Kansas City Chiefs

As the Kansas City Chiefs gear up for their third straight Super Bowl appearance, teams are reportedly already eyeing members of their roster who will be available in free agency.

According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, the Chicago Bears are viewed as a potential landing spot for right guard Trey Smith, who is ranked by "several teams" as the "top overall free agent."

Fowler noted that Bears general manager Ryan Poles was a member of the Chiefs front office when Smith was drafted with a sixth-round pick in 2021 and added that Poles "needs to drastically improve his interior offensive line for new coach Ben Johnson."

2024 No. 1 pick Caleb Williams was sacked a whopping 68 times in his rookie year, by far the highest total in the league, so protecting him must be Chicago's top priority going forward.

Smith would be a major upgrade for any team if Kansas City lets him walk in free agency. The 25-year-old appeared in all 17 games this season for the second straight year and drew just two penalties, the lowest single-season mark of his career. He was selected to his first Pro Bowl, but he will miss the game while preparing for Super Bowl LIX against the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 9.

Smith made just $3.3 million in the final year of his contract this season, so it can be expected that he will be seeking a major payday this offseason. Eagles veteran Landon Dickerson was the highest-paid guard in the NFL this season at $21 million. Chris Lindstrom of the Atlanta Falcons made $20.5 million, while Robert Hunt of the Miami Dolphins and Quenton Nelson of the Indianapolis Colts both earned $20 million.

The Chiefs have been able to build their current dynasty by retaining their homegrown talent, but it's clear that there will be some heavy competition for Smith's services this offseason.

As the Kansas City Chiefs prepare to face the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl for the second time in three years, Travis Kelce has high praise for the NFC champs.

On the latest episode of the New Heights podcast (starts at 10:00 mark), Kelce referred to the Eagles as a "hell of a f--king football team" and said they will be the best team Kansas City plays this season.

"And it's man, it's going to be electric. It's going to be absolutely electric," Kelce said. "We know Philly's got the sour taste in their mouth from the last one. And you know that and they're a hell of a fucking football team, man. This would be the best team we play all year."

The last time these two teams played on this stage was electric. Kansas City won 38-35 on Harrison Butker's 27-yard field goal with eight seconds remaining. The 73 combined points were the third-most in Super Bowl history.

The 340 yards by the Chiefs in that game were their fewest in their four Super Bowl appearances during Patrick Mahomes' career.

While many of the principal players from that matchup are back for Super Bowl 59, the Chiefs' approach on offense has changed significantly. It's still built around Mahomes being Superman, but the 2022 season was really the last time he aired it out like he did early in his career.

Now, Mahomes takes a more cerebral approach because the Chiefs don't have as many explosive players around him. Kelce has lost a step now that he is 35 years old. Rashee Rice looked like he was going to be a breakout star before tearing his LCL in Week 4.

The Eagles built their 2024 team in a way that is very reminiscent of the 2022 squad, except they now have Saquon Barkley at running back instead of Miles Sanders. Even though Sanders was very good that season (1,269 yards, 11 touchdowns), Barkley is putting together one of the best running back seasons in NFL history.

The Eagles defense is better by certain metrics now than it was during the 2022 season. They finished second in the NFL in points allowed per game (eighth in 2022) and first in defensive DVOA (third in 2022).

No matter how good the Eagles—or any team—have been throughout the course of an entire season, the Chiefs have proven they deserve any benefit of the doubt in a playoff matchup.

Kelce's assessment that this Philadelphia squad is the best team the Chiefs will play all season is arguably correct. The other teams challenging the Eagles would be the Baltimore Ravens and Buffalo Bills, the latter of which just had their hearts broken again by Kansas City in the postseason.

The Eagles will attempt to be the first team to beat Kansas City in the playoffs since the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2021 AFC Championship Game when the two teams square off in Super Bowl 59 on Feb. 9 at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.

Former NFL head of officiating and current Fox Sports' officiating analyst, Dean Blandino, pushed back against the narrative that the Kansas City Chiefs get a favorable whistle from NFL referees.

"Do teams get breaks at times?" he told TMZ Sports. "They do. And not every call is right. And sometimes that happens. I think it evens out over time. But me watching it, I don't see these games and say, 'Oh god, the Chiefs are getting all these calls.' These are close, close plays and they happened to go in the Chiefs' favor on Sunday."

Granted, there is evidence to suggest that in the playoffs, at least, the Chiefs tend to get more calls:

Now, that doesn't mean that the officials are purposefully favoring the Chiefs, though some factors might be at play. For one, the Chiefs are a disciplined team that plays smart, situational football. For another, they put a lot of pressure on defenses with their dynamic offensive scheme, the dual threat of Patrick Mahomes as a rusher and passer and their ability to disguise blitzes and pressure on defense.

Pressure forces mistakes and bad decisions, and the Chiefs keep their opponents under constant stress throughout a game.

