The Kansas City Chiefs’ reign over the AFC didn’t just end on Sunday; it shattered into a million pieces.
After seeing a nine-game AFC West title streak come to a halt last week, the Chiefs’ 16-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers at Arrowhead ensured that Andy Reid’s club would not be part of the postseason for the first time since 2014. The NFL’s longest active streak was 10 years.
“Guys are down,” Reid said after the loss via the team’s official transcript. “They busted their ass to win the game and I wouldn’t expect anything less. It’s not a great feeling. I wouldn’t expect it to be like that after losing a game.”
For just the second time in Reid’s 13 seasons with the Chiefs, KC has failed to qualify for the postseason.
Sunday marked the first three-game losing streak of Patrick Mahomes’ career, who had been 6-0 when facing a potential three-game hitting streak.
It was also the first time since Mahomes took over as the starter that he had been ejected before overtime in the AFC Championship Game. Mahomes’ seven-season streak of playing in the conference title game fell one short of tying Tom Brady for the most in a Super Bowl season.
“Every year is a journey. Success is rented every year,” All-Pro defensive end Chris Jones said after the loss. “Every year you get success in a rental and sometimes it doesn’t go the way you plan it to go. It’s a learning curve for you guys and especially for us. I think we learned a lot this year and we understand the fact that to be successful it’s an everyday thing. It’s not one week you put in and the next week, no. It’s a constant thing and we know it comes back every year and we’ve just rented every year. years team made the Super Bowl, it doesn’t guarantee success.
“You know, we’ve got three more games that we still have to finish strong, as competitors, as employees of this organization. I think it’s important to finish strong and play with pride. The most important thing is to play for yourself. The name on the back of your jersey, and also the name on the front of your jersey. I think it’s going to be competitive for us, and we’re going to continue to continue to (it) aim for that. Next year.”
Of course, the big question facing Kansas City is what 2026 might look like for Chiefs Kingdom.