The Kansas City Chiefs are looking to make history this year — no NFL team has ever won three Super Bowls in a row, but they’ll try to change that.
Will that be in the cards for them, or will their chase come up short? With Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Andy Reid still leading the way, anything is possible. Let’s talk about some things that might happen this Chiefs season.
5 Bold Predictions for the 2024 Regular Season
The Chiefs Will Lose an AFC Playoff Game
Simply put, the AFC is going to be tougher than it was last year. The Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, and New York Jets all lost their quarterbacks for most or all of the season in 2023. Cleveland and New York are now two of the most complete teams in the sport, while Cincy has been something of an Achilles heel for Mahomes and Company.
This wouldn’t be a bold prediction for most teams, but it’s only happened to Kansas City twice in the Mahomes era. With the AFC West in worse shape than ever, the Chiefs could even be in store for more home postseason games after winning on the road twice last year.
After a beatdown of an unprepared Miami Dolphins team in extreme, cold weather, Kansas City didn’t put up a characteristically strong postseason performance the rest of the way despite winning it all. They’ve been skating by on extremely fine margins for a couple of years now,
Andy Reid Will Coach His Final Game
The above loss would, theoretically, be the game in question, the last of Reid’s iconic career. Retiring on top is admirable but tough to do — but when you’ve won two Super Bowls in a row, why not go for the historic three-peat?
However, if the Chiefs don’t get the job done this year, expect Reid to give serious thought to walking away and giving himself enough time to enjoy retirement with his family. He’ll be approaching 70 years old before too long and might elect to let Mahomes and the rest of the Chiefs adjust to the new coaching staff with plenty of time to build a second sub-dynasty.
Xavier Worthy Emerges as WR1 by Midseason
Reid isn’t the only aging Chiefs legend, as Kelce turns 36 years old this October. He’s still playing football at a high level, even if not up to his own lofty standard, and will be the centerpiece of the K.C. skill group, but those days will come to a close before long.
The Chiefs will be looking to use this season to identify the top target of the future. As it’s unlikely that they, or anyone else, will be finding a tight end like Kelce any time soon, that player will likely be a receiver; whoever ends this season as the top wideout will be a serious candidate.
Expect Worthy to click perfectly in the Chiefs’ offense, inhabiting something similar to the former Tyreek Hill role. He’s one of the few players in league history with the pure speed to do that, and unlike other recently drafted speedsters like John Ross, he’s displayed a broader skill set than just running fast in a line.
Of course, playing with Mahomes won’t hurt either — with enough established skill players to stop Worthy from receiving top coverage from defenses, expect him to seriously flourish.
Isiah Pacheco Leads the AFC in Rushing Touchdowns
We’re not going to go with him leading the entire NFL, as Christian McCaffrey is still on the San Francisco 49ers, but there’s no reason Isiah Pacheco can’t put up some huge touchdown numbers.
Kansas City’s receiving room has improved significantly over this offseason, so the offense should have no issue moving the ball through the air; we’re going to pass on projecting Pacheco’s yardage total for this reason.
However, the new-look Chiefs receiving room is largely composed of speedy deep threats. Kelce remains the only real goal-line force, but his touchdown production took a huge step down last year, and he’s only getting older.
With the field spaced out due to all of the speed in the receiving corps, expect Pacheco to have plenty of space to run and opportunities for big carries around the goal line.
George Karlaftis Leads the Team in Sacks
This isn’t outrageously bold considering the fact that Karlaftis was right alongside Chris Jones at the top of the leaderboard last season, but Jones is widely expected to lead the team this year.
Jones is 30 years old and no longer in a contract year. He’s also an interior lineman, making it tougher to make it to the quarterback. Karlaftis’ role on the edge should put him in a position to get home, and he’s shown steady improvement over his first two seasons in the league. Expect double-digit sacks again, and with them, the team-lead in that category.