The Kansas City Chiefs saw their streak of nine straight AFC West division titles snapped this past season when they not only didn't win the division but finished in third. While the Denver Broncos ultimately took the divisional crown, the Los Angeles Chargers also finished ahead of Kansas City in the standings.
It was a tough pill for Chiefs fans to swallow and the reality of the situation is that now, after years of K.C. dominating the AFC West, the rest of the division has either caught up (Broncos and Chargers) or is on pace to do that if things break their way (Raiders).
The Chargers, in particular, are a team that look to be getting more and more lethal. I know Chiefs fans laugh about the annual "Chargers are Super Bowl contenders" conversations that float around year after year but, let's face it, Jim Harbaugh has already proven to be a difference-maker for that franchise.
In a recent write-up about why the Cowboys are considered to be dark-horse Super Bowl contenders by FanSided's Jason La Canfora, the Chargers also got some love from execs.
"I was shooting the bull the other day with longtime NFL general manager Marty Hurney, who remains very plugged in across the league, and we were chatting a bit about the Chargers offseason, actually, when he uttered the following words:
“I think the Chargers and the Cowboys are the two most improved teams in the league, for me, as far as moving up to a position where they could really win the whole thing," Hurney said. "They both have the QB and they have that QB-head coach combination and they have had a great offseason..." La Canfora shared.
Chiefs fans are used to Chargers getting Super Bowl hype every offseason
The good news for Chiefs fans is that this is seemingly the same story we've seen before, only in a different year. The Chargers are always hyped season after season but always fall flat. Despite looking strong the past two years during the regular season and reaching the playoffs under Harbaugh, the Chargers have petered out in the postseason. Not only that but they've played quite poorly in their two playoff games under Harbaugh.
That will obviously have to change if the Bolts want to be taken seriously as a Super Bowl contender. The Chiefs once had that same stigma surrounding them but it changed once they got Patrick Mahomes and proved they could get over the hump.
Can the Chargers do the same? Will they be a legitimate threat to the Chiefs in the coming years? Chiefs fans certainly hope the answer to both of those questions is no.
Add us as a preferred source on Google