Fifth Down

It’s Wild Card Weekend! Typically the divisional weekend is my favorite weekend because it is the 8 best teams and the games are usually great. But I am extra excited for Wild Card week this time because I have no idea who the best 8 teams are. It should be a great weekend of games of unpredictable results. However, it does make it tougher to actually predict the games. But I’ll give it a try anyway.

Revenge of the Rams: Rams @ Panthers

The Rams were rolling until they went to the Panthers and things sort of got off track. Stafford uncharacteristically turned the ball over a bunch and a couple of players got injured. With all that, the Panthers still barely won. But the Rams really haven’t been the same since. They are just 3-2 since the loss and have had some bumpy games along the way. Davante Adams I believe got banged up in that game and then injured worse a couple of games later which I think. On the other side of things, the Panthers broke their streak of winning every other week by losing back to back games and finishing 8-9 but still managing to win the awful NFC South due to tie breakers. The Panthers have their moments but overall they are not a great football team. Bryce Young is wildly inconsistent game to game and sometimes play to play. He is probably their biggest weakness. The Rams on the other hand don’t have a lot of weaknesses on paper but just haven’t looked great. I think this is a good game for them to bounce back and get their swagger back as well. Stafford plays at an MVP level, Davante is back and catches a touchdown and the defense returns to form. The Rams get up early, don’t turn the ball over and never look back.

Rams 31 Panthers 17

All you need is Love: Packers @ Bears

These two teams have already played two classic games this year. The first ended with a Caleb interception. The second ended with an onside kick, a back up QB fumbling and then a Caleb TD. Jordan Love left the second game early but he will be back for this one. Will he make the difference and lead Green Bay to victory? Only one 7 seed has ever beat the 2 seed and guess who it was? The Packers when they defeated the Cowboys a couple of years ago. The Packers seem fired to avenge their loss after Love got knocked out last time. But they have also lost 4 in a row, although they sat their starters in the last game. The Bears have lost 2 in a row as well. While the Bears defense may not be great, they may get some help with some high winds that could slow down the deep ball from the Packers. However, Josh Jacobs is finally healthy and so that should help their run game. Ben Johnson and the Bears are talking about playing football for the next 5 weeks which goes against the more standard take one game at a time philosophy. I’m nervous about the Packers ability to stop the run, but as I have made clear over the season, I still don’t believe in the Bears. Give me the Packers as the only 7 seed to win a playoff game…twice.

Packers 27 Bears 20

The Hero vs the Hair: Bills @ Jags

Everybody…and I mean, everybody…loves Josh Allen. When they win and he plays okay he is just doing what the team needs him to do. When the win and he plays well, he is superman and the greatest player on the earth. When they lose, it’s because Josh Allen needs more help. Because apparently having the leading rusher, the number 1 pass defense and a great offensive line isn’t helpful. I like Josh but he gets a pass more than any Quarterback that hasn’t won anything ever. Speaking of not winning things, Josh has never won a road game. As the playoffs were approaching, people started to say with Pat and Lamar and Burrow out of the playoffs, there are no excuses for Josh. But then this week hit, and now it is “well the Jags have the better team”. Anyway, I’m sort of over the Josh Allen can do no wrong narrative if you hadn’t noticed. The Bills basically have the same team they had last year. Meanwhile the Jags have done a complete 180 and have been awesome the second half of the season. They have won 8 in a row. They beat 5 playoff teams and also beat the Chiefs and the Colts before their downfalls. They can run the ball. They can defend the run. And Trevor is playing at an elite level. Their weakness is pass defense so in theory Josh should be able to ball out against them. If he doesn’t I’m sure it is just because he needs receiving help. Putting my snarky comments aside, I do think the Jags are the better team. And they are at home and they feel disrespected being underdogs at home. Give me the hair and the Jags for the win.

Jags 31 Bills 27

The Injured vs the Dysfunctional: 49ers @ Eagles

The 49ers have really overachieved this year. They have battled a lot of injuries throughout the year. On the defensive side they lost their two best players for the season. They are young and exploitable on defense and would be even more so if they weren’t so well coached. On the offensive side they are healthish but Trent Williams is banged up and Ricky Pearsall either won’t play on Sunday or will get hurt again in the 1st quarter. On the other side, the Eagles have underachieved. Despite having a stacked team, the offense has been disappointing and sometimes disappears for halves of football. However, unlike the Chiefs the Eagles made some key trades at the deadline that really helped their defense which is now very stout. Nick Siriani is an idiot but that works in Philly were their fan base is mostly idiots as well. The 49ers have the better coaches. The Eagles have the better players. Hurts usually plays his best ball in the playoffs. I think the 49ers are just over matched and I have this bad feeling that the Eagles are going to pull their crap together and make a run. They have a chance to repeat and literally no one is even talking about it because they have been such a mess all year. But that mess still won enough games to be the 3 seed and host at least one playoff game. Unfortunately, give me the Eagles in this one.

Eagles 30 49ers 20

The team that never wins anything vs everyone’s least favorite dynasty: Chargers @ Patriots

The Chargers limp into the playoffs with back ups to the back ups playing offensive tackle. Not ideal for a playoff team. The Chargers don’t win important games anyway much less when they are dealing with injuries. But they do have some good things going for them. Their defense is playing very well. They are able to run the ball effectively and despite having an injured hand, Herbert is playing well. On the other side, the Patriots are back to their winning ways after a few losing seasons. I never minded the Patriots dynasty because I appreciate greatness. But this fan base is a little out of control. They act like it is impossible for them to lose and they are already the greatest team in the league again. They played the easiest schedule in the league. They beat exactly one team with a winning record. They are 2-2 against playoff teams. I think they are a really good team but it’s not like they are unbeatable or unstoppable. One of their weaknesses is pass rush which is good news for the Chargers. They also aren’t great at running the ball. They are fine but not great. I think this game will be close. But in the end I just don’t trust Herbert and the Chargers to actually win a meaningful game. Especially on the road. The Pats win a close one and their fan base assumes they will never lose again for the end of time.

Pats 24 Chargers 20

Houston, we don’t have a problem: Texans @ Steelers

The Texans have won 9 straight games. They have arguably the best defense in the league. The Steelers needed a missed field goal to even get into the playoffs. Rodgers has played well but doesn’t do well when pressured. And guess what, the Texans pressure a lot. The Steel curtain defense has been more of a paper curtain this year. The Texans offense is far from elite but they do enough to win games. It will be cold but that shouldn’t effect the Texans much. They aren’t your typical warm weather team. They run the ball, they play D and their QB went to Ohio State so he can handle the weather. Rodgers does have the playoff experience but he hasn’t been awesome in the playoffs for a long time. Tomlin has a winning record every year but hasn’t won a playoff game in a long time either. Yes, the Steelers are at home. Yes, they have a hall of fame QB and a hall of fame coach. But I am not overthinking this one. The Texans bother Rodgers all night and get the win.

Texans 26 Steelers 17

Instead of being bitter about the Chiefs not making the playoffs in a decade, I decided we should celebrate the team that has given us more in the last 7 years than in the rest of the franchise’s history all together. So here is my all Dynasty team.

Offensive Line: LT Eric Fisher, LG Joe Thuney, C Creed Humphrey, RG Trey Smith, RT Mitchell Schwartz

This was fairly easy. Schwartz was the arguably the best right tackle in football until his injury in 2020. He was the best player on the line during the beginning of the dynasty for 2018-2020. Trey Smith was an incredible get in the 6th round and has been solid his whole time with the Chiefs minus injury issues this year. Thuney is one of the best guards in the league and moved out to tackle multiple times as needed. Creed is probably the best center in the game. Fisher is the only non great player on the line but he was pretty good and clearly better than any other left tackle during the dynasty…not that is saying a lot.

Tight End: Travis Kelce

Trav is that dude. He had 7 consecutive seasons of 1,000 yards and has accrued over 13k yards in his career. He is first in receptions in playoff history and only second to Jerry Rice in TDs and yards. He was the only reliable offensive weapon during the whole dynasty.

Wide Receiver: Tyreek Hill, Sammy Watkins and MVS

Tyreek was the easy one as he was so explosive and could change the game in seconds. He is one of the best at catching contested catches especially for his size. As the saying goes, “Tyreek down there somewhere.” The other two spots were tougher. Lots of pretty good but not great receivers. I gave the nod to Sammy because his main issue was injuries. When he was on the field he was awesome. And he helped Pat get settled in the first year. He had the game sealing td catch to send us to our first super bowl in 50 years and a huge catch down the sideline against Richard Sherman to help us win the Super Bowl. MVS might be an odd choice to some but since no one else is great, I went with the guy who came up big when it mattered. In our 2022 run when we finally beat the Bengals, we basically ran out of receivers but MVS came up with multiple big catches including a TD. In 2023, he had a rough year, but in the playoffs, caught a key pass down the sideline against the Bills, the game sealing catch against the Ravens and a td in the Super Bowl. Not too shabby.

Running Back: Damien Williams, Isaiah Pacheco

Woof. The running back room has been thin basically the whole dynasty. Once Kareem was let go, Damien Williams stepped in. He was solid in 2019 and came up with some big runs and catches. He had 100 yards rushing and 2 tds in the Super Bowl and arguably could have been the MVP. I know Pacheco sucks now, but he was solid in 2022 and we really leaned on him in 2023 helping us win back to back Super Bowls.

