I saw this tweet from old friend Nick Wright about the Chiefs and Patriots:
Best QBs beaten by KC: Matt Ryan, Brees, Carr 2x, Rivers 2x, Luck, Cam
— nick wright (@getnickwright) January 3, 2017
Best QBs beaten by NE: Palmer, Flacco, Tannehill.
KC will beat NE.
The word I thought of here was “battle-tested”. (Nick Wright expanded on this tweet on Amateur Hour) That’s what the Chiefs are. They beat great offensive teams, great defensive teams and great quarterbacks. They proved they could win with any style you want.
It’s the same word that Jeremy Maclin used.
“I think we’ve got a good chance,” Maclin said this week via quotes from the Chiefs. “With the work that we’ve put into this (season), and what we’ve been through with the highs and the lows, I think we’re battle tested. We’ve got a great locker room and we’ve got great coaches so I like our chances against pretty much anybody.”
That’s not an arrogant attitude. It’s the truth. The Chiefs have arguably the most impressive wins this season.
“When you’ve played on the biggest stages, I think it only helps you,” Alex Smith said. “I think it also goes to the way that we practice. We’ve played in a lot of these games. I think we trust our preparation, we trust how we go about things and there’s an easiness about that. Then, we trust how we do it. We’ve been there before, so then, we step in the huddle. Yeah, it’s a playoff game, and I think we embrace it. We’ve been in that situation. A little bit – when you have that taste – you revel it. You want to get back to it, and here it is.”
The Chiefs may not go all the way but I don’t think they’re going to flinch. They’ll be ready.