Lance Medow: The Kansas City Chiefs have reached the Super Bowl four times in the last five seasons and won three Lombardi Trophies. In the salary cap era, that’s unheard of because there’s only one other franchise that can boast the same achievement and that’s the Patriots. So how does a team that has to deal with the same financial challenges as the 31 other franchises maintain a level of consistency? The easy answer is having a dynamic franchise quarterback in Patrick Mahomes, but there’s several other layers to examine starting with the overall evolution of the team.
The Chiefs’ offense averaged just over 29 points per game in 2022. That number dipped to just over 21 in 2023. That’s a difference of more than a touchdown. Not exactly a subtle change. Kansas City wasn’t nearly as explosive as it was a year ago, and the team led the NFL in dropped passes. When you take those two developments into consideration, the fact that Andy Reid and company even reached the big game is impressive. The offense was much more methodical this season and not nearly as aggressive. That approach helped them offset the lack of consistent big bombs down the field.
Another element in play is the strength of other facets. Steve Spagnuolo’s unit finished with the No. 2 scoring defense in the league, allowing just over 17 points per game. Including the postseason (21 total games), Kansas City opponents only surpassed 25 points once in 2023 (Packers reached 27 in Week 13) and none reached 30. Based on that track record, Reid was able to hang his hat on the defense and didn’t have to be ultra-aggressive on offense because he knew, more often than not, the other side of the ball would come through. Case in point, in four playoff games, the Chiefs surrendered only 22 second-half points. Add in kicker Harrison Butker drilling 44 of his 46 field goal attempts (96%), including all seven from 50+ yards out between the regular season and playoffs, and you have a balanced team.
Having Patrick Mahomes is a great luxury, but you can’t tell the Chiefs’ 2023 story without that defense and special teams unit.
Matt Citak: Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs have established themselves as the next dynasty after Tom Brady’s Patriots, which is not something we see often in the NFL. Instead, I’m going to focus on an area that the three teams that came closest to taking down the Chiefs all have in common. When looking at the San Francisco 49ers, Baltimore Ravens and…
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