Quarter Back: Patrick Mahomes

I mean what can I say that I haven’t already said. Bottom line, he’s the difference maker. Reid was always a good coach and the Chiefs were a good team off and on throughout my life time. Pat made both great. 17-4 in the playoffs. Never lost an AFC playoff game in regulation. 2 MVPs, 3 Super Bowl MVPs and 7 straight AFC championship games and 5 Super Bowls in 6 years.

DE: Frank Clark, George Karliftas

Clark was just okay during the regular season but was huge come playoff team. He was a good leader to the D line as well trying to help the young guys including Karliftas. George isn’t awesome but he was solid and good against the run as well as rushing the passer. This year he sucked, but we don’t need to talk about that.

DT: Chris Jones, Derrick Nnadi (by default)

Jones is the one constant and the leader of the defense. He was awesome throughout the 7 year run and had the biggest sack in the biggest moment when he took down Joe Burrow and saved us from losing to those idiots once again. Nnadi is the other DT, because well, you have to have 2 and he started pretty much every year of the dynasty.

LB: Nick Bolton, Dru Tranquill, Leo Chenal

Linebacker was a weakness of the team until these guys showed up. Bolton is just a machine against the run and always around the ball. Dru was a solid addition and instrumental at helping us win back to back Super Bowls. He is solid in coverage and a good blitzer. Leo is a jack of all trades and made huge play after huge play on defense and special teams.

Nickle Corner: Trent McDuffie

McDuffie is awesome in the slot. He’s great in coverage as long as he isn’t covering a 6’4 guy. And he is great at blitzing as well. He made several big plays blitzing as well as in coverage.

CB: L’ Jarius Sneed, Charvarius Ward

Sneed was also awesome at coverage and blitzing. He was a great tackler and could really do it all. The 2023 run may have been his biggest impact when he completely shut down Tyreek and had a td saving play forcing the fumble of Zay Flowers at the goal line against the Ravens. Ward was the best corner from the first half of the run. He was great in coverage and solid against the run. We got him for basically nothing, turned him into a star and then he got paid by the 49ers and we beat him in the Super Bowl.

Safety: Justin Reid, Tyrann Mathieu

You can’t have the dynasty team without the Honey Badger. He wasn’t great his final year but you saw how much he was missed in the 13 second game. He is just a great dude with a redemptive story and everyone in Chiefs kingdom loves him. Reid took his spot and was solid for 3 years leading the secondary and helping us reach 3 super bowls in 3 years. Reid is a little bit bigger and a little bit better tackler and at blitzing. But both were awesome and made big contributions to our success.

K: Harrison Butker

Butker had a couple rough stretches during the regular seasons but overall was great and got even better in the playoffs. He had multiple game tying and game winning kicks including the game winners against the hated Bengals and in the Super Bowl against the Eagles. He had a bunch during the regular seasons as well. Basically if you weren’t up by more than 3, we were going to win or tie the game.

P: Tommy Townsend

I’m not sure when Townsend took over for Colquitt but Tommy has the better leg and I find him less annoying so I went with him.

KR/PR: Mecole Hardman

Lots of choices here, but I felt like Hardman had to be on the team. Sure other guys had big plays like Toney and Skyy Moore but Hardman was on pretty much all our winning teams. He would sometimes leave, get cut by another team and then come back. But he had some big plays and was always dangerous with the ball in his hands. Plus he sort of bookends the dynasty with his amazing kick return that kicked off our comeback against the Texans in our first Super Bowl run and then caught the game winning td in our last Super Bowl Victory.

Special Teams player: Dirty Dan Sorenson

Dirty Dan! You can’t have a dynasty without the worse coverage safety I have seen in my lifetime. Despite giving up many big plays and having only slightly more athletic ability than I have, Dan was always in the right place at the right time with big sacks, tackles and interceptions. And he was a key part of our special teams unit coming up with several huge plays throughout the first half of the dynasty including stopping a fake punt and causing a fumble on a kickoff against the Texans.

So there you have it. My all dynasty team. Who did I leave off that should have been on there?

Well the 2025 season is finally over and as a Chiefs fan, I can say thank goodness. Now we know what Raiders fans feel like every year. Speaking of the Raiders, did you know that they lead all teams with the most losses in the last 30 years? They also have the most coaches with 15 over the same time span. Ouch. But don’t worry, we aren’t done talking Chiefs as I will have some stuff on them throughout the playoffs. But in good news I don’t have to rank them as I’ll only be ranking the teams left going forward. So lets dive in to who is left starting with team 14 all the way to my top ranked team.

14. Panthers

The Panthers lost to the Bucs in a rainy mess of a game of two teams that aren’t good. Then they needed the Falcons who just fired their coach to beat the Saints which did happen. So we have everyone’s favorite thing, a team with a losing record hosting a playoff game. They did beat the Rams before, so they have that going for them, but they are the team least likely to go to the Super Bowl.

13. Chargers

The Chargers have a good team. Unfortunately, some of them aren’t playing. They may be the team to beat in the West next year, but they are just too banged up to go on the road and beat the Patriots and then the Broncos and then some other team. Per usual, this is not the Chargers year.

12. Steelers

While it was sort of fun to watch Aaron Rodgers win the division and make the playoffs by beating the Ravens, they also lost to the lowly Browns the week before. I wouldn’t put it past them to win one more game, but they are not making a run.

11. Packers

Much like the Chargers, they are just too banged up to be taken seriously. They are limping into these playoffs and I don’t see them making much noise. However, they have surprised in the playoffs before so LeFluer and Jordan Love know what it takes. I’m just skeptical they will be able to stop the other team from scoring.

10. Bears

I think Ben Johnson has done a heck of a job. I like their running backs and skill position guys. But their defense is suspect, and although Caleb has had some big moments, I still don’t trust him, especially to win 3 or 4 games in a row.

9. Texans

This one is pretty simple, I love their defense and don’t love their offense. They could go to the Super Bowl or lose in the first round because of it. But their defense is sensational and will keep them in every game. And they have won 9 in a row which is hard to ignore.

8. 49ers

49ers are pretty much the opposite, I love their offense but their defense has issues, namely too many injuries. But Shanahan will have the offense well prepared and the defense is lead by an excellent coordinator. I thought they really needed home field advantage and the bye to make a realistic run.

7. Bills

They have Josh Allen and the experience going for them. Their run defense is terrible and their receivers aren’t very good. Everyone is saying Josh Allen needs to get it done because Lamar, Burrow and Patrick aren’t in the playoffs. But it should really be because Patrick is out. Josh is 0-4 against the Chiefs when it matters most. Of course that isn’t Josh’s fault because nothing ever is. Josh is also 0-4 on the road in the playoffs which isn’t ideal as the 6 seed.

6. Eagles

They have problems. They are sort of a mess. But they win a lot and have a shot to go back to back which no one is talking about. Sirianni is an idiot but he is their idiot. The team is super talented. I’m real nervous they are going to pull their crap together and make a run.

5. Patriots

They have arguably been the most dominant team all year but they have also played the easiest schedule in the league. Drake Maye is awesome. I trust Vrabel to have them ready. But they will play more good teams if they make a run than they did all year. I think they absolutely have a shot to make a run and won’t be surprised if they do. I don’t not believe in them, I just have a little doubt because of the competition.

4. Rams

They have been a little shaky the last few weeks. I think getting Davante Adams back will help the offense get back to their normal ways. I’m not sure what is going on with the defense either. Maybe the Rams peaked too early, but they are still the team I trust the most because of the coach and the Quarterback.

3. Broncos

The Broncos have a great pass rush. They have won a lot of close games. But they have also played an easy schedule. I trust teams that win close games though. I don’t like Sean Payton, never have. But he has been here before so the team should be well prepared. I’m just concerned about how the team has struggled against the back up Chargers and back up Chiefs the last two weeks. Typically they have played to the level of their competition but three weeks ago they got worked over by the Jags. So, although I believe in them maybe more than most, the recent game bias is in effect for me.

2. Jaguars

I am sure now that I believe in them, they will lose this weekend. But they have the most balanced team in the AFC. They are great at defending the run. They can run the ball. Their QB is playing at the highest level of his NFL career. Their coach, who I thought was pretty goofy early on, seems to have this team completely all in and moving on all cylinders. They have already gone to Denver and won fairly easily. What’s my hesitation? Trevor could revert to old Trevor habits under the pressure. But my biggest hesitation is just that they are the Jags.

1. Seahawks

Do I all of the sudden trust Sam Darnold? I do not. But that defense is suffocating. They have the best home field advantage outside of Arrowhead and they have athletes everywhere. Now Sam can still Darnold all this up and they could lose in the divisional round. But with that D at home, they got as good of a shot as anyone to make it to the Super Bowl.

My votes for regular season awards:

MVP: Matt Stafford, Runner up: Drake Maye Who will actually win: Matt Stafford

It’s a two person race that I have gone back and forth on. But Maye hasn’t played anyone, and if a guy throws for 4,700 yards and 46 TDs he typically gets the award.

Offensive Player of the Year: Christian McCaffrey, Runner up: JSN Who will actually win: JSN

JSN has been great and I won’t be mad if he gets it. But McCaffrey has 1200 yards rushing and almost a thousand yards receiving. Over 2k of offense from one guy and he basically was the 49ers offense for a stretch when everyone was hurt.

Defensive Player of the Year: Myles Garrett, Runner up: Doesn’t matter, Who is going to win it: Myles Garrett

When a guy sets a new single season sack record, they win Defensive player of the year. Even if Joe Burrow made it a little easier than it should have been.

