The Chiefs’ offense has been dominant through 12 weeks. Even statistical evidence supports it being one of the best of all time.
Aside from seeing just how poorly the Raiders’ and Broncos‘ high-dollar offseason escapades would turn out, the Kansas City Chiefs returning to Cincinnati was the most highly anticipated moment of the year for Chiefs Kingdom. It is finally here, and we are in store for a showdown.
Wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase is back for the Bengals, and Joe Mixon has cleared concussion protocol. Even without them, the Bengals were top-10 in total offense. The Chiefs, however, are leading the league in four of the most prominent offensive metrics.
Check out the following stats:
The Chiefs lead the NFL in PPG, YPG, yards/play and 3rd down pct this season
— Doug Clawson (@doug_clawson) November 30, 2022
Last team to do all 4?
The 2001 Rams
Incredible, incredible season after losing Tyreek
The 1999-2001 Rams, “The Greatest Show on Turf,” were the most historically high-powered NFL offense of all time. Now, the 2022 Chiefs—who traded away Tyreek Hill, who happens to lead the league in receiving yardage this year—are atop the NFL like nobody else has been since those Rams.
More impressively, the Chiefs came into the season with the most daunting schedule in football ahead of them. They have played four of the top-10 most efficient defenses in football, they face the Bengals this week, and they still have to match up with Denver twice. Somehow, there appears to be no sign of this machine slowing. Receivers have gone down, running backs have struggled to get going, offensive line play has been sloppy at times, and for some reason, they just can’t be stopped.
Whether it’s just the coined Mahomes Magic that we’re so conditioned to or not is up for debate. I personally believe there is something in the air this year. The defense has been spectacular, the quarterback is in MVP form, the head coach is eons ahead of his counterparts schematically, and the general manager can’t help but land impact players at bottom dollar.
There were countless moments between May and September where I have called for this to be either the best or the worst Chiefs team of the Andy Reid era, and for all intents and purposes, it is, thus far, the very best. Sunday’s game against the Bengals will be electric, and a win would be oh, so sweet, but stepping back from the microscope makes clear just how great the potential of this group is. Come on, stretch run!