The dominance of the Kansas City Chiefs has been wholly unprecedented and something that may have been impossible to imagine given the state of the franchise for most of its existence. Since 1970, they were on a Super Bowl drought that ended in 2020, when Patrick Mahomes won his first championship. During that timeframe, the franchise went 22 years (from 1993 to 2015) without a playoff victory.
But with Andy Reid assuming head coaching responsibilities in 2013, their fate began to change. It took three seasons for Reid to find his rhythm, but he began a streak in 2016 that lives to this day.
Since that season, Kansas City has won the AFC West every single season. However, after dropping to 5-4 for third place in the division following a loss to the Buffalo Bills in Week 9, that streak seems to be in serious jeopardy.
Kansas City Chiefs’ Stranglehold Coming to an End
What first began with Alex Smith at the helm was only further perfected when Mahomes took over the starting job for the Chiefs. As he made his case for an all-time legendary career, he also had the best seven-year start in NFL, if not sports, history.
That run coincided with a complete domination of the AFC West, where Kansas City won nine straight divisional titles, the second-longest streak behind the New England Patriots, who were able to achieve the feat 11Â times.
In that timeframe, Mahomes went 35-6 against his divisional rivals, the best for any starting quarterback since the merger with a minimum of 20 starts. Simply put, the domination has been wholly unique, with three Super Bowl championships and five AFC Championships further added to the resume.
But, after losing in humiliating fashion to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 59, the Chiefs had a slow start to the season, as they fell behind 0-2, including a loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
The team has rallied back into the race since then, going 5-2 over the next seven weeks. But, at 5-4, they are markedly behind the Chargers (6-3), who hold a tiebreaker over them, and the Denver Broncos (7-2).
With more than half the season already in the books, reality is starting to settle in for Kansas City. Perhaps this is the year where the streak gets broken, and according to PFSN’s Playoff Predictor, it is now basically inevitable.
As things currently stand, the Broncos, on the back of a six-game winning streak, have a 60.20% chance of winning the AFC West, while Los Angeles is in second place at 27.40%. The Chiefs, on the other hand, are dramatically behind, as they hold a 12.30% chance.
They could make a run on the road and find their unique brand of success in the playoffs to keep the dynasty alive. But, for the time being, it looks like their run atop the AFC West is coming to an end.