The Kansas City Chiefs' season took another nasty turn at Empower Field at Mile High as the Denver Broncos delivered a dagger to the franchise's AFC West and potential playoff hopes with a 22-19 loss.
The Chiefs now drop to 5-5 and are a long way back from even being in the conversation for the playoffs as the long-standing streak of AFC West titles looks all but over.
Much was made of Andy Reid's record coming off a bye, but it was Sean Payton's team who got the validating win they were searching for, and in the process, likely sent one of their rivals off into the distance without the hope of a division title for the first time in nine seasons.
And speaking post-game, Reid was rather honest about the loss.
“Listen, Denver played a good game, they got us today,” Reid said.
It was as simple as that. It was a true defensive slugfest as many had predicted, and the Broncos made a couple of more plays than the Chiefs down the stretch.
At 5-5, it is definitely panic stations in Kansas City right now.
More: Travis Kelce makes Chiefs history with 84th TD catch vs. Broncos
Can Chiefs still make playoffs?
Yes, they can, but goodness me, it will require two things.
One, the Chiefs have to nearly run the table with seven games left, plus hope that results go their way, because right now, playoffs look unlikely for Kansas City, which was something thought impossible just a few weeks ago.
But back-to-back losses have been devastating to the Chiefs, and now, it is a serious uphill battle for the AFC champs to even punch their ticket to the postseason, let alone continue Patrick Mahomes' AFC Championship streak.
It is a bleak outlook for the Chiefs, and while many weren't ready to signal the end of the dynasty, I'd imagine a few might be beginning to think that now.
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