According to the latest odds, the Kansas City Chiefs are the bookmakers favorites to scoop this season’s Super Bowl title. If the franchise manages that, they will become only the eighth team in NFL history, and the first since 2005 to claim back-to-back Super Bowl crowns.
The last team to achieve that feat were the New England Patriots, but with Tom Brady now in Florida is this the Chiefs time to seize greatness and write their names into NFL history? We think so, and here are five reasons why.
#1 Mentality
Last season’s Super Bowl victory was the Chiefs first time lifting the Lombardi trophy since 1970. Following that win 50 years ago the franchise endured almost two decades of postseason desolation with just one 1986 Wild Card defeat.
In the 1990s the team earned the nickname ‘chokers’ after blowing a series of leads in high-profile games and in the 2000s the Chiefs were much of a muchness. In short what we’re trying to say is that the franchise seemed to be under some sort of curse after their last Lombardi Trophy success.
Old in the tooth Chiefs fans will be looking forward to this season with some trepidation, fearing that another barren fifty-year period lies ahead. One reason that won’t happen though is the strength of character in the current team.
Patrick Mahomes perfectly encapsulates the winning mentality in the Chiefs roster which simply will not allow the team to rest on their laurels this season. The Chiefs led by the example of Mahomes are determined to write their names into the history books and will battle for every inch in their pursuit of a second successive Super Bowl win.
#2 Patrick Mahomes
It’s not just mentality that makes the Chiefs the team to watch this season, it’s the sheer brilliance of 24-year-old quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Over the course of the last two regular season campaigns Mahomes has topped the NFL in touchdown passes, passing yards, total QBR and wins.
This season he is odds on favorite with many of the sportsbook at https://www.olbg.com/us/sportsbooks to have the most regular season passing yards once again. Mahomes will also be boosted by the confidence gained from having signed a bumped ten-year contract with the Chiefs worth a reported half a billion dollars.
At only 24 and with relatively little experience in the tank the best is surely yet to come from Mahomes who could go on to share the same sort of standing in the game as someone like Tom Brady.
In tight games this season he will be the difference and could well win the Chiefs games on his own. With talent like that at quarterback it’s hard to look beyond the Chiefs for the Super Bowl this season.
#3 Firepower Up Top
It’s all well and good having the best quarterback in the league, but Mahomes would be nothing without the great supporting cast around him. The Chiefs have the fastest and most powerful offensive options in the division, giving Mahomes a wealth of options whenever he has the ball in hand.
Tyreek Hill, the fastest man in the NFL led the Chiefs with seven touchdown reception during the regular season despite sitting out four games with an injury. He will be another key player for the Chiefs this time around and if he doesn’t hit, the franchise has Travis Kelce and Mecole Hardman to strike fear into opposition defences hearts.
Away from that trio the Chiefs have Sammy Watkins in at wide receiver and having averaged an impressive 21.1 yards in last season’s playoff games, he will be full of confidence going into this year’s campaign.
#4 Steve Spagnuolo’s Defensive Masterclass
It would be harsh to criticise the Chiefs defense too much but if you were looking for one weak point in their line-up the defense would be it. In 2018 the Chief’s pass defense ranked at a dismal 31st in the NFL but new defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has gone someway to revamping the team’s defensive outlook.
The franchise’s improvement was clear to see for all in the second half of last season as they didn’t allow a 100-yard rusher from week 12 onwards. On average they were giving up just over 88 rushing yards per game on average.
Away from the stats and on to the visuals, they also managed to keep Titans running back Derrick Henry in check which is something not many teams can claim to have done.
#5 Momentum
It’s all well and good analysing the various pros and cons of any given team but there is one thing in professional sport that has always been hard to quantify and that is momentum. When a team gets on a roll in any sport, they can become an unstoppable force and that it was the Chiefs are right now.
The Chiefs went into last season’s Super Bowl on the back of an eight-game winning streak and they have already started this year’s league with a victory. The players and the management have grown accustomed to rolling teams over and finding the edge in a tight game is now becoming second nature for Chiefs’ players.
In addition to this, the Chief’s have experienced heads in the squad who will be able to pick their teammates up of the floor if their winning streak comes to an untimely end.
