There are still four games left for the Kansas City Chiefs. Who are the opponents? And what are the mathematical chances?
By Andreas Reiners
Strong slogans for perseverance. Lukewarm declarations of war.
Patrick Mahomes basically has no choice: The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback has to say something positive, something optimistic, as long as the NFL playoffs are still mathematically possible. Even if it seems pretty contrived.
And even though it’s pretty clear: The Chiefs will probably miss the 2025 postseason. For the first time in the Mahomes era. The team is 6-7 after Week 14. The division title is already gone. For the first time in the Mahomes era.
Kansas City Chiefs have lost their winning gene
The winning gene too. This dominant naturalness with which you have won games in the past that were in the balance or in which you were not necessarily the better team. Ingredients of a team that can win titles, or at least be ready for the playoffs.
“We know the chances are getting smaller,” said Mahomes after the sobering 10:20 loss against the Houston Texans, “but I know the guys on this team will give everything they have at every opportunity.”
The difference from before: This season, “giving everything” in too many games is not enough to win.
It is clear that the Chiefs will need four wins in the final weeks of the regular season. However, the remaining program is not without pitfalls.
Kansas City Chiefs: The remaining program in the NFL
Difficult opponents are the division rivals Los Angeles Chargers and Denver Broncos; mandatory victories should be against the Tennessee Titans and the Las Vegas Raiders.
What is definitely not allowed to happen anymore: a slip-up.
NFL Playoffs: Aren’t four Chiefs wins enough?
But it remains to be seen whether even four wins are enough. Simulations like those from the “New York Times” currently put the playoff probability at just 16 percent. If you include four Chiefs wins on the home stretch, the chances increase to 52 percent. Fifty-fifty then. And the dependence on other results.
The hope that she is still alive is rather slim. A lot has to come together. First and foremost with the Chiefs themselves.
“We don’t win games, but the mentality in this locker room, even in the games we lose – you can never question the fighting spirit of this team,” Mahomes continued.
Of course you don’t implement it correctly in the crucial moments and don’t make the necessary plays. “But at the end of the day you can never deny us that, and I think you’ll see that in the last four weeks,” said Mahomes optimistically.
Whether it is enough is another question.
