3 Chiefs playing in their final postseason for Kansas City, 1 star who will be back
By Mark Powell
The Kansas City Chiefs face the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Divisional Round on Sunday. The game will be Patrick Mahomes first on the road, barring you don't count the Super Bowl against him. Say what you want about Mahomes, he gives his team every opportunity to win, so much so that the Chiefs rarely face the prospect of a road playoff game. Mahomes has yet to pick up a road postseason win, if only due to a lack of opportunity.
A postseason matchup with the Bills -- the No. 2 seed in the AFC -- awaits, as does Josh Allen and the electric Buffalo offense. The Bills-Chiefs rivalry is entering its golden years, with both quarterbacks playing at an elite level.
The AFC runs through Kansas City, and on the rare years that the Chiefs underachieve in the regular season, Buffalo, Cincinnati and Baltimore will pick up the slack. Brett Veach has done another encouraging job putting a solid foundation around Mahomes, even if his receiving corps is lacking a bit this year. Considering Mahomes hefty contract, and the deals of some of his teammates, constructing a roster to the Chiefs strengths every season is an exhausting job, and one that requires a lot of turnover.
Some of the Chiefs playing on Sunday may be doing so in their final postseason for Kansas City.
Mecole Hardman won't be back with the Chiefs
Mecole Hardman left the Chiefs once last offseason. What's to stop him from doing so again?
Hardman learned the hard way that the pastures aren't always greener away from KC. In his case, Hardman literally signed with Gang Green. Hardman originally signed on the play with Aaron Rodgers, but the future Hall of Famer went down in the first quarter of his first game as a Jet. So, Hardman was left catching passes from Zach Wilson, a fate I would wish on no man.
Hardman only has 124 receiving yards this season and has had a limited impact since making his way back to the Chiefs midseason. Because of that, his value will not be very high in free agency. Perhaps Veach values that sort of camaraderie year over year. On the other hand, the Chiefs need all the money they can get to sign the likes of Chris Jones to a long-term contract and improve the same receiving corps Hardman left last offseason.