Entrenched as the National Football League's villains given their run of dynastic success for most of the last decade, the Kansas City Chiefs have grown quite accustomed to playing in primetime on a regular basis. It feels good for players to showcase their skills in front of a national (and even global) audience, and the franchise benefits considerably in its profile and popularity.
While the calendar might become tough to contend with at times—the Chiefs played on every single day of the week last season in 2024—the Chiefs were comfortable enough under such bright lights that they wanted to take over Christmas, per a recent report from Nate Taylor of The Athletic.
Specifically, the Chiefs wanted to own the NFL's newer initiative to play games on Christmas day. Last season, Kansas City traveled to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers on December 25 and walked away with an easier-than-expected victory as Patrick Mahomes threw three touchdowns in a 29-10 victory at Heinz Field.
It's best for the Chiefs that their scheduling request wasn't approved.
Earlier this offseason, Taylor reported that Clark Hunt's team made an official request to the NFL's scheduling powers-that-be to become a new holiday fixture on Christmas. But apparently the league is tapping the brakes on such hopes.
Mike North, the NFL's Vice-President of Broadcast Planning & Scheduling, recently appeared on a podcast, It's Always Gameday in Buffalo, to discuss the ins and outs of making the league's complex schedule. He was also asked about the Chiefs' query and hedged a bit in response.
“I’m not sure that’s gonna become a tradition quite the way Thanksgiving is. I mean, think about what it took for that tradition, right?" said North. "The Lions, since the ‘30s. The Cowboys, since the ‘60s. We didn’t commit to a third site on Thanksgiving when we brought that back about 20 years ago; we rotated that around.
"I'd imagine we’re gonna keep rotating Christmas around, too. Never say never. Let’s see what the next few years bring, but I don’t think we’re today gonna commit to a permanent third host for Thanksgiving, a permanent host for Black Friday, or a permanent host for Christmas," he continued.
While Hunt and the Chiefs' brass might be disappointed, the truth is that such a request was always a bit much.
To commit every year to play on Christmas means the Chiefs would be forced to suit up on odd days—even days that typically don't feature football games. The league already throws the Chiefs around like a rag doll to appease their broadcast partner, which often leads to unfair stretches on the regular-season schedule. Even worse, it takes a physical toll on the players who are often asked to suit up just a few days after their last game.
The Chiefs are already a team that plays three or so more games than every other team year after year. To make the scheduling that much more unpredictable—to add even more unnecessary variables for a few more eyeballs—is not worth it in the end. The opportunity cost is not enough even if the Chiefs' organizational leadership would disagree.