It’s become a tradition in Kansas City: the annual Arrowhead Invitational. That's the affectionate term for what most call the AFC Championship Game. In his seven years as the Chiefs’ starting quarterback, Patrick Mahomes has led the Chiefs to seven conference championship games, winning five of them.
But success is rarely, if ever, linear, and even the most dominant seasons in the Mahomes era have had their hiccups.
In Week 11 of 2018, the Chiefs had just lost a 54–51 barnburner to the Rams. Days later, the team would suffer the shock of cutting the league’s reigning rushing champion. Needless to say, there were questions.
In Week 7 of 2019, the Chiefs traveled to Denver mired in a two-game skid after beginning the season 4–0. Late in the second quarter and nursing a 10–6 lead, the Chiefs had driven to the Denver 5-yard line when Mahomes suffered a dislocated knee while converting a 4th-and-1. As a Chiefs fan, the world stopped at that moment.
Late in the fourth quarter of Week 7 in 2021, the Chiefs were down 27–3 at Tennessee, and Mahomes lay on the field [with a possible concussion](https://chiefswire.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/chiefs/2021/10/24/kansas-city-chiefs-tennessee-titans-patrick-mahomes-concussion/79703488007/). The Chiefs traveled home that night with a 3–4 record. It was perhaps the worst loss of the Mahomes era, and it came just two weeks after a disheartening 38–20 loss to the Bills. Fans and pundits wondered if Mahomes was broken.
In Week 7 of 2022, the Chiefs stood at 4–2 but had a lot of questions surrounding the offense. The team had lost a heartbreaker to the Bills on a last-second touchdown and was preparing to travel to San Francisco to take on a very good 49ers team. The offense was still finding its rhythm after the offseason trade of Tyreek Hill, and the new narrative was that Mahomes was the product of a system.
Christmas Day 2023 was one to forget. The Chiefs went home that night at 9–6 after an abhorrent loss in front of their home crowd to the Raiders. The Chiefs could not find any pass catchers, an upcoming matchup with the rival Bengals loomed, and what began as a promising season at 6–1 was now filled with questions.
The Chiefs have faced adversity in nearly every season of the Mahomes era, but history shows they always rise when it matters most
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In Week 15, Mahomes went down with a nasty ankle injury at Cleveland. An exhausting string of three games in ten days had just begun, and besides their team captain’s uncertain status, the Chiefs also had multiple injuries to skill-position players as well as offensive line issues that would be a major problem for any quarterback—even one who wasn’t hobbled.
But it’s always darkest before dawn. The 2018 team recovered from the loss of Kareem Hunt. The 2019 team pulled it together in Denver and came away with a huge win. The 2021 version ripped off eight straight wins after that. The 2022 team beat San Francisco by 21. The 2023 team beat the Bengals and soon after ran one of the most astounding postseason gauntlets in league history. The 2024 defense stiffened in Cleveland and rallied the Chiefs to an impressive win; Mahomes didn’t miss a start and led the team to the 1-seed with two more victories after that.
Every single one of those Chiefs teams overcame adversity, advanced to the playoffs, defeated a challenging foe in the divisional round, and made it to the AFC Championship Game.
The 2025 Chiefs hit another bump in the road when they dropped to 2–3 after a depressing Week 5 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Without left tackle Josh Simmons in the lineup, the Chiefs took the field against the Super Bowl–hopeful Detroit Lions, who were riding a four-game winning streak.
The way the Chiefs responded to the challenge should never be forgotten. Next week, the Chiefs’ offense hopes to be at full force with the return of wide receiver Rashee Rice. And if there’s one thing Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes know how to do, it’s win in January. At this juncture, we can effectively wipe the slate clean.
Standings aside, the Chiefs are now the team in the AFC that no one wants to face. The Week 6 [victory over the Lions](https://arrowheadaddict.com/chiefs-studs-and-duds-from-week-6-prove-theyre-still-chasing-super-bowl-01k5qmwbgjdc) will be the win we look back upon and say, “That was the turning point.”