FanPost

Are the Chiefs hosting the AFCCG only because the AFC West a "Creampuff" Division??

During the smacktalk runup to the AFCCG, I rant into a bunch of Bengals fans that said the Chiefs only got the bye because we have a creampuff division, played a cakewalk schedule.

I pointed out they lost to Baker Mayfield and 2nd string QBs, almost lost to a 3rd string QB. They responded that their division is SO good that even 2nd string QBs are tough outs. I responded that the bottom line is the Chiefs took care of business in our own division, and the Bengals and Bills didn't, and that's why we got the Bye despite losing to both of them.

That's where they repeated the "creampuff" division.

The only reason I bring this up is that I see a bunch of Chiefs fans (and probably other fans, too, but I don't talk with them as much) saying that the Patriots did so well because they were the only good team in a bad division, and always had a creampuff division that boosted their win total.

But it isn't really true. Belichick lost to Miami just about every year. Their overall NFL record is virtually the same as their record within the division. Can't find that stat online.

Let's give Belichick the advantage of ignoring his first year, before Brady was the starter.
Starting in 2001, he was
6-2
4-2
5-1
5-1
5-1
4-2
6-0 (undefeated regular season)
4-2
4-2
5-2 (lost to Jets in playoffs)
5-1
6-0
4-2
4-2
4-2
5-1
5-1
5-1
80-23 77% winning percentage with Brady. In 20 seasons, he swept the division just twice.

Mahomes-era Reid has led the Chiefs to an 87% winning percentage against the AFC West. Reid has already swept the division 2 times in just FIVE seasons.

Sure, we know all the games are dogfights, that records don't matter in Division games. But that's true for the AFC East, as well.

I mean, the only year we didn't get a bye, the Bengals beat us in the AFCCG. They absolutely could argue that we beat up on a creampuff AFC West to get that Bye advantage, and that's what made the difference.

I certainly don't think the Chiefs face a "creampuff" AFC West every year.

The strongest argument I can find for Chiefs dominance rather than creampuff division is playoff appearances and winning records of the other teams in each of our divisions.

I struggled to find a way to compare the strength of the other teams in the respective divisions, because for the Belichick/Brady Patriots, it was 20 years; for the Chiefs, do I count the entire Reid era, or just since he started winning the Division title? I decided we're really just comparing Belichick/Brady to Reid/Mahomes, so that's what I did.

For the AFC East, there were 9 playoff teams other than the Patriots over the 20 years, and then 9 other teams with winning seasons that didn't make the playoffs. That means on average, there was a 45% chance of another playoff team coming from the AFC East, and a 90% chance of another AFC East team having a winning record.

For the AFC West, there were 3 other playoff teams over 5 years, and then 2 other teams with winning records that didn't make the playoffs. So on average, there was a 60% chance of another playoff team coming from the AFC West, and a 100% chance of another AFC West team having a winning record.


What's your best argument that the AFC West isn't an easy division, it's just that the Chiefs are better and more dominant?



This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Arrowhead Pride's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Arrowhead Pride writers or editors.