Chiefs advantage in the NFL playoffs goes well beyond having first-round bye

The Kansas City Chiefs aren’t just fortunate to have the first-round bye in this year’s NFL playoffs, but they also have another big advantage on the rest of the field. 

They’re one of two teams to have seven wins against teams currently in the playoffs. The bigger advantage? All of those wins are against teams in the AFC except for a win against Tampa Bay. That means they would have beaten everybody they could play in this postseason before the Super Bowl except for the Buffalo Bills. 

How about that for the team looking to three-peat as Super Bowl champions? The Chiefs had an unconventional way of reaching the top of the AFC. Sure they won 15 games and had just two losses. But they also did it without having a particularly dominant offense. 

That’s a sign to the rest of the playoff field that if the Chiefs were able to dominate and Patrick Mahomes didn’t have to play his best, they could be the most dangerous team. 

Chiefs familiarity with playoff field is as big of an advantage as first-round bye

What makes this year’s Chiefs team dangerous is they haven’t looked nearly as potent on offense as they have years prior. They’ve done enough to get by, win the games they needed to and ultimately finish as the best team in the AFC.

This season, Mahomes wasn’t quite as elite as he has been throwing just under 4,000 yards with 26 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He tied his career low in touchdown passes. He also threw for a career-low 3,928. It’s the only season he had less than 4,000 passing yards. 

The most alarming stat is he was sacked 36 times, which was a career high for him. It was arguably one of the biggest reasons he couldn’t take off like he usually does. That and obviously the injury problems the offense faced all year. 

While he didn’t have the regular season he usually does, none of that matters now. No quarterback is more feared in the postseason than Mahomes. And even though every team they’ll play, they’ve beaten, it also means they know how to best defend him. 

In the last two seasons combined, both championship seasons, Mahomes 13 total touchdowns and just one interception. He’s thrown for just under 2,000 yards total in the last seven playoff games. 

The one thing going for any team he faces before the Super Bowl is he’s thrown for 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions against the AFC — although two of those interceptions were against the Cincinnati Bengals. 

Mahomes and the Chiefs get extra rest and one less game than every team in the AFC. That’s already a winning recipe. When you give it to the most successful postseason team in the last five seasons, it’s why the Chiefs are the most dangerous team this time of year.