Ranking KC Chiefs’ potential opponents in Wild Card round

9. Pittsburgh Steelers

Odds they meet: <1%

The Steelers’ playoff hopes are virtually done as even a 2-0 finish to the year requires a lot of help for them to make the playoffs. The positives for Pittsburgh are Mike Tomlin, their top-end defensive talent, and their starting wide receivers and tight end. Outside of that, this team lacks talent and Kenny Pickett is still just a rookie.

I’m not going to dive much deeper into this team as we saw what happened last season when they met in the playoffs. If they meet again this season, the result will likely look a lot similar. The only hope that Pittsburgh has is T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward destroying the Chiefs’ offensive line and making Patrick Mahomes’ life a living nightmare. Outside of that, I don’t see a path to victory for The Black and Gold.

8. Las Vegas Raiders

Odds they meet: <1%

The only reason the Raiders are on here is that they are technically still alive for the #7 seed, although it requires a very specific scenario that has no realistic chance of happening. Even if they manage to upset San Francisco and the Chiefs, their playoff odds are still less than 10%. Now with the news of quarterback Derek Carr stepping away from the team due to his benching, the odds seem even lower.

Despite the Derek Carr drama, the basis for not having Las Vegas last is because them making the playoffs requires them to beat both the 49ers and Chiefs, meaning they will be hot and confident with a young quarterback. Kansas City should still boat race them, but I’d be cautious playing a team that beat you and another Top 5 NFL team over the previous fortnight. In reality, the odds of the Chiefs matching up against the Raiders are so low that even Las Vegas players and coaches are already booking vacations for that weekend.