NFL power rankings, Week 18: KC Chiefs slide after loss to Bengals

The formula makes sense: if a team wins, they go up; if they lose, they go down. Still, it hurts a bit to see the Kansas City Chiefs slide from their season-high point in various NFL Power Rankings heading into Week 18 after a frustrating loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Chiefs knew they would be in for a tough matchup at Paul Brown Stadium in Week 17, and it didn’t help to face the Bengals so late in the year. As with any young team with burgeoning stars, there’s a world of difference between playing such a roster in the first month and the last month of the season. Chiefs Kingdom saw proof of that on Sunday (along with other things not worth mentioning here).

In the end, the Chiefs fell in a close contest by a final score of 34-31 as the Bengals kept the ball away from Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense for any sort of last gasp. As the clock expired, the Chiefs not only watched the end of their NFL-high eight-game win streak come to an end but the torch symbolizing the top seed in the AFC was passed to the Tennessee Titans in the process.

Let’s survey where the Kansas City Chiefs stand in the latest round of NFL power rankings.

The Chiefs are still headed for the postseason and should still be among the most favored teams to make it to Super Bowl LVI. However, let’s take a look at how far they fell following a loss and what analysts are saying in this week’s NFL Power Rankings.

Here at FanSided, Russell Baxter had the Chiefs as the top overall team in the NFL after Week 16’s defeat of the Pittsburgh Steelers, but now they are at No. 3 staring up at the top teams in each conference: the Titans and the Green Bay Packers.

The Bleacher Report staff is one that remains confident in the Chiefs even after suffering a loss. They moved them down a single notch to No. 2 overall, just behind the Packers, but they did note, “a Chiefs team that looked all but unbeatable of late suddenly seems a little vulnerable.”

Danny Kelly of the Ringer agrees with that position and has the Chiefs just after the Packers in his “top shelf” teams, as does the ESPN list of panelists, who also have the same one-two punch at the top. The Titans have to be pissed about their inability to earn greater respect.

Not everyone is as enamored with the Chiefs as these others, however. Dan Hanzus over at the NFL’s official site has the Chiefs at No. 4, with the L.A. Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers creeping in above them in the rankings. By the way, Hanzus doesn’t list the Titans until No. 7.