Since Patrick Mahomes entered the league in 2017 he has been nearly unstoppable. When you look at it there really has only been one team that has consistently given Mahomes problems and it’s the Cincinnati Bengals. Mahomes and the Chiefs were finally able to get past the Bengals in last year’s AFC Championship on their way to another Super Bowl victory. Will we see more of the same from Mahomes and the Chiefs next season? Let’s break that down further with a preview and record prediction for the 2023-2024 season.
The Good
Outside of Mahomes, there are very few players in the NFL as valuable as Travis Kelce. The 33-year-old Kelce is already one of the best tight ends of all time and is showing no signs of slowing down. In 2022, Kelce had 1,338 receiving yards along with a career-high 12 touchdowns. Beyond those stats, he also had 648 YAC (Yards After Catch) which is impressive for an aging tight end. Kelce was the main reason the Chiefs were comfortable with trading Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins. It’s also the reason why the Chiefs don’t necessarily need a star wide receiver on offense. Kelce is their de facto WR1 and I don’t see that changing next season.
The Bad
Andy Reid is one of the best offensive minds the NFL has seen. Reid is one of the reasons Mahomes has been so successful in Kansas City. The other reason is Eric Bieniemy. Bieniemy was the offensive coordinator for the Chiefs since 2018. He has now moved on to a bigger role with the Washington Commanders and will be the full-time play-caller there.
Don’t expect a drastic change to the Chiefs offense as Matt Nagy takes over as the new OC. With that said I could see a slight drop off in Kansas City’s offense with Bieniemy gone. Bieniemy is notorious for being a stickler for the little details. He also expects a lot from his offensive players and is not afraid to get on them. This will show up in critical points during a game and could be the difference between winning and losing. Make no mistake, the Chiefs offense will not be a weakness next season but it’s worth watching how this change will impact it.
The Prediction
In all, I expect the Kansas City Chiefs to once again be the AFC West champions. I do see a slight drop off in wins at 12 as they have one of the toughest schedules in the NFL next season. One thing to keep an eye on is the Chris Jones situation. Jones has yet to report to the team and if he misses time it will be a big blow to the Chiefs defense.
2023-2024 Record: 12-5 (First in the Division)
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