The 2025 season saw the Kansas City Chiefs miss the playoffs for the first time in over a decade. It was also the first time the Chiefs had posted a losing record since Andy Reid arrived in town. Needless to say, it was a weird season for Chiefs Kingdom.
Will the Chiefs bounce back in 2026? For the most part, people seem to think that, yes, the Chiefs will bounce back and be their normal selves in 2026. Former NFL executive Mike Tannenbaum is not one of those people, however.
"The Kansas City Chiefs will miss the playoffs for a few reasons, starting at quarterback," Tannenbaum said on Get Up. "Will Patrick Mahomes be ready to go from Day 1? Secondly, they lack explosiveness at receiver. Last year, they were 16th in the league in yards per pass attempt. Some questions about Rashee Rice, will he be ready to go? And then thirdly, at corner... They lost two great corners in Jaylen Watson and Trent McDuffie. Now, they did draft Mansoor Delane, re-signed L'Jarius Sneed, but for a great Kansas City Chief team... [It's] unusual to have three important question marks."
Mike Tannenbaum explains why he thinks Chiefs will miss playoffs again
Let's break this down, shall we?
Most of the reports have been that Patrick Mahomes looks good to go and should be ready in time for that Week 1 showdown with the Broncos. The NFL schedule-makers sure didn't give the Chiefs any leeway early on either. Now, questioning if Mahomes will be his usual self could make sense here but Tannenbaum merely questioned whether or not he'd be ready to go.
Next up is the wide receiver position, which is certainly a reason to worry. As Tannenbaum noted, Rashee Rice might not be back and even if he is, the trio of him, Tyquan Thornton, and Xavier Worthy isn't all that terrifying. The hope is that the addition of Kenneth Walker to the backfield will open things up in the passing game though.
Lastly, there's the cornerback position, which, again, is a legitimate concern. Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson are now in Los Angeles and the Chiefs spent their first-round draft pick as a replacement at the position. Will Mansoor Delane be able to immediately step in and be a difference-maker? Can L'Jarius Sneed be the player he previously was in Kansas City or will the Chiefs see the version of him that the Titans saw?
All of these concerns from Tannenbaum are legitimate reasons to worry about the Chiefs for sure. The good news though is that if Mahomes is healthy and ready to roll, he's enough reason to have faith in this team bouncing back in 2026.
Hopefully, Tannenbaum is dead wrong with this take.
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