Coach of the year: Liam Cohen, Runner up: Mike Macdonald, Who is going to win: Mike Vrabel

Sooo many great choices this year. Kyle Shanahan, Sean Payton, Demeco Ryans and Ben Johnson also deserve consideration. Any of them are deserving of the award. I personally give Cohen the edge just because of what he is getting out a team that was a disaster the last few years. But Macdonald has been outstanding in back to back years in Seattle. Vrabel is deserving as well and certainly turned around the Pats quickly and will likely win due to East Coast bias.

My Ever changing Super Bowl Prediction: Rams over Jags

I still believe in the Rams even though I probably shouldn’t. And riding the hot hand in the AFC with the Jags. They will both probably lose this weekend because that’s how my football season has been going.

Tune in later this week for my top 10 Chiefs memories from Wild Card Weekend and then Friday I’ll drop my predictions for this weekends games.

Starting next week the blog will be focused on the playoffs even though everybody’s favorite team won’t be in it. But since the Chiefs are already eliminated and some of the emotions have worn off that as well as their move to stupid kansas, let’s dive into what they need to do this offseason in no particular order to make 2026 better than 2025.

Cut Jawann Taylor

This one is the move I am most certain will happen. It won’t be tough to say goodbye to the injury prone penalty machine. If we don’t cut him, his cap hit is 27 million. If we cut him it is 7 million. Pretty simple choice here. He can go be someone else’s problem for much cheaper.

Get new running back and receiver coaches

Preferably ones that have coached the position before. Our receivers don’t seem to be getting better and even though our running back room lacks talent they also seem to take bad angles and run straight into people. Following Mitchell Schwartz on twitter has taught me that part of the issue is coaching and he knows more than I do, so I’m going to believe him.

Trade Trent McDuffie…if we can get a first round pick

I like McDuffie. But we can’t pay everyone. However, he isn’t worth trading for less than a first rounder when we can just tag him if we can’t sign him to a reasonable deal. If we trade him, then perhaps we can sign Watson. But we can only afford one of them at most.

Get a new Offensive Coordinator

Matt Nagy seems like a nice guy. Andy likes him a lot and thinks he should be a head coach. If he doesn’t get a job, he could risk getting an OC job somewhere else and calling plays directly. If he does neither, I am 100% sure he will be back. Despite what most of us think, and the numbers show, Andy does not think Nagy is the problem. But the numbers tell a different story. Mahomes and the offense had significantly better numbers when Bienemy was the OC. While, I don’t think it is fair to completely blame Nagy, there are some glaring differences and lot of them are mental issues. Penalties, drops and bad routes were not part of the offense from 2018-22 under EB. But all have been problems under Nagy. Since he isn’t the one calling the plays then the OC has to put together a great game plan and more importantly make sure the team is being held accountable. EB would be available or they could bring back Kafka or even better an outside voice would be great. Really at this point, anyone but Nagy.

Rebuild the running back room

Pacheco was a cool story and helped us win a couple of super bowls. But since coming back from his injury, he has not been great. In fact he has been quite bad. And he isn’t explosive at all and never has been. Kareem Hunt is great at short yardage but I don’t think you can have a roster spot just for that. If he is the 4th back, then great. But he should not be part of the overall plan. Smith is a rookie and seems to be their answer to the McKinnon role which is fine. But we need to either draft a running back in the first 3 rounds or get a free agent or both. Lets not believe Dameon Pierce is the answer especially after the Texans didn’t want him. There should be plenty of free agent running back options like Rico Dowdle, Tyler Alliger, maybe Breece Hall, Javonte Williams and more. And we will likely have a top 10 pick and I am fine with drafting the Love kid from Notre Dame. But all the good teams have two dudes that they roll out there every other series and we don’t have one dude.

Time for some new schemes

We need to reset the playbook. I really believe that 80% of the current playbook right now is everyone run around and get open and Pat will run around until you get open and throw it to you. This is extremely hard on everyone not named Travis Kelce. There are no easy schemed throws to help Pat. Not everyone can do what Travis does. Hell, I’m not even sure Travis can do it anymore. Also we need a new run scheme. The RPO stuff just doesn’t get it done anymore. All the good teams are going under center 40-50% of the time and doing all sorts of things from those formations. We are so predictable. If we are under center it is 90% run, 9% play action and 1% straight drop back. If it is shot gun, then it is 80% pass, 20% run that is slow developing with slow backs that no one is scared of and never works. We got to get some new ideas and adjust to how football in the league is being played now.

Lets talk receiver changes

Hollywood is cool and all but he isn’t coming back. I’m fine with JuJu coming back if he doesn’t play so much. If we don’t get an impact free agent which I think is unlikely, we should draft a receiver who is against man defense. I am also a big supporter of resigning Thornton. I never understood why he played less when Rice came back. Rice should have taken JuJu’s snaps, not Thornton’s. I’m honestly okay with rolling out Rice, Thornton and a healthy Worthy out there most of the time and seeing what happens. I know some people are down on Rice. But he was coming off a significant injury and has to go to jail for 30 days which I am sure was on his mind. I expect him to have big bounce back year next year. But stop running guys in and out every play. Let’s roll with our guys and see what happens. Also, can we see a ball thrown to Jalen Royals this year? I’m not sure what he has to do to stay on the field for more than 5 plays.

draft, sign and then draft again edge rushers

We literally have no one who can win one on one besides Chris Jones and he is always double teamed. We have to get enough guys so that we don’t have to blitz just to get pressure. Everyone knows we are going to blitz. Everyone has seen every single Spags blitz because he has had to use every single one of them the last 4 years. No one has won one on one since Frank the shark Clark was on the roster. Hell, sign him for all I care. This is maybe the most important thing we can do.

Play the players with the most upside, not the guys you “trust”

Conner playing over Hicks is just stupid. Who cares if the player does the assignment right if they aren’t talented enough to make any plays. It’s the Dan Sorensen issue on defense paired with the CEH issue on offense. I mean why did we call up CEH from the practice squad twice instead of Elijah Mitchell? Mitchell has already proven to be the better player. If your scheme is so complicated that a running back can’t pick up the blocking scheme or a young receiver can’t figure out the play book or your most talented safety can’t succeed, then maybe it is time to change the scheme. Bottom line, no more CEH, JuJu and Conner and more Pierce or Smith, Royals, and for the love of all things, put Jaden Hicks out there at safety!

Get more reliable O line swing guys

It took about 5 plays to realize Pole was better than Morris. So keep him. But honestly I like our starting line when healthy. Its the back ups who suck. Caliendo has been terrible. Morris is not good. Drafting a right tackle makes some sense and then Moore can be a swing tackle or the new guy can be the swing guy. I don’t care but go get a solid guard incase Smith gets hurt again.

Fix the Salary Cap or get better at cheating

Everyone does weird things with the cap. I mean how do the Eagles have all the dudes they have? How were the Rams able to sign Davante Adams? I don’t pretend to know how everyone is doing it, but that’s also not my full time job. Figure it out. Cut people, restructure people, give people signing bonuses or whatever, just fix it. Break the rules, I don’t care. We need more talent.

Pat rehab success

We need Pat week 1. And I think we will have Pat week 1. Everything should be based upon Pat not having to do as much regardless if he is 100% or not. He is 30 years old and the best QB in the league. Let’s set him up for some success for a change.

Draft for talent, not for fit

We will have the earliest draft picks we have had since we drafted Patrick. I don’t care if the edge rusher is “Spags type of guy”. I care whether or not he is talented. Same with running back, safety, linebacker, etc. Go get some guys who can move the needle. Not guys who are going to do the right assignment but still suck at it.

Travis Kelce should retire…I think

If he comes back, I won’t be mad at him or about it. I just think he is old and the amount of work he would need to put in to come back might not be worth it to him. I also think with him gone, it will be easier to have a more structured offense. He and Mahomes have a special connection like nothing I have ever seen in the game before. But not everyone can work within such a free lance offense. The younger guys need more structure and I think that will come if Kelce isn’t on the field. Although if he comes back he can easily get into the top 5 all time in receptions which would be pretty cool. And he is still a top 5 tight end in the league. So if he wants to put in the work and come back for one more ride, I can get on board with that.

Resign Leo Chenal

Of all our impending free agents, I think he is the most important. He does so many things. I think there is a good chance they release Tranquill for cap purposes and if so then you definitely got to bring him back.

And there you have it, that is my 2026 wish list for the Chiefs. We will see how much of it comes true over the coming months. Until then, happy new year ! And get ready to enjoy one last awful Chiefs game this year when our 3rd stringers take on the raiders on Sunday.

Week 17 is in the books and we head to the final week of the regular season. Half the league has been eliminated but they are still playing so I rank everyone up to the final week of the season. Next week and going forward I will only rank the teams still playing. But for one last time in 2025 I give you my always correct and completely accurate rankings. Let’s dive in.

Raiders Gonna Raider: Raiders

In a battle of teams on 9 game losing streaks meeting for the first time in NFL history, both with just 2 wins, the Raiders didn’t just lose, the got blown out.

Please Hire Matt Nagy: Titans

The Titans have played a little bit better lately but they are still a disaster. You know who can help get things fixed for you is Matt Nagy. You should definitely hire him. Seriously, Please take him!

