The Kansas City Chiefs' season has been a weird one. The offense seems to sputter each week, and the defense gives up big plays. The playcalling has been suspect at key times, and the red zone offense is atrocious. Injuries have mounted on both sides of the ball and yet the team is 12-1. Not only that but they're squarely in first place in the AFC with a two-game lead and four to play.
Go figure.
It's been that sort of year for the Chiefs, a series of "not sure how" victories in the face of most metrics and a long string of frustrated opponents wondering how they failed to topple the defending champs. Thus it makes sense that the stretch of closest victories for the Chiefs this season is the one stretch where the team is somehow getting it done despite losing its best asset in such situations.
Four weeks ago, Harrison Butker was placed on injured reserve in order to remedy a long-term health concern in his left knee—specifically a meniscus issue. Butker underwent successful surgery to repair it at the midseason of the season knowing that he should be ready in plenty of time for the postseason and stretch run.
It looked like ideal timing from the outside. The Chiefs' schedule in that stretch went from a showdown against the Buffalo Bills followed by a string of cupcakes like the Carolina Panthers (then regarded as the NFL's worst team), the Las Vegas Raiders (perhaps the NFL's worst team), and then a rematch against the Chargers at home.
Given how tough the Chiefs' schedule was going to be for the duration of the 2024 campaign, it made sense for Butker to just get the surgery done in order to return to his post when it mattered the most.
No one was excited to be without Butker, but there was confidence that the Chiefs could get through this time with a reasonable amount of success given the state of two of the opponents. Dave Toub has also done well to coach up replacements in his time in K.C., and the Chiefs went to work by poaching Spencer Shrader from the New York Jets.
While the Chiefs lost that first game sans Butker against Buffalo, what has followed is the closest three-game stretch of the season. The Chiefs have won their past three contests by a total of 7 points, and in those games, they've called upon their kicker(s) for 12 field goals. Butker's replacements have converted 11 of 12 opportunities, and the only miss was a pre-halftime act of desperation from 59 yards out against Las Vegas.
If that sounds impressive, it is.
Basically, the Chiefs lose their best asset in close games for a few weeks only to play a series of incredibly close games in his absence and yet his replacements (Shrader and Matthew Wright) came through with flying colors—to the tune of a 91.7% success rate. Without Butker, the Chiefs kept Butker-ing.
In an already weird season like this one, it's just par for the course for K.C. in 2024. It's also a testament to a coaching staff with Dave Toub to have his specialists ready to perform.