The Kansas City Chiefs are on the brink of becoming the NFL’s new dynasty if they win the Super Bowl this Sunday. It will be their third Super Bowl title in five years, with four trips to the Super Bowl and six straight AFC Championship games. You must marvel at how the Chiefs have done it. When the New England Patriots went to 8 straight AFC Championship games from 2011-2018 then Tom Brady retired, I didn’t think we would see that again. Well, I was wrong about that. The Chiefs did find a young quarterback in Patrick Mahomes, which helps a lot, but I really marvel at how they have built their roster under head coach Andy Reid.
The Chiefs, when Mahomes took over the reins for Alex Smith, were a big-play offensive team with wide receiver Tyreek Hill and tight end Travis Kelce. They also had a complement of running backs and other receivers. The Chief’s defense wasn’t very good, and it didn’t matter if the Chiefs could win shootouts. They never got fazed when falling behind by double digits, and as long as they had Mahomes and Hill, they always had a shot. Then in Super Bowl 55 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Mahomes got pressured constantly and they got embarrassed 31-9. The Chiefs offensive line was a mess and it caught up to them. The whole off-season, the Chiefs used a lot of their resources to rebuild their offensive line. They brought in guard Joe Thuney and traded a 1st round pick for left tackle Orlando Brown. Then, in the draft, they took center Creed Humphrey and guard Trey Smith. The Chief’s offensive line had good talent to keep the pocket clean for Mahomes, and the offense continued its big play ways.
Then, in the 2021 AFC Championship game against the Cincinnati Bengals, the Chiefs built a 21-3 lead and looked to be on their way to a 3rd straight Super Bowl appearance. However, the Bengals adjusted at halftime to contain the Chief’s offense and held them to three points while their offense shredded the Chief’s defense. The Bengals went on to win 27-24 in overtime. The Chiefs new they would have to make some changes, but what changes?
That offseason, the Chiefs were up against the salary cap, and they didn’t have a ton of draft picks. They knew they had to bring in young talent on defense because all they had was star Chris Jones and not much else. The Chiefs had to do something. Hill’s contract had one more year left on it and had an $18 million dollar salary. The Chiefs were willing to extend it, but then the wide receiver market began to go up, and Hill wanted to get paid. The Chiefs could have paid him but realized their salary cap would not look good for years to come. The Chiefs then shopped Hill around and found a trade partner in the Miami Dolphins, who needed a play-making receiver. The Dolphins traded their 1st, 2nd, and 4th round picks in the 2022 draft as well as two more picks in 2023. It was a tough deal for the Chiefs, but they knew they had to make a bold move to acquire more draft picks and create more salary cap flexibility.
The Chiefs used a good amount of those draft picks to help rebuild their defense. They drafted cornerback Trent McDuffie and pass rusher George Karlarftis in the 1st round. Then, in the 2nd, took safety Bryan Cook and, later in the draft, picked up another defensive back in Jaylen Watson. They also took running back Isiah Pacheco in the 7th round. The year before, they drafted linebacker Nick Bolton in the 2nd round and still had young cornerback L’Jarius Sneed. The Chiefs started to add some defensive talent and the Hill trade helped a great deal to give them the extra draft picks. The Chief’s defense improved and helped the team win the Super Bowl last year against the Philadelphia Eagles.
In the process of the transition, the Chief’s big-play offense took a hit, but they got a big contribution from Pacheco in the Super Bowl run last year, and he has turned into their feature back. The Chiefs picked up other young receivers last year in Sky Moore and made a trade for former 1st round pick Kadarious Toney, and both players played big roles in the Super Bowl. Toney had the longest punt return in Super Bowl history, and Moore added a touchdown.
The Chief’s offense did take a step back this year with their young receiver’s lack of production, but they found a gem in the 2nd round in Rashee Rice, who developed as the year went on into their number 1 receiver as Kelce’s production down this year. Despite the offense slipping, the Chiefs got it together in the playoffs and are now on the cusp of their 3rd Super Bowl. Losing Hill took away Mahomes’ big play threat, but it also forced him to not rely on the deep ball and take what the defense gives him. I know they had a lot of drops this year, but things eventually smoothed out.
Their defense has become the strength of the team this year with their young talent, and it should only get better. The offense is not as explosive as an offense but efficient. Reid is a great coach and offensive mind. He knows how to get the most out of the talent around him, even if it’s not top-end talent. When he was with the Eagles, his offenses went to 4 straight NFC Championship games and a Super Bowl appearance, and most of his offenses had quarterback Donovan McNabb and a bunch of pedestrian receivers. They never really had a number-one receiver in his time, for the most part.
Mike McDaniel and the Dolphins could take a lesson from what the Chiefs have been doing the last few years. With their cap situation and not having as many picks, they may have to make a bold deal for one of their up-and-coming players to get some real value to rebuild the roster in certain areas as the team goes through a few lean years against the cap. The Dolphins have some of their core players whose contracts are expiring or about too soon. Christian Wilkins is one of the first this year, as well as Robert Hunt, and they may have to let them go in free agency because they can’t afford to keep them. In the next few years, they have Jevon Holland, Jaylen Waddle, and others who will be looking for new deals to get paid more. The Dolphins might have to start looking ahead and make a bold move to try to shake up the roster. The Dolphins have made the playoffs in back-to-back years, which is something the team hasn’t done in two decades, and that’s quite an accomplishment, but they have no playoff wins to show for it. The Dolphins may have to consider something to shake things up because the group they have is good enough to get them to the playoffs, but not much else. The Chiefs recognized that a couple of years ago when they made the Hill trade. It’s something the Dolphins may have to consider.