Already eliminated for the 2026 NFL season: Jets, Browns, Giants, Cardinals

Let’s be honest, these teams are all disasters. Maybe some of them get a little bit better next year, but I can’t see any of them making the leap to playoff contention.

Could make a run to the playoffs next year but will probably screw it up: Colts, Falcons, Saints, Dolphins, Bengals

All these teams showed some positive things at times during the season, and I am sure the same will be true next year. But the problem for all these teams has been putting a full season together. I’m doubtful any of them can do it. Although it might not matter for the Falcons and Saints since they play in the awful NFC South.

Should make a run to the playoffs next year but will definitely screw it up: Cowboys

Dallas has a very talented team especially offensively. But Jerry Jones will Jerry this thing up somehow. Looking forward to the George Pickens contract fiasco to kick off the new season.

Will be in the hunt in 2026: Chiefs, Vikings, Lions, Commanders

Commanders were killed by injuries this year. While Daniels is fragile, I don’t think he will miss as much time next year. The Lions with a 4th place schedule? Sign me up. The Vikings will likely beat the back up Packers on Sunday and finish 9-8 with the worst quarterback play by one team I think I have ever seen. Surely, they can be a little bit better at the position in 2026. And finally, my beloved Chiefs. I assume they make some changes in personnel that will help, and I am assuming Pat is back for the whole season. But the Chiefs were historically good in one score games over the last few years. These things seem to flip flop and this year they were historically bad. If they just went .500 in those games they would be10-6 or 11-5 this year. So while I’m holding out a verdict if they will be great again, they should at least be in the hunt.

Just terrible but one of them will host a playoff game: Bucs and Panthers

With everything on the line, these two teams both laid duds this weekend. Now they get to play each other for the NFC South title on Saturday. If the Bucs win, they will be 8-9…and probably host a playoff game. I say probably because even if the Bucs win, if the Falcons win on Sunday then the Panthers win the division even if they lose on Saturday which at this point would be the funniest scenario.

Slightly better than the NFC South: Ravens and Steelers

The Ravens showed what they could do if they just gave Derrick Henry the ball a lot. So I am sure they won’t do that again. The Steelers lost to the hapless Browns. But hey, Myles Garrett didn’t get the sack record on Aaron Rodgers, so way to go.

QB drama: Packers

What’s left of the Packers couldn’t stop the Ravens. But the Ravens also couldn’t stop back up quarterback Malik Willis who played sensational. If he hadn’t had to come out of a drive due to injury, the Packers might have won that game. I still think they are dangerous in a one game scenario. But they are too banged up to make a run.

Fought the good fight but just not enough: Chargers

I’ve been impressed with the Chargers and all the injuries they have overcome. But they look like a one and done playoff team to me.

One sided: Texans

The Texans definitely have the defense to win a championship. Unfortunately, I don’t think their offense is consistent enough to get it done.

Believe in them more than ever: Bears

The Bears impressed me more in their loss to the 49ers than they have in any of their victories. They held their own on the road in a shoot out against a true contender for 4 quarters. But I still don’t trust them as much as everyone left. I don’t see the Bears being able to win the Super Bowl and I can see everyone else having the potential to get it done.

Depends on the day: Bills and Eagles

My preseason super bowl pick still has a great chance of happening. But it really depends which team shows up. At times, these look like the most dominating teams in the league. And at other times they look like they don’t belong in the playoffs at all. Sunday’s game was a great example. The Eagles had like 17 yards in the second half and it isn’t the first time they have been awful for a half of football this year. Meanwhile, the Bills couldn’t finish drives and Josh Allen couldn’t come through when it mattered most. I sort of trust them the most and the least all at the same time.

Super Bowl Contenders with question marks: Patriots, Jags and Broncos

None of these teams making the Super Bowl would surprise me at all. But they all have some question marks. The Patriots schedule has been weak. The Jags are still a little inconsistent led by Trevor Lawrence. And although the Broncos defense shut down the 3rd string Chiefs, they looked less dominant the 3 weeks prior. And can the Broncos keep winning all these close games?

Really, really good but they have Sam Darnold: Seahawks

I think the 3 best teams might all be in the same division. The Seattle defense is outstanding and their offensive weapons are very good. Bottom line they are 3rd because I just don’t trust Sam Darnold when it matters.

Probably the 1 seed: 49ers

Seattle has the better D, a better top receiver and probably overall team. The 49ers play at home on Saturday and have Christian McCaffrey, a great defensive coach even though the personnel isn’t great, a head coach who could probably scheme me open and Brock Purdy is playing arguably his best football of his career. I think the road to the Super Bowl will go through San Francisco or Santa Clara or where ever the heck they play.

Still the team I trust the most: Rams

The Rams still have in my opinion the best overall team, the QB I trust the most and the coach I trust the most in the playoffs. Last night they were down two offensive linemen, Stafford played his worst game of the year and they still almost won the game and probably would have if the refs hadn’t missed an obvious PI call late in the game. They will be a wild card which means likely 3 road games which will obviously be a challenge.

Super Bowl Prediction: 49ers over Bills

Or as I call it, the “we are glad the Chiefs aren’t in the playoffs” bowl. I just think it would be funny if these two teams met since the Chiefs have kept the Bills from getting there and the 49ers from winning it over the last few years. And since this thing is wide open and I have no idea who will win, I figured I’d pick something funny this week that could also actually happen.

It’s an odd thing as a Chiefs fan to be eliminated from contention. I’m used to being stressed this time of year about seeding. But it is sadly a stress free Christmas weekend of football. So instead I’ll be cheering for other fan bases to experience as much stress as possible in the final week of the regular season. Who’s with me? Here is what we need to happen this week.

Lions beat the Vikings

This should be an easy one, since the Vikings are starting Max Brosmer. The last time he started, he played the worse QB game I’ve seen in quite some time. The Lions need to win and the Packers to lose to stay in contention.

Ravens to beat the Packers

This is a tough one for me to cheer for, but if the Ravens lose, then the Steelers win the division which means no drama in the AFC North in week 18. And the Packers need to lose in order for the Lions to still be in it. However, a Packers win combined with a Bears loss is good too. Then the Bears would still need to beat the Lions in week 18 in order to win the division. So I am good with either of these teams winning especially since the next game is unlikely to go my way.

Browns beat the Steelers

Even if the Ravens win, the Steelers still have to lose for week 18 to matter. Go Browns!

Chargers beat the Texans

If the Chargers beat the Texans, and I think we can all assume the Broncos beat the Chiefs, then they will play each other for the AFC West title in week 18. To make it even more stressful, if the Broncos win out they are the 1 seed. But if they lose to the Chargers, they would be a wild card. What a swing…what drama.

Colts beat the Jags

If the Texans lose and the Colts win, then they play each other for the last playoff spot. To add a little more drama, the Jags would need to beat the Titans in week 18 to win the division.

Bills beat the Eagles

If the Bills win, then the Patriots would have to win this week and next week to win the division.

49ers beat the Bears

If the 49ers win then they will play the Seahawks with a chance to win the division and be the 1 seed. That is of course if the…

Seahawks beat the Panthers

In order for the above scenario to happen, the Seahawks need to beat the Panthers who only win every other week so this is very likely.

Bucs beat the Dolphins

If the Panthers lose then I believe even with a Bucs loss, they still would play for the NFC south title. But just to be safe, let’s get a Bucs win here.

Rams beat the Falcons

Just in case either the 49ers or Seahawks lose, then we need the Rams to win in order for there still to be drama in the final week in the NFC west.

And there you have it. If you want the most pressure and drama filled week 18 possible, then cheer for the Lions, Ravens, Browns, Chargers, Colts, Bills, 49ers, Seahawks, Bucs and Rams.

Enjoy the second to last week of football and in good news for those of you who don’t want to watch Football on Christmas, you don’t need to because all the games are terrible. But still…Go Chiefs and stuff.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Just when you thought this Chiefs season couldn’t get any worse, we found out yesterday that the Chiefs are moving to Kansas. It wasn’t enough to miss the playoffs for the first time since 2014. It wasn’t enough that Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL and LCL. It wasn’t enough to get their butts kicked by the worst team in the league. No, good ole Clark Hunt and the boys decided it was a good time to announce what most of us thought was inevitable, they are moving to Kansas. Let’s break down the move and what it means and why it matters.

The Border War

I know many people who aren’t Chiefs fans and aren’t from the area don’t see why this is a big deal. I mean the new stadium will be in the Kansas City area, they will still be the Kansas City Chiefs and the new stadium is like 20 minutes away from Arrowhead. Most people who don’t live in the Midwest already think the Chiefs play in Kansas. But this is a huge deal for these two states both financially and because there is a lot of hate towards one another.

I first learned of this hatred when I was 3 or 4 years old. I was actually born in Kansas and at the time we lived in Shawnee Mission, a suburb on the Kansas side of the metro area. Mizzou was playing ku in basketball. ku scored a basket, and since I lived in Kansas, I thought I should cheer and so I did so. I was immediately told sternly that we don’t cheer for them…ever. My dad is a Mizzou grad. He is one of the nicest men I have ever met. He is a fairly gentle guy. In all my years, I’ve probably heard the man say 10 bad words. 6 of them were towards ku in some sort of fashion. He hates them with a passion. And so, we as kids were raised to not hate, unless it was ku. I am so petty about it that I refuse to capitalize ku. This isn’t just a sports thing. This rivalry was a true war back during the Civil War when both sides did pretty horrendous things to each other. History books written by either side will blame the other and point out the atrocities done to them. Regardless, these states do not like each other. The only thing that brought these two states together was the Royals and the Chiefs.

