It's official. The Kansas City Chiefs are in dire straits.
At 6-6, and now in deep trouble in search of playoff football thanks to a 31-28 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving, there is now a real possibility that Kansas City misses out on the postseason in 2025.
Given that the teams ahead of them, the Buffalo Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars, have a better record and own the tie-breaker over Kansas City, plus the Houston Texans up next, another team ahead of the Chiefs, things are looking bleak.
And for Patrick Mahomes, he knows the unfortunate position he and his team find themselves in.
"At the end of the day, you got to win every game now and hope that's enough," Mahomes said. "We're going to play a lot of good football teams coming up, and if we're going to make the playoffs, we're going to have to win them all. That's got to be the mindset when we step into the building."
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Make no mistake about it, if there was a team you would think could run the table from a 6-6 record, it's the Chiefs, but right now, that looks like a tall order.
Of course, even after the loss to Dallas, there will be those who won't doubt Kansas City's ability to bounce back and run the table, and the franchise has earned that benefit of the doubt.
But reality is slowly creeping in, and we are seeing the Chiefs do things we aren't used to seeing, such as the self-inflicted wounds, which plagued them in Dallas.
Playoffs are still on the agenda, and as Mahomes said, the Chiefs have to win every game now.
No ifs, ands, or buts. That's what is required at least for playoff football in 2025.
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