The Kansas City Chiefs took care of business against a two-win team in Week 9, and now they have a road trip to take on the three-win Atlanta Falcons in Week 10. Expectations for a win are obvious, but no one should overlook the bright young offensive talent at work in Atlanta these days—from running back Bijan Robinson to wide receivers Drake London and Jahan Dotson to tight end Kyle Pitts.
it's also true that the Falcons sent the San Francisco 49ers to the loss column, so it's not as if they can't surprise a contender from time to time. And that's what makes this week's game pitting two offensive powerhouses so interesting.
What do our writers think of Week 10? Our picks for Chiefs at Falcons are below.
Christian Ainsworth
New Chiefs receiver Josh Downs makes an immediate impact with nearly 100 receiving yards, while Kansas City’s returning defensive rookies hold Atlanta to under 200 yards of total offense. MVP of the game goes to Mansoor Delane, who snags an INT and 3 PBUs. Chiefs 27, Falcons 20
Price Carter
Usually, the intangibles (a great podcast you should check out on Wednesday here at Arrowhead Addict) of a game are overblown. However, the Falcons played last Sunday in Madrid and got wholloped. They return home and trade away a team leader in Jessie Bates and their starting center a week before they go on bye. It's hard to imagine the Falcons being emotionally charged up for this game. They do have a defense that can cause some chaos, but if the Chiefs keep it clean on offense (penalties and turnovers) and limit Bijan Robinson, I like their chances against a team facing quite a bit of adversity. Chiefs 28, Falcons 14
Matt Chabot
Josh Downs has limited snaps, but Cyrus Allen has his best game of the year, going for 75+ yards. Chiefs 27, Falcons 21
Matt Conner
The climb gets much tougher in two weeks, so these games against the Falcons and the Cardinals (Week 11) are must-wins if K.C. wants to avoid late-season headaches for playoff positioning. There's no reason why Kenneth Walker won't put up numbers mirroring his best yet in Week 10 against a very vulnerable ATL run defense. Chiefs 33, Falcons 18
Bransen Gibson
I'm a little worried about facing a frisky Falcons team that beat the 49ers not that long ago. But even if Bijon Robinson has a big game and even if Michael Penix isn't terrible, I still think the Chiefs have too much firepower to win. Atlanta's run defense has been awful the past month, and I'm tipping Kenneth Walker to feast again and lead the Chiefs to a 7-2 record. Chiefs 27, Falcons 17
Lyle Graversen
The Chiefs rebounded last week against the Jets and now face a Falcons team that traded away 2 starters at the trade deadline. The combo of Patrick Mahomes and Kenneth Walker should be enough to outpace the struggling Falcons. Chiefs 27, Falcons 16
Braden Holecek
The Chiefs were tested by young, exciting offensive weapons last week against the Jets, and the defense mostly responded how you would have wanted. It is a carbon-copy challenge this week against Bijan Robinson, Drake London, and Kyle Pitts. Kansas City will win if the defense carries things over for a positive outing. Chiefs 27, Falcons 21
Scott Loring
The Chiefs put it all together for one more week against a mediocre Falcons team. Unfortunately, this won't impress anyone outside of Kansas City, because the Chiefs' reputation is that they beat bad teams. Still, they handle what is on the schedule with ease in this one. Patrick Mahomes exceeds 300 yards passing in a barnburner. Chiefs 36, Falcons 20
Shawn O'Brate
Chiefs had some open lanes for the Jets to run through. If those holes continue to open then Bijan could easily get 100 yards. If not, Penix usually has a good chunk of time in the pocket—think about how bad the Chiefs’ D-line has been most of this season. This has all the makings of a loss for KC, especially with such a subpar receiving core. But Atlanta gifted their best CB to Jacksonville, and their D-line has been injury-prone and inconsistent. If the Chiefs leave Atlanta with a W, it will be in close, close fashion. Chiefs 32, Falcons 28
Charles Robinson
While Atlanta has some weapons that could cause the Chiefs issues, Matt Ryan and Jamal Anderson ain't walking through that door. The Chiefs got right against the Jets and are about to do the Birds dirty in Atlanta looking to clear the avian portion of their schedule, much like they did the early-season seafaring portion of the schedule. Chiefs 34, Falcons 24
Hunter Stanton
The Chiefs came back with a vengeance this past week. While Bijan Robinson is a big concern this week, expect the Chiefs to come away with a win. Chiefs 28, Falcons 14
Lucas Strozinsky
Knowing how the Chiefs operate, fully expect Bijan Robinson, Drake London, and even Kyle Pitts to go off. Nonetheless, the Chiefs will win this game and annoy us every step of the way. Chiefs 24, Falcons 20
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