While I try to be fair and balanced with my rankings and football takes, I am openly a Chiefs, Royals and Mizzou Tigers fan. I have a lot of friends who cheer for lots of different teams. I have family members who have moved to other places and become fans of area schools and teams. I don’t really do any of that. I’ve lived in Minnesota and Colorado but I don’t actively cheer for any of those teams. I mean if the Nuggets win, it’s cool. I’m not unhappy about it. But when I am not cheering for my teams, I’m just typically cheering against other teams. For instance my second favorite college team is whoever is playing ku. Like I said, the hatred is real. But on Sundays jayhawks and Tigers come together to cheer for the team we all love, the Chiefs. We show up at the K together to watch our Royals. It was the one thing that united us…until now.

Although we all cheered for the same team, Missouri people were always sure to point out which state the teams were really in. Although I was born on the Kansas side, I moved to the Missouri side when I was 6 and grew up there and went to school there. Despite moving around a bit as an adult, I still lived nearly 30 of my 46 years in Missouri. So even though I am probably not as upset as others, I’m team Missouri. But ultimately, given the other options I am glad that the team is at least staying in the KC area. But I am not looking forward to ku people reminding me which state the Chiefs are in.

Politics and stuff

I’m not going to get into the politics too much and I haven’t done a deep dive, but I’m confident the leadership in KC, MO screwed this up. I’m not sure if it would have mattered but they did not put up a good fight or really have anything substantial to offer. Governor Kehoe, who I once bought a car from back in 2010 that my son currently drives, jumped in and tried to save it. You may like or dislike Kehoe. I knew him a little bit when I lived in Jefferson City and he seemed like a good guy. He sold me a good car that still runs 15 years later. But I’m not an expert on whether he is a good governor or not. I’m just saying he tried to help. The Kansas governor and legislators obviously were highly motivated and had a good plan. They were more organized, had the land and the ear of Clark Hunt and the gang. It is easier to rally people when you say you aren’t going to raise taxes and even if you were, it would be to gain something new. That’s an easier ask than asking people to pay taxes for something they already have. One of the problems the Missouri side had is that not many people in Jackson County can afford to go to Chiefs games. So what are they really paying taxes for? The whole thing was a mess and the Kansas side took full advantage of it. Good for them.

What the hell is a STAR Bond?

The reason Kansas was able to pull this off without raising taxes is something called a Star Bond. This is where the City issues bonds and then they are paid back with new tax revenue generated by the new stadium and surrounding shops, etc. It’s a unique idea that Kansas used to offer more money than Missouri could. The downfall is the possibility that there won’t be enough revenue to pay back the bonds. Which could lead to raised taxes later. But they don’t care about that right now, the just got the Chiefs.

A win for Kansas…or at least Kansas City, Kansas

This is a win for their side of the border for sure. It will generate new business and more jobs, etc. And they will have people from Missouri coming over and spending money. Although many of them won’t do it besides buy tickets. Former Mizzou basketball coach, Norm Sterwart would fill up with gas at the border just to make sure they didn’t spend any money in Kansas. Kansas may have won the Chiefs but they will never beat Missouri folk in pettiness. One of the funnier lines from the Kansas Governor was that this was going to make the state of Kansas a big tourist attraction. While, tourist will come for events at the new stadium, they will still fly into MCI airport which is in Missouri and drive over. Having the Chiefs in Kansas isn’t going to have any impact on people living in Hayes. Just like Arrowhead didn’t have any impact on people living in Joplin.

Huge win for Clark Hunt

The real winner here is the Chiefs head honchos and the organization. While updating Arrowhead was a nice idea, it was never what Clark wanted. He wanted to host super bowls and final fours and concerts, etc. No one wants to come to anything in February in Kansas City. But if you have a dome than you can host year round. New stadiums typically get first dibs at a lot of opportunities. This will generate more revenue for the owners of the Chiefs. It was an absolute no brainer for them. One thing that Kehoe said that I disagree with is that this hurts Lamar Hunt’s legacy. Lamar was an innovator. He was a Texas boy who moved the team from Texas to Missouri. I don’t think he would have thought twice about this decision. This was the right move for ownership and the organization and I think anyone who looks at this scenario that is able to remove even a little bit of bias can say that.

This isn’t about the fans

At the same time, I am already tired of Clark and his team talking about how they are going to make this a better fan experience. If you ask anyone who has ever been to a game at Arrowhead, they will tell you it is the best game day experience anywhere. Sure the area around the stadium sucks and there isn’t much to do. But no one cares, because the parking lot is where the fun happens. People show up hours and hours before the game. Everyone tailgates. People play games, share food, watch the other games and have a big party. Last time I was there, we were playing the Chargers. Some Charger fans parked next to us. Yes, charger fans really do exist. We shared food and had some laughs. They talked about how nice everyone is and how this is the best experience for a game. We don’t need shops and restaurants. We are the entertainment and the restaurant. And then when you enter the stadium, it’s a whole other level. More on that shortly.

The other day, my I phone said there was an update. So it updates and I got to say, I hate every change they made. Facebook is always updating and changing in ways literally no one asked for. This new stadium is an I Phone update. Just like I am not getting a new phone over it, I’m not going to get a new team. But literally no one asked for this. Everyone and I mean everyone who is a Chiefs fan, loves Arrowhead and the experience there.

You want to host other stuff and make more money. We get it. We would do the same thing. But stop saying it is about us. Especially when there are going to be 10k less seats. This is about you. It’s fine but just call it what it is. The Chiefs could play in a cardboard box stadium and we would show up. We don’t even need seats because we stand the whole game anyway. Build your fancy stadium, we will show up. But stop telling us how great it is going to be. We already have everything we want at Arrowhead.

The loss of Arrowhead hurts the most

I think for most of us, Arrowhead not being there anymore is what hurts the most. We love that stadium. It is our house. Chiefs kingdom shows up loud and proud week in and week out. It is the loudest stadium in the NFL. I’ve been to other stadiums that make announcements for people to get loud on 3rd down when the other team has the ball. And not crappy franchises, I’m talking about Green Bay and Denver. There are no such announcements at Arrowhead. Everyone is already standing up and we have been yelling since first down. It’s rowdy and fun and it is ours. We, the fans made it what it is. Will we be loud at the new stadium? Of course. But will it be as loud? I don’t know. We like that it is cold. We don’t want to top shut in December or January. It gives us an advantage. We want to see our team play in all the ailments. We are some soft fans from LA or New Orleans. We don’t need or want a dome. We want Arrowhead. We have 5 or 6 more seasons to celebrate all its greatness.

Patrick Mahomes needs a raise

Finally, lets talk about Patrick. He has been heavily criticized the last couple of years. His stats aren’t the best but we saw on Sunday what we look like without him. I’m not saying he will ever catch Brady. I’m certainly at this point not saying he is the greatest of all time. But what I will say is none of this is possible without the success the Chiefs have had the last 7 years. Andy Reid deserves some credit. He certainly stabilized a terrible football team and made it a good one. But he was 1-4 in the playoffs before Patrick. He’s 17-4 since then. The Chiefs as an organization are 9-18 without Patrick in the post season. Clark Hunt would not be able to request much of anything from either state if it wasn’t for Patrick. There should be a Patrick bond where he gets 10% of the revenue. While Clark is doing what we all would do here, he wouldn’t be able to do any of it without Patrick. So while he is spending his time talking about new stadium plans, he best not forget to spend some time with Veach and Andy to get this thing fixed for the guy who brought him here. Whatever Patrick is getting paid, it’s not enough. But what Pat wants more than anything is to win. Pat delivered for Clark. Now Clark needs to deliver for Pat and for the fans. Because the best fan experience is watching a winning football team.

Only 2 weeks of the regular season left to go and so much is still up for grabs. While 11 of 14 playoff spots have been locked in, only one division winner have been set. Meaning we could not know where everyone is seeded until the end of week 18. For instance the Broncos can win out and be the 1 seed. But if the Chargers win this week and beat the Broncos, then the Broncos go from being the 1 seed to being a wild card. I’ll break down all the scenarios and what you should be cheering for to create maximum chaos tomorrow. But for now, let’s look at this week’s rankings. Today I rank the teams 32-1 with a gift that each team would want. Let’s dive in.

32: Chiefs: Matt Nagy to get a coaching job somewhere else.

I know non Chief fans think I am biased because over the years I have had the Chiefs ranked high most of the time, but to be fair they have been the best team most of the time since I started writing these blogs. But I am fair when it comes to my rankings. And all year I have said, if you lose to the Titans you get ranked as the worst team for that week. Also, without Patrick, I’m not sure that they aren’t the worst team. They weren’t good with Patrick but he was holding that thing together more than we even knew. A lot of the blame is on Andy and Veach for the team they put together around Patrick. But they are both staying and rightfully so. But Matt Nagy needs to go. Since he became OC in place of Eric Bienemy, the offense has been drastically worse. More on that when I breakdown my Chiefs wish list in the next couple of weeks. Also, to pour salt in the wounds of Chiefs fans in Missouri, the stadium is moving to hated Kansas. More on that in another post later today.

31. Titans: Not to hire Matt Nagy as their head coach

As much as I want Nagy gone, Titans fans should not want him hired. He failed at Chicago and hasn’t been good as OC for the Chiefs. But the Titans do dumb things so here is hoping they hire him anyway.

