Kansas City Chiefs 2024 schedule: Game by game, final record predictions

And we have arrived at this part of the offseason, Mike Francesa's favorite. That's a win, that's a loss, that's a win... You know the drill. Even though I have no earthly idea what is in store for us this NFL season, I do know one thing: The Kansas City Chiefs will be damn good. To me, they are one of four or five playoff locks right now, almost certainly getting back to the AFC Championship Game at least.

After winning the last two Super Bowls, I wonder if they have it in them to pull off the unprecedented three-peat. It has never happened before. While I may like the Detroit Lions a bit more than them out of the NFC this season, I have the right to change my stance on these teams up until opening night. The Chiefs will be hosting the AFC North champion Baltimore Ravens to start the season off right.

When it comes to dissecting a team's 17-game schedule over 18 weeks, I have a hard time seeing anybody being better than 14-3 in a given season, just like I have a hard time seeing a team be worse than 2-15. Kansas City is obviously going to win double-digit games. The question is if it will be closer to 14 or closer to 10. With a first-place schedule and a ton of primetime games, I will do my very best.

Here is my way-too-early official game-by-game and final record predictions for the 2024 Chiefs.

Week 1: vs. Baltimore Ravens (Thursday, Sept. 5, 8:20 p.m. ET)

Kansas City opens up with Baltimore, their first of two tough AFC North home games. While I also view the Ravens as a playoff lock right now, the Chiefs have their number and there is a finite ceiling to what a team can do in the playoffs with Lamar Jackson under center. We saw that last year. Until things change, I am always going to pick the Chiefs to beat the Ravens, barring any scheduling quirk.

Prediction: Chiefs 33, Ravens 24

Week 2: vs. Cincinnati Bengals (Sunday, Sept. 15, 4:25 p.m. ET)

Truth be told, I think the Chiefs have a fairly navigable schedule. However, I think the Cincinnati Bengals coming to town is a tough Week 2 matchup for them. Kansas City may have had 10 days between games, but Cincinnati will obliterate New England. As long as Joe Burrow is healthy, the Bengals are never afraid to face the Chiefs, no matter where they play. Cincinnati wins in a nail-biter.

Prediction: Bengals 24, Chiefs 21

Week 3: at Atlanta Falcons (Sunday, Sept. 22, 8:20 p.m. ET)

I am preparing myself for the amount of flaying the Chiefs are going to do to my beloved Atlanta Falcons in Week 3. It is Sunday Night Football with Kirk Cousins under center in Atlanta with the Chiefs coming off a tough home loss to Cincinnati. This will be a great way to celebrate my dad's birthday. I am a professional, but this ass-kicking is going to have my contemplate calling in sick.

Prediction: Chiefs 41, Falcons 17

Week 4: at Los Angeles Chargers (Sunday, Sept. 29, 4:25 p.m. ET)

This is the first division game on the slate for the Chiefs. While Kansas City is better than all three of its rivals, I think they could lose a game to either the Chargers or Raiders. With the Bolts actually having a competent head coach in Jim Harbaugh, I suspect they will be a force to be reckoned with by the end of the season. I just think Kansas City has too much of a talent advantage during this one.

Prediction: Chiefs 27, Chargers 18

Week 5: vs. New Orleans Saints (Monday, Oct. 7, 8:15 p.m. ET)

This game will be very revealing for the New Orleans Saints. While I suspect for the Chiefs to win comfortably over the visiting NFC South team on Monday Night Football, it will be a referendum of the current regime in place in New Orleans. Look for Derek Carr to have a complete meltdown on the sidelines and for Dennis Allen's hindquarters to resemble delicious beef nuggets called burnt ends.

Prediction: Chiefs 30, Saints 13

Week 6: Bye (Sunday, Oct. 13)

Kansas City enters its Week 6 with a 4-1 record, a ton of confidence, but a tough loss to Cincinnati.

Week 7: at San Francisco 49ers (Sunday, Oct. 20, 4:05 p.m. ET)

This might be the worst moment for the Chiefs this year. I anticipate that the San Francisco 49ers wll win their Super Bowl right before Halloween. It will be a game where Patrick Mahomes makes one bad decision after another. We start talking about Brock Purdy for NFL MVP and Kyle Shanahan for Coach of the Year. With two losses on the season in six games, will the Chiefs be onto the Raiders in Week 8?

Prediction: 49ers 35, Chiefs 20

Week 8: at Las Vegas Raiders (Sunday, Oct. 27, 4:25 p.m. ET)

As it is with the first two weeks of the season, I have the Chiefs splitting the pair with their first two off the bye. I came down to the 49ers playing up more than a possible letdown game to the Raiders. While I think the Raiders could be a borderline playoff team this year in a deep AFC, this is a bad spot for the Silver and Black with the Chiefs coming off a brutal loss to the 49ers at the House of Jeans.

Prediction: Chiefs 28, Raiders 23

Week 9: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Monday, Nov. 4, 8:15 p.m. ET)

We will be at that part of the year where we are going to need a distraction, alright. Monday Night Football could be that with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers coming to town. While I suspect that Tampa Bay will be playoff-viable for the fifth year in a row, a tough loss to the Chiefs will be a tipping point in their season. Is Baker Mayfield going to bounce back from a four-pick game or will he totally unravel?

