The Kansas City Chiefs may be approaching a crossroad. While they made it to the AFC Conference Championship for the fourth straight season, an upset loss to the Cincinnati Bengals and the lingering concerns of a defense that ranked 24th in total DVOA and 27th in yards allowed have cast doubt over their upcoming season. Factor in the departures of Tyreek Hill (via trade) and Tyrann Mathieu (via free agency), and the arrival of stars like Russell Wilson, Davante Adams, and JC Jackson to AFC West rivals and there’s reason to believe 2022 could be worse than 2021.
Of course, all this worrying could be for naught. Kansas City still has Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid. The veteran departures from a championship roster have been backfilled but savvy free agent pickups and a well-received rookie class. It’s been six years since anyone other than the Chiefs has won the West, and that inertia could be enough to fend off a renewed challenge from the rest of the division.
We won’t know whether this offseason’s retooling is a success until we see Kansas City back on the gridiron. When that happens, here are the five most important games of their regular season — the ones that could determine whether they make a fifth-straight appearance in the AFC title game.