30. Jets: a playoff appearance in 2026

The lowly Jets haven’t been to the playoffs since 2010. The longest drought in the league. Sadly, they do not look particularly close to making the playoffs.

29. Browns: A quarterback to play a full season

Seriously, when was the last time this happened? Baker? I mean what are the doing next year? Are they going to roll Watson back out there? Shedur? What a mess.

28. Raiders: To stop getting worse

It seems every decision and every move they make back fires. I mean somehow they are worse than last year even though they have at least in theory a better QB and better coach. Not even Tom Brady being involved can save this dumpster fire.

27. Giants: Jaxson Dart to stay alive

Dart and Skattebo are fun but pretty reckless. They are the only hope they have though so someone should teach Dart how to slide.

26. Cardinals: Everyone to play as well as Jacoby Brissett

Brissett has been awesome this year. Unfortunately for whatever the reason as soon as he started playing well the defense became awful.

25. Commanders: This season to be over.

The Commanders have a ton of injuries and after making the NFC championship game last year, everything has been terrible this year. They are ready to move on to 2026.

24. Falcons: to keep winning.

The Falcons are on a bit of a win streak. Normally, when you are eliminated from the playoffs it is better to lose for draft position. But since the Rams have their first round pick, might as well keep on winning.

23. Vikings: To go back in time

The Vikings wish they could go back in time, not draft JJ McCarthy and sign Sam Darnold to a better deal. They actually have a good football team, but quarterback play has been awful.

22. Dolphins: Tua to retire

Tua is not good. But the Dolphins are screwed because they owe him so much money.

21. Saints: Win out

The Saints have won 3 in a row and have the titans next and then the Falcons. They could finish the year on a 5 game win streak and have all the good vibes going into next year.

20. Bengals: Joe Burrow to have fun

Shockingly, there seems to be a correlation of winning to the amount of fun Joe is having. When the Bengals lose, he is sad and not having fun. When they win, he has more fun and is happy. I feel ya, Joe.

19. Cowboys: a drama free offseason

Who’s excited for the Jerry Jones signing George Pickens saga? It’s going to be epic.

18. Bucs: September Baker

Remember when Baker lead a 4th quarter comeback every week instead of throwing a 4th quarter interception every week? That was fun.

17. Ravens: Lamar to stop getting hurt.

Lamar has a new ailment every week. He’s like me every morning when I wake up, and something new always hurts.

16. Colts: Their defense to show back up

Old Man Rivers balled out last night. But it didn’t matter because the Colts couldn’t stop anything.

15. Panthers: To win two games in a row

Since the end of October, the Panthers have won every other week. They won last week but play Seattle this week so it isn’t looking good.

14. Lions: The Packers to lose out.

The Lions are pretty much toast because if the Packers win one more game, they are done. The Packers play the Ravens and the Vikings.

13. Steelers: DK Metcalf to stop punching fans.

Steelers fans thought George Pickens was a headache. Dk was like, hold my beer…while I give a person a literal headache by punching them.

12. Bears: everything to continue to go their way

In order to beat the Packers, they needed the Packers QB to get hurt. The Packers running back to get hurt. The Packers to make a couple dumb mistakes in the red zone. Caleb to make a good throw when he hadn’t made one all day. Recover an onside kick. Have the Packers make another mistake by fumbling a snap and then have Caleb make another amazing throw. In short, do I believe in the Bears yet? I do not.

11. Texans: a more functional offense

That defense is stingy. That offense is stinky.

10. Packers: players to stop getting hurt

I think the Packers when healthy can make a run. But they are not healthy and starting to run out of players.

9. Chargers: win a playoff game

The Chargers just keep quietly winning football games. Their defense is great. Herbert has been playing well. But if they lose in the first round of the playoffs, the story will be the same. Herbert can’t win when it matters.

8. Eagles: no more drama

When they can just all keep their mouths shut and go play football they are pretty good.

7. Bills: James Cook to keep running all over the place

Josh Allen has been great. Cook has been better. People keep saying that Josh Allen has been better than Mahomes the last 2 or 3 years. I don’t disagree, but also he has James Cook and an offensive line that can block.

6. Broncos: Defense from first half of the year to return

You remember when their defense had like 10 sacks a game and didn’t let anyone score? We haven’t seen them in a while. But don’t worry the Chiefs will help them return on Christmas night.

5. Patriots: Drake Maye to keep balling out

Maye has been awesome pretty much all year. I don’t think they are a great team. But they will go as far as the second year QB can take them.

4. Jags: the hair to stay on a tear

Now that I believe in the Jags, they will probably lose this week. But that was a very impressive win on Sunday. Maybe the most impressive win of the season. They went on the road and beat who I thought was the best team in the AFC.

3. Seahawks: Sam Darnold to not do Sam Darnold things when it matters

I know some may say it is unfair to have the Rams ahead of the Seahawks since the Seahawks just beat them. But my concern about the Seahawks is the same as it has always been. Sam had 3 turnovers in that game, and if it wasn’t for a punt return for a td and the weirdest 2 point conversion ever, we aren’t even debating which team is better.

2. 49ers: keep not punting

The 49ers haven’t punted since sometime in November. The offense is humming. The defense is doing enough. If they win out, they are the 1 seed.

1. Rams: Win the Super Bowl

The Rams are likely going to be the 5 seed which is sort of funny because they are going to be 13-4. But due to tie breakers, it is what it is. Technically if the 49ers lose to the Bears and then beat Seattle, the Rams could be the 1 seed which is far from impossible. But regardless, they are still the team I trust the most.

Super Bowl Prediction: Rams over Bills

Who the heck knows. I think everyone who will get in the playoffs has a shot besides the Steelers and whoever wins the NFC South. But for now, I’ll go with the two Quarterbacks I trust the most in the playoffs.

Well this week got off to a crazy start with the Seahawks upsetting the Rams in a bizarre game that included a worthless virtual measurement, every catching passes besides Colby Parkinson who I started in fantasy, the Seahawks kicker scoring a measly 2 points even though the team scored 38 points (yes, he is also on my fantasy team), the weirdest 2 point conversion ever, a punt return for a touchdown and Sam Darnold overcoming the biggest obstacle in his career…himself. It was quite away to start the week. Here is my take on the 5 biggest games this weekend. But before we dive in, here are 5 things I think will happen in the other games.

1. Cowboys are eliminated before they play on Sunday. All it takes is the Eagles winning on Saturday, which will happen.
2. Chiefs win despite missing half their team. They are missing a lot of guys including Pat, but I think Kelce and Jones will inspire the play of the youngsters and they get the victory. They will play more relaxed and therefore better without the weight of having to win on them. Plus it would be fitting for the Chiefs, after losing a bunch of must win games that they would win this game when losing it would actually help for draft position.
3. Brady Cook gets his first win. The Jets head to New Orleans in a game that absolutely no one cares about. The Saints are riding high after beating the Bucs and Panthers in back to back weeks. But Brady brings his A game and leads the Jets to victory. MIZ!
4. Justin Herbert throws for lots of yards. They are playing the Cowboys. Everyone throws for lots of yards against the Cowboys.
5. Old Man Rivers shows his age. I think with some actual film on the guy, the 49ers D shuts him down and gets some sacks and turnovers. But since I sat Tyler Warren in fantasy, he will catch 2 touchdowns.

Alright, lets dive into 5 big games this weekend.

Battle for the North: Packers @ Bears

These teams have flip flopped the last 2 weeks from the 7 seed to leading the division. The Packers have faced the more challenging schedule. The Bears only have two wins over teams with a winning record, the Steelers and Eagles which neither one is lighting up the score board. The Packers not only lost to the Broncos last week, but also lost Micah Parsons for the year. The winner gets a stranglehold on the division, while the loser might get left out altogether. The Bears should have more offensive success without Micah Parsons harassing them. But Jordan Love was able to carve up the Bears defense last time as well. I think this comes down to two questions for those of us watching. How do the Packers respond without Parsons? And do we think the Bears are good? I think the Packers will play well and the rest of the team will rise to the challenge. While I believe the Bears are improved, I don’t believe in their quarterback or their defense. The Packers ruin the day in Chicago once again.

Packers 27 Bears 20

Battle for the division that nobody seems to want to win: Bucs @ Panthers

Both of these teams have been up and down of late. The vibes in Tampa are an all time low after blowing a 14 point lead to the Kirk Cousins lead Falcons. This led to frustration on the sideline and the press conference when Todd Bowles cussed up a ton and challenged the manhood of his team. Oof. This was all after losing to the lowly Saints the week before.

The Panthers with an opportunity to take a game lead, facing the same lowly Saints lost as well. So now both of these teams are 7-7 and fighting for an opportunity to get waxed by one of the NFC teams at home in the wild card round.

While I think the Bucs are better and would at least have a shot at winning that playoff game, the vibes are just so terrible there. The Panthers are more excited to be where they are at this point in the season and they are at home. Panthers roar to victory (see what I did there).

Panthers 30 Bucs 28

Clean cut Bo vs the hair: Jaguars @ Broncos

The Jaguars are playing some great football. It is no surprise since this is the first year in a while that I didn’t pick them to make the playoffs. Trevor has been erratic like always, but the last few weeks he has seemed to turn it around. Going against this tough Broncos D will be a good test. Trevor just turned 26 in October. Bo turns 26 in February. Trevor is in year 5, while Bo is in year 2. But don’t worry, Bo has plenty of playing experience after his 8 year college career. I’m not one to judge a person who takes 8 years to finish college. But it is funny that these two are basically the same age. Bo has also been playing great of late. But the Jags defense is no joke either. These teams are fairly evenly matched and I think because of the defenses it will be a little more low scoring than usual.

