It seems silly to ask if the Chiefs might be returning to their glory days. This is a team that hasn’t missed the AFC Championship Game in seven tries with Patrick Mahomes as the starter, has gone to three straight Super Bowls and has won half of the Lombardi Trophies awarded in the past six years. Somewhat remarkably, though, Kansas City has continued this run over the past few years while seemingly treading water offensively, constantly getting stuck and needing a win. After a familiar, high-hum start to 2025, the Chiefs — now back at full strength on offense — have turned it on. Since Week 4, when Xavier Worthy returned from a shoulder injury, the offense ranks third in the NFL in points per game (31.5) and first in points per drive (3.3), yards per game (411.8) and first downs per game (26.5), according to NFL Research. Mahomes is also back to MVP marks in that span, posting a 71.3 completion percentage with 282.8 passing yards per game, a 117.2 passer rating and an 11-to-1 TD-to-INT ratio. Rashee Rice played just 39% of the snaps last week in his first game since Week 4 of 2024, and he still had seven catches for 42 yards and two touchdowns. The running game could certainly use some work to provide better balance, but it appears the Chiefs offense is back on top. That’s a big problem for the leaky Commanders defense (and the rest of the NFL).
3) Chiefs run game vs. Chiefs run defense
Washington has a chance to make life easy for Marcus Mariota: Its rushing offense entered Week 8 tops in the NFL with 5.4 yards per carry. Of course, some of that is based on Jayden Daniels’ tendency to overwhelm opponents with timely fumbles, but there’s still a system in place to take advantage of Kansas City’s 15th-ranked offense against the run. However, Jacory Croskey-Merritt will have to shake off the funk for that to happen. After leading all carriers with 6.6 yards per carry in Weeks 1-5, he has dropped to 3.1 yards per carry in the last two games. He’s had a trait rehab of late, averaging 14.6 attempts per game over the past three weeks, so the task of dismantling KC’s D will likely fall to him once again, with Chris Rodriguez Jr. and Jeremy McNichols pop in from time to time. If the Chiefs can find ground against the Generals, it will hopefully slow down the run rush led by George Karlaftis, owner of 30 sacks in 2025, and Chris Jones, who has fueled the Chiefs to a 41.5 rushing percentage when on the field.