And there is also a more human element at play—the Chiefs have played a lot of home playoff games in the Mahomes' era, and the officials may be subtly and psychologically pressured by the Kansas City fans. Home teams often get a better whistle.

But as as for the even more nefarious accusation against the Chiefs and the NFL—that the league manipulates games to ensure Kansas City wins—Blandino found it absurd.

"For it to be really a conspiracy, do you know the amount of people that would have to be involved? Someone, somewhere would slip up and it would get out," he said. "If there's a room somewhere in the NFL offices where they were writing the script, they never invited me—and I was the head of officiating. I feel like I'd be a pretty important contributor to that."

Tom Brady set the standard for quarterbacks during his NFL career, with seven Super Bowl titles and all-time records in passing yards (89,214) and passing touchdowns (649), among many others legendary accomplishments.

But given enough time, Patrick Mahomes might just give him a run for his money in the G.O.A.T. conversation.

"He's just gotta do it for a long time," former NFL wide receiver Julian Edelman said on The Dan Patrick Show Tuesday when asked what Mahomes would have to do to surpass Brady. "I mean, he's on pace. This is remarkable. If he goes out and does three in a row—in a salary-cap era—you can't say much. I'm as big of a Tom Brady guy as there is, and the only difference is the longevity. Tom had like three careers."

Mahomes, 29, already has three titles, five Super Bowl appearances and two MVP awards (Brady had three in his career). He's already over a third of the way (32,352 yards, 245 touchdowns) to surpassing Brady's record for passing yards and passing touchdowns.

Mahomes has played eight seasons already. Brady played 23. It's possible that many of Brady's records will never be touched, simply because most players don't play well into their 40s.

The ultimate measuring stick, of course, is championships, and Mahomes has the chance to do something that no other player in NFL history has done before—win three straight Super Bowls. He'll have to get through a tough Philadelphia Eagles defense to do it, but it would be the sort of legacy-defining accomplishment that would give him a real leg to stand on in the G.O.A.T. debate.

Sunday's AFC Championship Game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills drew huge ratings for the NFL and CBS.

According to Puck's John Ourand, the game averaged 57.7 million viewers, making it the most-watched AFC Championship Game since at least 1988.

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs outlasted quarterback Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills, winning the game 32-29 to advance to a third consecutive Super Bowl.

Ourand noted that Chiefs vs. Bills was also the most-watched non-Super Bowl game since the Minnesota Vikings vs. New Orleans Saints NFC Championship Game during the 2009 season.

Additionally, this year's AFC Championship Game viewership was up 4 percent from last year's game between the Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens.

Sunday marked the fourth time that Mahomes' Chiefs and Allen's Bills have met in the playoffs and the second time they clashed in the AFC Championship Game.

Kansas City won each of the first three matchups, although the Bills have won four of the past five regular-season meetings with the Chiefs.

Buffalo took a 22-21 lead late in the third quarter of Sunday's game when running back James Cook scored a one-yard rushing touchdown.

The Buffalo defense forced a Kansas City three-and-out on the next drive, giving the Bills' offense a chance to extend the lead.

However, the Chiefs made a controversial fourth-down stop at their own 41-yard line, as Allen was ruled short of the line to gain on a quarterback sneak.

KC went ahead by seven on a 10-yard rushing touchdown by Mahomes, and Buffalo answered with a four-yard touchdown pass from Allen to Curtis Samuel with 6:15 left in regulation.

The Chiefs left the door open by settling for a field goal on the next drive, but Buffalo's offense stalled out at its own 47-yard line when Allen's throw on fourth-and-5 went off the arms of a diving Dalton Kincaid and hit the ground.

Kansas City put the game away on the next drive by picking up a pair of first downs and forcing the Bills to exhaust their timeouts.

The Chiefs, who will face the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX on Feb. 9, are the first team in NFL history to reach the Super Bowl on the heels of winning two in a row.

If they can beat the Eagles in the Super Bowl for the second time in three years, the Chiefs will be the first three-peat Super Bowl champions of all time.

Looking to become the first team to win three consecutive Super Bowls, the Kansas City Chiefs showed off the jerseys they will wear against the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 9 with a hype video and series of pictures.

As the designated road team, the Chiefs will wear their white jerseys with the Super Bowl 59 patch on the right side of the chest.

The Chiefs have become so synonymous with the Super Bowl that they might as well just play the entire season with the patch on their jerseys.

This will mark the second time that Kansas City has worn its white jerseys in the Super Bowl since 2019. The only other time was two years ago when the Chiefs and Eagles played for the first time.

The Chiefs won that game 38-35 on Harrison Butker's 27-yard field goal with eight seconds remaining. Of course, the field goal was set up by a holding penalty by Eagles cornerback James Bradberry against Juju Smith-Schuster on a third-and-8.

If you are a superstitious person, the Chiefs' playoff losses since Patrick Mahomes became their starting quarterback in 2018 came when they were wearing red jerseys. They lost at home in the AFC Championship Game to the New England Patriots (2018) and Cincinnati Bengals (2021), then lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneeers in Super Bowl 55 (2020).