Prediction: Chiefs 30, Buccaneers 14

Week 10: vs. Denver Broncos (Sunday, Nov. 10, 1:00 p.m. ET)

Like I have said throughout, it will be an up-and-down year for the Chiefs, from their standard mostly. On sheer talent, coaching talent and momentum alone, they will find ways to win games lesser teams would lose. Although I suspect that the Denver Broncos will be one of the four worst teams in football, they will played hard in this game, but Kansas City prevails due to Patrick Mahomes' utter brilliance.

Prediction: Chiefs 24, Broncos 19

Week 11: at Buffalo Bills (Sunday, Nov. 17, 4:25 p.m. ET)

As it will be the case with the New Orleans Saints, this game will be a referendum on the Buffalo Bills and their current regime. With all the hype in the world surrounding two Super Bowl hopefuls, one will be revealed as a serious contender, while another will amount to being a fraudulent pretender. It will be a sad mid-November night in Western New York, as Bills Mafia will accept their window has closed.

Prediction: Chiefs 40, Bills 27

Week 12: at Carolina Panthers (Sunday, Nov. 24, 1:00 p.m. ET)

If there was ever a game to spend time with your family, go to the grocery store or get on a plane and travel to your in-law's house for Thanksgiving, this is the weekend to do so. The NFL should be required to put this game behind a paywall to protect the young. It will be worse than Mufasa's fate in The Lion King, as David Tepper will embarrass Charlotteans everywhere. Carson Wentz will play late.

Prediction: Chiefs 51, Panthers 20

Week 13: vs. Las Vegas Raiders (Friday, Nov. 29, 3:00 p.m. ET)

For as difficult as this exercise was, I had to find a division game where the Chiefs could get got. It will be at home, which is shocking, but Andy Reid will be in a tryptophan-enduced comatose state after devouring more turkey than John Madden could ever hope to dream. It will be a 2:00 p.m. local kick, but a sleepwalking Chiefs team will end up losing to the Raiders in their Super Bowl of the season.

Prediction: Raiders 26, Chiefs 24

Week 14: vs. Los Angeles Chargers (Sunday, Dec. 8, 8:20 p.m. ET)

Like I said before, the Chargers will be markedly better by the time this game arrives. At the end of the day on Sunday Night Football, it will come down to who you trust more between Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert. This will be a game where we convince ourselves that the Chargers could might maybe win the division next year. Ann Arbor is Latin for close only in horseshoes and hand grenades.

Prediction: Chiefs 33, Chargers 28

Week 15: at Cleveland Browns (Sunday, Dec. 15, 1:00 p.m. ET)

This game will be proof that even the best teams in the NFL cannot fully overcome their schedule. It will be a schedule loss for the Chiefs, one of only a few on the slate for 2024. Weather will absolutely be a factor in Northeast Ohio, as the playoff-probable Chiefs succumb to the elements to a Cleveland Browns team that needs every last win to get to double digits again. They might, but they win this one.

Prediction: Browns 28, Chiefs 27

Week 16: vs. Houston Texans (Sunday, Dec. 21, 1:00 p.m. ET)

This will be the biggest game of the season at this point, one where playoff positioning could be on the line. I am all-in on the Houston Texans this year. Chiefs Kingdom needs to see what is going on down on the Gulf Coast and be ready for that. Because of the Chiefs' tough road loss to Cleveland, they will edge out C.J. Stroud and company in a game where the final score does not do it justice.

Prediction: Chiefs 35, Texans 24

Week 17: at Pittsburgh Steelers (Wednesday, Dec. 25, 1:00 p.m. ET)

Why are we playing a football game outside in Pittsburgh on Christmas Day on a Wednesday at 1:00 p.m. ET? The NFL is greedier than a turn of the century robber baron, that's why. Oh, the Chiefs will win near The Confluence, but it will prove costly. Somebody of significance will get hurt and will miss the rest of the season. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight. What a disaster this shall be!

Prediction: Chiefs 17, Steelers 13

Week 18: at Denver Broncos (Sunday, Jan. 5, TBA ET)

After whatever the hell happened in Pittsburgh, the Chiefs will be a massive favorite over Denver in their regular season finale. Since they still have seeding to play for, Patrick Mahomes will reluctantly have to play for Kansas City. Fortunately, he will put on a clinic in the first half, enough to where Carson Wentz cannot possibly screw it up in the second half, although he will do his absolute best.

Prediction: Chiefs 38, Broncos 24

Overall, I have the Chiefs going 13-4, winning the AFC West and being a top-two seed in the AFC playoffs. They will have big wins over teams like Baltimore, Buffalo and Houston, but will suffer losses to Cincinnati, San Francisco, Las Vegas and Cleveland this year. Overall, Kansas City is just too good to lose more than five games with this schedule. This is a top-four team in football without question.

Having the head-to-head over Baltimore and Houston could certainly help them get the No. 1 seed.

Final record prediction: 13-4, AFC West Division winner, certain top-two seed in AFC