Kansas City Chiefs: Stealing one player from every AFC West rival
By Jacob Milham
The Kansas City Chiefs' seven-year reign atop the AFC West has been nothing short of historic and shows no signs of slowing down. Their divisional rivals—the Denver Broncos, Las Vegas Raiders, and Los Angeles Chargers—have all struggled to match the Chiefs' dominance. Kansas City took over the division after Peyton Manning's retirement, securing seven consecutive division titles, which ties the second-longest streak in NFL history along with the Los Angeles Rams' achievement from 1973–1979.
All three teams in the division have attempted to stockpile talent to challenge the Chiefs. The Broncos made an all-in move with quarterback Russell Wilson but finished last in 2022. The cash-strapped Raiders face difficulties scoring at their own stadium, and although wide receiver Davante Adams provides a significant contribution, he can only do so much. The Chargers emerged as the clear second-place team but suffered an embarrassing postseason loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, dampening their momentum.
Kansas City, on the other hand, boasts a remarkable 44-6 record against divisional opponents in the past 50 games. No team has exhibited such dominance in their division since the Cleveland Browns achieved a record of 43–5-2 over 50 games from 1947–1952.
While the Chiefs have the potential to match the New England Patriots record of 11 consecutive division titles, their ultimate goal lies in winning Super Bowl rings. To achieve continued success in both the regular season and the postseason, the Chiefs must maintain a talent advantage over their opponents. General manager Brett Veach has made notable contributions through strong draft classes, allowing fans to forget about his abysmal start. Additionally, the team has had few misses in the free agency market.
Despite their near decade-long run of success, let's explore how the Chiefs could gain another edge. If the Chiefs had the opportunity to acquire a player from another team, who would it be? For this exercise, we will assume the player is available for a single season and their contract does not have to fit in the Chiefs cap space. Let's begin!