed’s remaining opponents, they might be just a few more wins away from a first round bye in the playoffs. However, the last seven weeks of the Chiefs’ regular season looks to be the toughest stretch yet this season, and wins are not guaranteed.
So we took a look at the Chiefs’ remaining seven games and ranked them on based on how big of a threat they pose to the Chiefs’ chances of success.
7. Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos were touted this offseason as not only a potential playoff team, but a team that could seriously threaten the Chiefs position as division leader. New faces like Melvin Gordon and Jerry Jeudy were supposed to elevate the Broncos offense to new levels, while Drew Lock was hailed as the answer at quarterback
Then the season started and everything fell apart for the Broncos.
First it was the injuries to star players like Von Miller before the season or Lock in the first few weeks. Then it was inconsistent and often poor defensive performances. From there, Lock has looked miserable as the team’s starter after returning from injury and the Broncos don’t seem close to competing.
This weekend, the Broncos were embarrassed by the Las Vegas Raiders in a 37-12 loss, largely due to Drew Lock’s four interceptions. The team is failing, the players are starting to phone it in, and despite the Broncos still being mathematically in the race for a playoff spot, it looks like they are playing for nothing.
The Chiefs’ first win over the Broncos was a dominant team win that saw touchdowns scored on all three phases of the game. The next game will be against a much less optimistic Broncos team, and will be at Kansas City. This is the easiest win left on the Chiefs’ schedule and maybe the closest thing to a free pass.