As always seems to be the case, Mahomes has the Chiefs playing their best football at the right time. They scored more than 30 points in a game for the first time all season in the AFC Championship Game win over the Buffalo Bills.

The Eagles could present them with a unique challenge because of how dominant they are on the ground. Saquon Barkley already has the seventh-most rushing yards ever in a single postseason (442).

Philadelphia's 55-point outburst against the Washington Commanders in the NFC Championship Game set a new NFL record for most points by a team in a conference title game.

The last team to score at least 50 points in a playoff game was the Chiefs in 2019. They went on to win the Super Bowl.

We will find out which team has more answers when the Chiefs and Eagles meet to determine the champion of the 2024 NFL season at the Caesars Superdome on Feb. 9.

Brittany Mahomes, Patrick Mahomes' wife, called out what she labeled "disgusting" behavior by Buffalo Bills fans earlier this season.

In an Instagram story after the Chiefs' 32-29 victory over the Bills in the AFC title game, she shared a photo of a Kermit the Frog doll dressed to look like her husband hanging in effigy.

"Do you remember this Buffalo?" she wrote in a caption accompanying the picture. "Absolutely disgusting...So as you go home tonight, I pray we become better people."

The photo in question was from when Buffalo hosted Kansas City in Week 11 of the regular season. Using a Kermit doll to represent Patrick Mahomes was a reference to how fans have long said the two-time MVP sounds like the beloved puppet.

In November, the Bills got the better of their AFC rivals. Josh Allen's 26-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter helped seal a 30-21 victory.

The Chiefs got their revenge on Sunday night. Harrison Butker's 35-yard field goal with 3:33 on the clock put them ahead, and the defense forced a turnover on downs on Buffalo's next possession before Mahomes helped to run out the clock.

Kansas City now has a four-game winning streak in the playoffs over Allen and the Bills.

Kansas City Chiefs star defensive tackle Chris Jones drew comparisons to Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Randy Moss for his impact during the Chiefs' 32-29 win over the Buffalo Bills in Sunday's AFC Championship Game.

"The whole first half is long drives against K.C., and then in the final 10 minutes, Kansas City gets the stops," a coach from a rival team told Mike Sando of The Athletic. "It is classic with Chris Jones, too. He is a modern-day Randy Moss. He'll play when he wants to play, and when he wants to play, look out."

The Bills' offense was able to put together several impressive drives to open the game, taking a 22-21 lead with just under three minutes remaining in the third quarter.

Buffalo scored just one more touchdown during the rest of the contest, turning the ball over on downs twice.

Jones didn't register a sack against the Bills, but he still recorded a tackle and two quarterback hits.

When the 30-year-old is healthy and engaged, it isn't an exaggeration to call him one of the NFL's top defensive players. He's earned Pro Bowl nods six consecutive seasons and received AP All-Pro First Team honors for the third straight year in 2024.

While Jones' five regular-season sacks were his lowest amount since the 2016 season, his ability to consistently dominate at the line of scrimmage has been crucial for a Chiefs squad that owned the NFL's fourth-best scoring defense and No. 8 run defense during the regular season.

Jones also racked up 38 pressures, 20 quarterback hits, nine tackles for loss and one forced fumble in 15 starts during his 2024 campaign.

He helped the Chiefs' defense step up in the fourth quarter on Sunday, as Kansas City secured its fifth trip to the Super Bowl in six years.

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins spoke up for teammate Patrick Mahomes as the star quarterback is increasingly becoming the villain of the NFL thanks to his team's on-field success.

"Everybody has to choose a team they go against or that they feel is getting help from someone," Hopkins said to The Athletic's Michael Silver. "Everybody has to choose a villain, and it's easy to choose someone who's winning as much as our guy is.

"How can Patrick Mahomes be the villain? The same way Tom Brady could be, and the same way Michael Jordan was. Why do people still talk about MJ pushing off (before hitting the game-winning shot over Bryon Russell in the 1997-98 NBA Finals) almost 30 years later? Because he's one of the greatest ever to do it, and when he won his sixth, (some) people were tired of watching him win."

This is the arc that accompanies almost any legend with multiple titles.

Tom Brady and the New England Patriots were plucky underdogs when they beat the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI. A few championships later and fans had grown fatigued by the Patriots' dynasty.

The same was true for Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, who sparked conversations about whether their dominance in the 1990s was healthy for the NBA as a whole.

With Mahomes, we're getting there faster than usual because he's already ahead of the pace Brady set.

The 15-time Pro Bowler had three Super Bowl rings by his age-27 season, but his last four didn't come until after he had turned 37. Mahomes is one win away from a fourth title before he's 30.

Plenty of otherwise neutral observers will be rooting for the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 9 in Super Bowl LIX, if only to see somebody else come out on top for a change.

Even if the Eagles upset the two-time reigning champs, Mahomes will continue to cast a large shadow over the rest of the NFL.