Kansas City is no stranger to excellent football games under Patrick Mahoems and Andy Reid. Over the last five years, we’ve been treated to spectacular battles against the Bengals, Rams, Bills, Eagles, Ravens, and more in both the regular season and playoffs.
With another difficult schedule this year, there are several games I’m circling with excitement as we inch closer to our September 7th matchup with the Lions.
For my money, here are the most intriguing games on the schedule heading into the year:
3 Most Intriguing Games on the Chiefs Schedule
@ Jacksonville Jaguars, September 17
I’m on the record that I expect a big year from the Jaguars, entering their second season of the Doug Pederson regime. Jacksonville put up a fight in the Divisional Round of the playoffs against a hobbled Patrick Mahomes and I think the Jaguars enter that upper echelon of AFC teams this year.
Calvin Ridley's first catch as a Jaguar pic.twitter.com/PZyouSrQmj
— Josh Norris (@JoshNorris) August 12, 2023
Calvin Ridley’s addition will be a massive boost for an already-deep offense alongside Christian Kirk, Evan Engram, Zay Jones and Travis Etienne. Trevor Lawrence was one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks in the second half of the season last year and may already be one of the AFC’s best signal callers.
The young defense should be improved, and this is a tricky matchup considering it comes in the second week of the season. If Chris Jones is still ramping up to speed and Kansas City’s receiving corps isn’t fully healthy, the Chiefs could get surprised by an upstart Jags team looking for a signature victory.
I’ll back Kansas City to win, but this will be a critical test early in the year for a team looking to win a third Super Bowl in five seasons.
vs. Philadelphia Eagles, November 20
A Super Bowl rematch on Monday Night Football in front of a roaring GEHA Field @ Arrowhead Stadium crowd? Sign me up!
Jalen Hurts went toe-to-toe with Mahomes in the Super Bowl and nearly escaped with a championship, so this rematch should be circled on every Chiefs fan’s calendar. Philadelphia has perhaps the league’s deepest roster and we could be seeing an incredible rivalry get started.
The Eagles haven’t been shy in complaints about the Super Bowl field and referees. This is an opportunity for Kansas City to show the Super Bowl was no fluke with the whole world watching.
A.J. Brown, Devonta Smith, and Dallas Goedert are a dangerous receiving trio, and Philly’s defense is still loaded with playmakers.
I’m picking a Super Bowl rematch this year and think these teams could square off for years to come. If that comes to fruition, regular-season matchups like this one will be electric.
Both teams should be in the mix for the No. 1 seeds in their respective conferences. The stakes this late in the season will be massive and I can’t wait to see how this rematch unfolds.
vs. Cincinnati Bengals, December 31
Who else could it be but the Bengals?
This is the Chiefs’ greatest rival of the last several years and the schedule makers knew what they were doing by scheduling this game on New Year’s Eve. Kansas City and Cincinnati will likely be competing for seeding at the top of the AFC, so this contest could determine home-field advantage in the playoffs.
Ja’Marr Chase hasn’t been shy in his disdain for Kansas City and every game between these teams has gone down to the wire. This will be the fifth time these teams have played under Mahomes and Joe Burrow and the familiarity between these organizations adds a special layer of intrigue.
Until another team comes along (Jacksonville or Buffalo?) these clubs are the class of the AFC. The Mahomes vs. Burrow rivalry is the NFL’s best, and there’s no opposing team Chiefs fans want to beat more than the Bengals.
The same is true for Cincy and the Chiefs. There’s no love lost between these fanbases and this is the single-most exciting game on Kansas City’s schedule this season.