The Kansas City Chiefs are one of the five best teams in football, according to the updated NFL power rankings from Chris Simms of Bleacher Report.
We’ve been over here in Kansas City worried about the Chiefs offseason. The firing of John Dorsey. The cutting of Jeremy Maclin. The other front office departures. All that stuff. It feels like the Chiefs are headed in the wrong direction.
And then you go look at the roster and the coach and you realize they’re still going to be very competitive this season. I’m not sure they got over the hump but the other offseason stuff won’t stop them from being playoff contenders.
My biggest question with the Chiefs is this: Can quarterback Alex Smith make plays against upper-echelon teams when it matters? He failed to do so in the 2016 postseason, which is why a team that should have reached the AFC Championship Game didn't.
The answer to that question will determine if the Chiefs are a good team this season or a Super Bowl contender.
This is more or less the same question we’ve had since Andy Reid and Alex Smith arrived in 2013. They were good right off the bat. They’ve won a ton of games. Few people would dispute that they’re a good, playoff-contending team.
However, they haven’t gotten over the hump. Winning a playoff game was a small hump to get over but the Chiefs still haven’t reached the AFC Championship in 20-plus years. They still aren’t in the same breath as the Patriots.
We will see if this season changes any of that but it’s a breath of fresh air to see someone recognize the Chiefs are still pretty good.
Here’s the top 10: