KC Chiefs: What to Expect the Second Half of the Season
The KC Chiefs are sitting at 3-5 this season and are coming off of their bye week to take on the Denver Broncos in Week 10.
Kansas City started off the season on a very sour note after winning their opening game against the Houston Texans. They proceeded to lose their next five games, and lost their star player, running back Jamaal Charles to season ending ACL surgery against the Minnesota Vikings.
Since Charles went down, the Chiefs have surprisingly went 2-1, with wins against the Steelers and Lions, after a road loss against the Vikings, with reserve back Charcandrick West filling in as the starter. West has proven to be a very capable back, and his play is actually pretty similar to that of Charles’ style of play.
Now at 3-5 for the season, the KC Chiefs had their bye week last week in Week 9, and go up against the Denver Broncos for the second time this season. If you remember back to Week 2 of this season, the Broncos beat the Chiefs in Kansas City after a very costly fumble by Charles at the end of the game when the score was tied.
The fumble was returned for a touchdown, ending all hopes that the Kansas City Chiefs had of winning the game. That fumble by Charles was really the beginning of what turned into a landslide for Kansas City, as they then lost the next four games after it, and they seemed to never re-gain their swagger that they had coming into the season.
Looking ahead to the rest of the schedule after Denver, the Chiefs have two matchups with the rising rival Oakland Raiders, two games against the San Diego Chargers, and three very winnable games against the Bills, Browns, and Ravens (not in that order).
I see the Chiefs being able to win around five or so of these games, which would put them around the 8-8 mark at the end of the season. If they could get to this mark or better, they would most likely at least be in the conversation for one of the Wild Card playoff spots in the AFC.
If they could get to 8-8 or better, they would at least be in the conversation for one of the Wild Card playoff spots in the AFC.
The problem I have with this notion of the Kansas City Chiefs making the playoffs is the absence of Jamaal Charles, but it may not be for the same reason you might be thinking. I actually really like Charcandrick in the Chiefs’ backfield because he does most of what Jamaal does (even though it isn’t up to par with him) and does a good job of keeping the running game a threat.
The reason that the Charles injury bothers me is because Andy Reid and co. has to lean much more on quarterback Alex Smith to throw the ball down the field, which in his time in Kansas City, he has yet to prove that he is capable of doing.
Smith has certainly lived up to his reputation of a “game-managing” style quarterback, but it isn’t what the Chiefs need to have if they have playoff aspirations this season. If he and the Chiefs really want to get into the playoffs, they will have to look to throw the ball to Travis Kelce, Jeremy Maclin, and other down the field much more often.
If he doesn’t, they will not be able to keep up with the much-improved Oakland Raider offense with the tandem of Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper at the wide-out positions. Also, they definitely won’t be able to keep up this coming weekend with Peyton Manning and the Broncos.
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The reigns for the Chiefs’ playoff hopes this season lie solely in the hands of Alex Smith, and this could be one of the last chances he gets in Kansas City as fans are seeing a very talented team with not many results. Look for the Chiefs to be right in the thick of things when the season winds down and comes to a close in a little over a month. These coming weeks should be pretty exciting.