The Jaguars will play them tough but late in the game Trevor turns into old Trevor and throws a late pick. This gives a struggling Bo and opportunity to win yet another close game in the 4th quarter. He leads them down for a game winning score, nixing the Jags chance at victory. (see what I did there?)

Broncos 23 Jaguars 20

Pitt vs the Pride: Steelers @ Lions

The Steelers are coming off back to back good wins and seem to be playing well of late. Aaron Rodgers seems to be in rhythm and the offense is clicking at the right time. He should be able to keep it going against a depleted Lions defense. The problem is, the Steelers d as been more of a soft fabric curtain of late as opposed to a steel one.

The Lions are coming off a tough loss to the Rams and are fighting for their playoff life. A loss would all but doom them as it will be extremely tough to get in to the playoffs with 7 losses. Lucky for them, they are playing in a dome where Jared Goff is usually much better. Plus for the past 9 weeks, the Lions have won every other week. Well they lost last week so you know what that means. Since I am playing against Jahmyr Gibbs in both my fantasy playoff matches, I can only assume he will go off and score 3 tds this week. In their last 3 losses, he has zero tds. In their last 3 wins, he has 3 tds in each one. I fully expect him to go off and defeat the Steelers and knock me out of the fantasy playoffs.

Lions 41 Steelers 30

Mr. Mobile vs Lamar: Patriots @ Ravens

Drake Maye has burst onto the scene this year, winning games, putting up stats and getting MVP notice. He has a cannon of an arm and can run too. He has nearly 400 yards rushing including 4 touchdowns. His mobility makes him dangerous and the Patriots are starting to run the ball better too. The Patriots are coming off a tough loss at home to the Bills after giving up a 21 point lead.

Meanwhile, the Ravens have had an up and down season to say the least. First the offense was good but the defense stunk. Then the defense was good but the offense was terrible. Lamar has a new injury or ailment every week. This week it was kind of like the flu…whatever that means. The Ravens are coming off probably their best team win of the season against the Bengals where Lamar somehow only threw 12 passes. Some people think the Ravens are back based upon this game. But I just think they played the Bengals who’s defense is terrible and their Quarterback was contemplating whether he wants to play football in press conferences.

The Pats are 6-0 on the road. They have the better team, the better quarterback right now and arguably the better coach. The Pats bounce back and go to 7-0 on the road.

Patriots 31 Ravens 24

With the Chiefs out of the playoffs and all hope lost for this season, I thought I’d come up with some things to wish for through the rest of the NFL season. After all, it’s Christmas time. So here are some things I am cheering for during the season of good cheer.

The Broken hand Bowl

If the season ended today, the Chargers would go to the Steelers in the first round of the playoffs. I don’t think it would be a very entertaining game. I just think it would be funny to see Aaron Rodgers and Justin Herbert battle it out with broken hands.

Meaningful week 18 games

Sometimes the last week of the season can be kind of a snooze fest because everything is already wrapped up like the presents under your tree. But this year could be quite chaotic. I mentioned yesterday that the Lions and Bears might likely be playing for a playoff spot. But also the Bucs and Panthers could play for the division title. Same with the Steelers and Ravens. The 49ers and Seahawks could be battling to see who gets to go play the winner of the South instead of the Eagles. The Bills and Patriots could both need a win to clinch the east, which would be more interesting if they played each other, but still. The Colts and Texans could be playing for a playoff spot. And there is even an outside chance that the Broncos and Chargers could play for the AFC West title. Bring on the week 18 drama!

Packers division championship

They lost Micah and my son is sad. Them winning the division would make him happy.

The Broncos winning a playoff game

As a Chiefs fan, it is difficult to cheer for a division rival, so I can’t cheer beyond one victory. But my wife who is a very loyal fan, hasn’t seen them win a playoff game since the 2015 Super Bowl. She deserves a win.

The Bills go to the super bowl…and lose

I’d feel bad, but wouldn’t it be the most Bills thing ever to finally get back to the Super Bowl and then lose. I think it would be hilarious. I would feel bad though…in between laughing.

The Eagles to lose quickly in the playoffs

I just find them annoying. And yes I am still bitter about last year.

For it not to be a Broncos vs Packers Super Bowl

My daughter is an Eagles fan so her and I have dealt with this twice. But she doesn’t care that much so it wasn’t a big deal no matter who won. My wife and son are very passionate and they both can get very loud during the games. They might have to watch this in different places.

Old Man Rivers wins a game

I don’t think he will but it would be fun if he did.

The Ravens to get left out of the playoffs

I don’t like the Ravens and I don’t think they are very good. And it would be funny if Lamar, Pat and Burrow were all out of the playoffs and Josh Allen still couldn’t win one.

Bake show to make a run

I love Baker. He is not playing well. Hopefully he turns it around, they win the division and win a playoff game or two.

Win a fantasy football championship

I have been so close the last 3 or 4 years. I have even often been in first place in the regular season. Yet I haven’t won a championship in years. If my Chiefs can’t win then I think I should be able to win a championship in a fake football league.

Those are my football wishes the rest of the season. Lets see how many of them come true. What are you wishing for the rest of the NFL year?

Week 15 is in the books and as a Chiefs fan, it sucked pretty bad as they joined 12 other teams who are eliminated from the post season. 19 teams are still in play…although I think some of them are pretty much done. The playoff picture is becoming clearer but there are still massive games ahead. Let’s dive into the rankings.

Eliminated and bad: Titans, Jets, Raiders, Browns, and Giants

These teams are all terrible. These teams combined have the same amount of wins as the Broncos.

Eliminated and bad…but a little bit fun: Cardinals, Saints, Falcons, Dolphins, Vikings and Commanders

These teams aren’t good either, but they show some life from time to time and can be competitive in certain weeks.

Eliminated and sad: Bengals

Joe Burrow doesn’t know if he wants to play football which he proved this Sunday.

Eliminated but went to the last 3 Super Bowls and 5 of the last 6: Chiefs

It may not be fair to put the Chiefs ahead of all the other eliminated teams, but they have won a ton of games over the past few years. Also, they have beaten every team that they have played that is below them in the rankings and haven’t lost by more than 10 to any of the other teams that are still eligible for the post season.

Not eliminated…but pretty much eliminated: Cowboys

Dallas lost on Sunday night and they are basically toast unless they win out and the Eagles lose out. Neither is happening.

Playing a guy my age at QB: Colts

Phillp Rivers is a fun story. He is also two years younger than me and a grandfather. To put things in perspective, my arm has hurt for almost a week because I laid on it wrong. Old man Rivers is in better shape than me, and he looked better than I thought he would on Sunday. But he also didn’t look like a guy that was going to lead this team to victory against the 49ers, Jags or Texans.

Two of these teams are going to host a playoff game: Ravens, Steelers, Bucs and Panthers

Two of these 4 teams are going to win their division, host a playoff game and lose that game. My money is on the Steelers and Bucs.

Going to play the final regular season game to see who goes to the playoffs: Bears and Lions

I still believe this will be the final game of the season with the final playoff spot on the line. The Bears are 10-4 and the Lions are 8-6. I think the Lions will win their next two and the Bears will lose their next two and the winner in week 18 will get into the playoffs.

Good but too banged up to make a serious run: Chargers

The Chargers have shown some real resilience and grit. I just don’t think they have enough healthy guys, especially on the offensive line to make a serious run.

Also banged up, but not as badly: 49ers

The 49ers are getting healthyish but still missing a lot of key parts on defense. They are very well coached and overcome a lot. I don’t think they can win it all, but they could win a game or two in the playoffs.

Battle for the South: Texans and Jags

Both of these teams are really good and playing well. The Jags have a game lead, but I think they will lose this week and the Texans will win. They don’t play each other so the division champion will probably come down to a tie breaker that I don’t know yet, and don’t really care about. There is a good chance these two meet in the first round of the playoffs.

Still kind of a mess but dangerous: Eagles

The Eagles are still sort of a disaster. But they just have so many talented players that you can’t count them out.

Almost lost to old man Rivers: Seahawks

Their D is outstanding and the offense has been good most of the year. Honestly, it just comes down to the fact that I don’t trust Sam Darnold.

How will they respond: Packers

The Packers vs Broncos game was a great game. It would have been even better if Christian Watson and Micah Parsons hadn’t gotten hurt. I’m not saying they would have won, but the game would have looked different. Now it comes down to how they respond. Watson will likely be back sooner rather than later, maybe even this week. But the defense will have to adjust without Micah. How they respond will be interesting starting this week.

How will they respond…part 2: Patriots

The Patriots dominated the first half against the Bills but got dominated in the second half. How they play the Ravens this week will tell the story. After that, they play the Jets and Dolphins so if they can bounce back, they can put pressure on the Broncos for the one seed.

They got that dude: Bills

They actually have two dudes, Josh Allen and James Cook. Despite some other short comings, that might be enough to get them to the big game.

Looking the part: Broncos

The Broncos have an elite defense, good special teams and solid skill guys. Bo Nix has played great the last month. And what really stands out about Bo is how good he is in crucial moments at the end of games. He played arguably his best game of his NFL career on Sunday. If they win on Sunday, they will be the 1 seed.

