We love round numbers, and that’s why we love today: There are 100 days until the 2024 NFL season kicks off with the Ravens visiting the Chiefs in an AFC Championship rematch.
Being 100 days away also means we’re slightly more than halfway through the offseason. It’s been 107 days since the Chiefs rallied past the 49ers to win Super Bowl LVIII. That makes this offseason unlike any we’ve had since 2005, the last time we had a back-to-back Super Bowl winner (Patriots) and all 31 other teams definitively looking up at them.
In order to celebrate appropriately, we’re focusing on the 100 most important players with 100 days to go until the 2024 season begins. “Important” can be tough to measure after we get past the quarterbacks, but we’ll try our best to mix in crucial contributors, important new (and old) faces and the game’s best at the other positions. All 32 teams get at least one name on the list.
AFC West
1. Could we start anywhere other than Patrick Mahomes? At just 28 years old, he’s a two-time MVP, three-time Super Bowl MVP and six-time Pro Bowler. Even last season, when the Chiefs’ offense fell off significantly, he was outstanding, admitting he learned to manage the game better and lean on his defense. Now, with a revamped supporting cast, he could be better than ever before.
2., 3. and 4. Speaking of that supporting cast, Marquise Brown and Xavier Worthy are the big new additions. Brown has injury issues, but he also has experience, speed and production (a 91-catch, 1,008-yard 2021 season) to step in as the Chiefs’ top option out wide. Kansas City was enamored with Worthy and his history-making speed to trade up for him near the end of the NFL Draft. Both will be key, especially with the pending punishment awaiting Rashee Rice. If/when Rice returns, he provides a big, physical, yards-after-catch aspect.
5. Kansas City has won eight straight AFC West titles, and the division looks as down as ever when it comes to challengers. Jim Harbaugh took over the Chargers, meaning Justin Herbert has a brand-new system to learn and a brand-new supporting cast to lead.
6. Of course, Harbaugh also must remake one of the league’s worst defenses, and he’ll have to do it with a lot of aging, expensive names. It would be nice if four-time Pro Bowler Joey Bosa can return to somewhere close to his peak. He’s only 28, but he has played in just 14 games over the past two seasons due to…
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