KC Chiefs: Philip Rivers And The Trap Game

The KC Chiefs ride a three-game winning streak, but that won’t matter today against the Chargers.

The Kansas City Chiefs (4-5) enter today as one of the hottest team in the NFL. They’ll face the San Diego Chargers (2-7) and quarterback Philip Rivers in what has trap game written all over it.

Only three teams in the NFL have a longer current winning streak than the Chiefs, while only one team in the NFL has a longer current losing streak than the Chargers.

It’s a classic trap game for the road team. Kansas City defeated the Denver Broncos last week in what was a huge step forward for this 2015 KC Chiefs team. The Chargers, on the other hand, haven’t played a game since Nov. 9, when they fell at home to the Chicago Bears.

Adding to the trap, the Chiefs return home next Sunday for a showdown against the Buffalo Bills, a team standing directly in the Chiefs’ path to the postseason.

Throw in the fact that the Chiefs must avoid a letdown against one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks, and this visit to Qualcomm Stadium becomes all the more difficult.

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Rivers leads the league with 269 completions. His 3,033 yards lead all quarterbacks not named Tom Brady. He’s second in the NFL with a 69 percent completion rate (minimum 200 attempts).

The Chiefs are well-aware of Rivers’ ability to dictate the outcome of a game, according the The Kansas City Star‘s Terez A. Paylor:

"“Yeah, he’s a coach’s kid, and he grew up around it, loves to play the game,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “He was that way in college. One of my college coaches actually coached him in college and said he’s a very, very competitive guy, loves to play the game.”"

He’s also a high-volume, relentless passer, and he’s accurate.

Rivers has also made a living against the Chiefs his entire career. He’s is 13-6 all-time against the Chiefs, and he’s completed better than 63 percent of his passes in those 19 games. But, he hasn’t defeated the Chiefs since December of 2013. (Football-Reference)

The Chiefs get the Chargers two out of the next three weeks. While the Chargers odds of a playoff appearance are all-but zero, the Chiefs have everything to play for in a wide-open AFC playoff race.

The reality is that the Chiefs players and coaches need to act like this is an elimination game. Treat this like a win-or-go-home situation, because if you drop this one, your playoff odds largely go out the window.

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The Chiefs are favored by a field goal today, but that means nothing when you’re on the road at a division rival’s place. The Chargers are 2-7, but they’re capable of dismissing Kansas City if the Chiefs show up with anything less than a solid performance. How do you think the Chiefs stack up today?

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