Who I would put my money on: Rams

Walker and I were talking yesterday about the Packers (which he is a fan of) and the playoffs in general. I told him if all the odds were equal, I would put my money on the Rams. I’m not a betting man, but I think they have the best overall team and the best coach. There are teams that could certainly beat them, but there is no one they can’t beat.

Super Bowl Prediction: Rams over Broncos

The Chiefs season officially ended on Sunday as all hope was finally lost losing to the Chargers 16-13. It was a brutal ending to a brutal season as Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL while attempting to lead the team to a tying or game winning score. Ironically, I think there was at least a good chance that they would have at least gotten a field goal and tied the game, but instead Gardner Minshew came in and threw an interception to end the game and this miserable season. Even though the season ended on Sunday there had been signs all year long. I correctly predicted that the Chiefs would start 3-3 due to not having Rice and the toughness of the first 6 games on the schedule. But I also predicted they’d turn things around and finish 12-5. They went to Buffalo and that was the first sign for me that we were in trouble. In that game they refused to run the ball even though Buffalo was terrible against the run. The Bills played extra defensive backs knowing that we either wouldn’t run because of our arrogance in our passing game or couldn’t run because of our lack of talent at running back. It was probably a combination of both. After the bye, we headed to Denver at 5-4 in a must win game if we wanted any real shot of winning the division. Pat threw an unfortunate interception in the red zone. The offense couldn’t get first downs up 3 late in the game. The defense couldn’t get off the field. Ultimately the better team won the game but there were so many moments that the old Chiefs have come through so many times in the past that they failed in that game. The next week in another must win game, the Chiefs did just enough to beat the Colts in overtime. But that would be the last meaningful win of the season. The Defense failed against the Cowboys. The offense failed against the Texans and both sides failed at times against the Chargers. There was a sequence of events during the Chargers game that perfectly exemplified the Chiefs this year. The Chiefs got the ball with around 4 minutes left. The team successfully and methodically drove down the field. However, the drive stalled and they had to settle for a field goal. It was great example of the offense all year that statistically didn’t look awful but couldn’t finish drives against good teams. Still, they were up 10 with 38 seconds left in the half which was a pretty good feeling. Then they kick off and special teams immediately lets us down by giving up a return past the 40. The defense gives up a big pass play and eventually a touchdown all in under 30 seconds of clock time. Instead of being up 10 at half, they are only up 3. The Chargers taking the second half kickoff and drive down the field to tie the game 13-13. And just like that, what was a good half of football was erased and a dynasty was ended.

There will be lots of time now to analyze what went wrong and who is to blame. But the bottom line is everyone is at fault including our biggest stars who have come through so many times. Mahomes had some good games but overall seemed impatient in the pocket (although it is hard to blame him). He often left good pockets too soon and took too many sacks and just didn’t play well against the best teams. He couldn’t hit the deep ball consistently and he forced too many throws in the red zone leading to critical turnovers. Kelce came back in much better shape. Statistically he’s been great, especially for a 36 year old tight end. He is top 3 in most categories amongst tight ends. But he had some crucial drops including 3 that lead to interceptions. Rashee Rice who was supposed to be our star receiver, looked the part for a couple of weeks against bad teams. But after that, he struggled to get open against man coverage and got his own case of the drops including 3 crucial ones against the Cowboys and the Texans. Chris Jones played amazing down the stretch. But he started out the year by blowing an assignment in the first game of the year against the Chargers that led to them being able to run out the clock. He was often seen loafing early on in the year. Against the Jags, he stood and watched as Trevor Lawrence ran in the game winning score. And even Butker missed a career high 8 kicks so far this year. The people this team has counted on for years, could no longer be counted on at least not in the same way.

And this is where the blame heads to the Coaches and the front office. They did not build a roster around these veterans to succeed. And the scheme is old and stale and everyone has caught on. The running back room is the worst in the league and it is not close. Every team we played, I thought to myself, how do they have 2 or 3 guys who can run the ball and we don’t have any? The offense was predictable. If the Chiefs were under center, 90% of the time they were running. And if they did pass, it would be obvious because the play action wasn’t good and the passing typically wasn’t successful. If they are in shotgun, they are going to throw the ball. If they did run it was typically an RPO that either Pat would end up throwing instead or the running back would gain 2-3 yards. Veach decided not to trade a 3rd round pick for Breece Hall even though he would have helped dramatically. The coaching staff refused to play Elijah Mitchell even though he was very good for the 49ers and instead called up CEH who has never been very good. They signed Dameon Pierce who is more explosive than either Pacheco or Hunt by a wide margin. But he too just sits on our practice squad. It’s odd to have a problem so obvious yet continue to run the same guys out there. On the defensive side, we have built a roster without really any defensive linemen who can win one on one besides Chris Jones. So we have to blitz constantly because we can’t get pressure otherwise. But now, teams know we are going to blitz. And we have been blitzing for seven years because we don’t have the edge rushers who can win and really never have. Eventually you run out of blitzes that they haven’t seen. We continue to play guys like Charmari Connor even though pretty much every pass that gets thrown his way is completed. Meanwhile, Jaden Hicks sits on the bench because in Spags words, He’s made some mistakes this year. Everyone on your defense has made mistakes. The scheme is bad. The players playing aren’t great choices and the roster isn’t great. Later I’ll give some thoughts on what they can do to fix it going forward but for now all we can do is accept that the season and at least this part of the dynasty is over.

Will there be a second act? Mahomes is still relatively young. I guarantee you that no one will work harder this offseason to get back to being full strength as quickly as possible. Will that be for the start of next season? I don’t know. Will he play at all next season? I don’t know. Will he ever be the same when he does come back? I don’t know. Tom Brady actually tore his ACL at the exact same stage of his career as Pat. Both were 30 and had won 3 super bowls. Tom tore his in week 2 instead of week 15. But the similarities are odd. However, Tom played a much different style than Pat. Tom was not mobile so an injury like that was not as damaging to how he plays. So much of what Pat does and how he does it has to do with his mobility. But one thing is for sure, Pat is a competitor and will want to be on the field as soon as possible. He also heals freakishly fast. His knee popped out of place and he only missed two games. He got a high ankle sprain and played the next week. But he is older now, and as we get older our bodies heal slower. No matter when Pat returns, if there is going to be an act 2, changes will need to be made.

I know many of us Chiefs fans are frustrated not because we aren’t grateful for the success but simply because of lost opportunity. You only get so many years with Prime Mahomes and this one was wasted. We also know after suffering for so long, that it could be a long time until we will be great again. It could be next year. Or it could be in 30 years. These things are fragile and can end at any time as we learned on Sunday. It’s okay to be sad and bummed about the season and perhaps the end of the greatest run in franchise history. But we should also be grateful for all that we have seen. It has been better and more amazing than anything I ever expected as a Chiefs fan. After years and years of playoff failure, Mahomes changed everything. This is arguably the second greatest run in NFL history. Here are the big highlights of what this team accomplished.

10 straight playoff appearances. Second only to the Patriots who had 11.

9 Straight division titles. Second again to only the Patriots who had 11.

7 Straight conference championship appearances. Second once again to the Patriots who went to 8.

5 Super Bowl appearances in 6 years. Never been done before.

3 Championships.

Back to back Champs.

First team to make it to the Super Bowl on a 3-peat attempt.

17-4 playoff record with Mahomes.

No AFC playoff losses in regulation.

The Chiefs dominated the AFC West for a decade, the AFC in general for 7 years and the NFL for most of 7 years.

So while it is okay to be sad, we have much to be thankful for and appreciative of. And yes, we will have to endure the talking heads who said I told you so. Even though they have been saying the same thing every year since 2022. The boy who cried wolf, eventually saw a wolf. So they can be cocky with their bad take that eventually was right. And we will have to put up with our non Chiefs fans who are celebrating and gloating. Remember they are just jealous and bitter that their team sucked during this great stretch or mad that the Chiefs kept knocking their favorite team out. Or they are just one of those people that hate greatness and don’t like it when one team is successful over and over again. It’s the price we pay for the level of success we have had. Just like being disappointed when we don’t win the Super Bowl. I remember before Patrick, I just wanted to win a playoff game. Before Andy, I just wanted to make the playoffs. We have been spoiled and it shows with some of our grumpy attitude about this season. I get it, I’m grumpy too. But it has been a hell of a run and even if we don’t make the playoffs for years, we still got to enjoy the greatest run in our franchises history and one of the greatest runs in all of sports.

But I wouldn’t be me, if I didn’t end with a little hope. 2021 was a rough year. Teams started playing us different and the Chiefs struggled early in the season. They began to figure things out and ended up losing in the AFC championship game that they should have won. In the offseason they made changes. Pat changed how he played. Tyreek got traded. Lots of our personnel changed. We changed our game plan. We went to the next 3 Super Bowls and won the first two. This franchise has been at a crossroads before. That one wasn’t nearly as bad as this year and they still made a bunch of changes. So this front office and coaching staff has it in them to make changes again and I hope and believe they will.

But for now, be sad and grateful at the same time. And watch our Chiefs play the next 3 weeks even though it doesn’t mean anything. It will kind of suck but remember bad football is still way better than no football. And perhaps watching meaningless games will make us appreciate all the meaningful ones we have watched over the past decade all the more. And have us hungry for the beginning of next year to see how our Chiefs respond. I’m already looking forward to it. Go Chiefs!