SaulGoodman

If the rules were strictly and consistently enforced, they could call holding on almost every snap. But since you found some examples of questionable no-calls in KC’s favor, I guess that confirms a conspiracy is afoot or something? Who needs data when you have the opinions of biased armchair refs?

I've already linked an article showing that KC's been flagged more in late game/close game situations than any other team in the league. That's what's hilarious about the ref narrative... When you actually dig into it, you find the truth is closer to the opposite. Excuses only work in one direction, I know. Btw, I'm not making excuses. There's no reason to. Speaking of excuses, the narrative has been that Allen did everything he could've done in the postseason, and the defense let him down. This Bills defense is playing far worse than any of Allen's past defenses. Not a concern? As for the pass protection...if Wanya Morris were going to be the starting LT throughout the playoffs, I'd be very concerned about that. That won't be the case.

The Lions won't be sniffing the SB, so I'm not too worried about who they prefer to face.

No, the ref thing is a thing created by bitter fans who have Chiefs fatigue. Nothing more, nothing less. Buffalo gets more calls in big moments than KC and that’s a fact, backed by numbers. Allen has played better than Mahomes lately, sure. Great pass protection vs awful pass protection may have something to do with that. Then again, he’s always been great at demolishing weak defenses/bad teams in the regular season. We’ll see what he does on the big stage this time.

That tweet is sure making the rounds, even though it's hard to imagine a less meaningful stat. KC's top 10ish in points scored, and the others in that list are all near the bottom. Regardless, a more meaningful number is points per drive. 30 pts in 15 drives isn't quite the same as 30 pts in 7 drives. Even after a few subpar games, KC leads the NFL by a mile on 3rd down conversion rate. That's a much better indicator of what the offense is capable of than total points scored. They also rank highly in success rate, EPA, etc. The offense hasn't been explosive, but it's much more effective/efficient than it's given credit for. Wanya Morris's injury turned him into a useless turnstile (he already wasn't very good), which caused some issues, but there's a solution for that. Humphries has already shown to be better, and they can move Thuney to LT if he isn't available. Hollywood Brown is due to join the offense this week or next. On defense, it's no coincidence that the D is looking great again since Omenihu returned. Watson may even be back for the postseason. They're getting healthy at the right time. There's really no question that the roster they're going to field this postseason will be better than the last few. But if people want to dismiss a team that's won 19 of 20 and finished no worse than an OT away from the Super Bowl each year of the Mahomes era, more power to you. I wouldn't bet the house on it. The ref stuff is pretty weak. Especially from the fan of a team that's benefited from a lot of big calls in late-game situations, and is allowed to hold Chris Jones on pretty much every play.

When did I say anyone should be scared? I laughed at the idea that KC is the weakest of the playoff teams, which has become a popular mantra lately. And, as I said, it’s a take that isn’t likely to age well.

I don’t think a rested KC team in Arrowhead is going to be scared either. Especially with Hollywood coming back into the fold and an upgrade at LT. Same story as most years, isn’t it? Bills get loads of hype late in the year, while KC is labeled unimpressive down the stretch. It was definitely the case last year, except that team lost 5 more games, including a truly awful performance on Christmas.

Winners of 19 of 20 without playing good football, eh? Lol.

People have been continually calling the 13-1 Chiefs the least intimidating playoff team and treating them like an afterthought. That’s pretty disrespectful. There’s a reason that Mahomes’ trainer always provides him with clippings. He does draw extra motivation from it (as do Kelce and others).

None of what matters? Bulletin board material? That’s false. Jordan and many greats have used it to keep their edge and stay hungry.

Hey, if people want to do this to themselves, that’s their prerogative. Personally, I love that the media/social media are giving KC so much bulletin board material.

Lol. I don’t think this is going to age well. Apparently people are more impressed by losses, even blowout losses, than wins.

Yes, what you're seeing is who they are. A team that finds ways to win every single week. Even when a slew of their top players are injured or their LT is a turnstile (also due to injury). Except that they're starting to get healthier and just upgraded their biggest weakness. How do teams that lose more games and have fewer quality wins inspire more confidence in you?

So what? Most NFL games are one-score games. I can't fathom why people think it's more impressive to lose more games (including blowout losses) than to consistently find ways to win.

Making 31 yd FGs is luck now. Lol

Lol. Ridiculous. Even more so after watching Jones do literally nothing vs the Bills last time.

I judge a players' performance by what I see. Not by their history or what the media tells me. If you watched those games and thought Young or O'Connell played terribly, I don't know what to tell you. They were dropping dimes. They weren't just throwing to wide open receivers. KC gets everyone's best shot, and it's human nature to struggle to match the intensity of lesser teams that are amped up to take you down. They're both very young and improving QBs. One of them was the #1 overall pick. You're acting like he was picked up off the street. Also, keep in mind that people had the same opinion about Allen after his first year or two. Points per play is more of an indication of explosiveness; not efficiency. The goal isn't always to score in as few plays as possible, especially for this KC offense. I've already said that KC's offense hasn't been very explosive, mostly due to the losses of Rice, Brown and Pacheco (and LT play). But it's been efficient. Not sure how you can call a team with the NFL's highest 3rd down conversion rate in almost 15 years, and highest success rate in the league, a broken/hopeless offense. But I guess when you're desperate for a narrative, you're not going to let facts get in the way. You can cherrypick a few games or situations to fit any narrative you want to. I could do the same. Should we judge Allen's season by his performances vs Houston, Baltimore and Indianapolis? I don't think you want to do that. I never said that Mahomes' stats are all-world this year. They're obviously nothing special. The point is that he wasn't a better player last year. You've done nothing to disprove that.

Pretty much every WR that's played for Mahomes/Reid has been more productive than elsewhere. MVS did absolutely nothing in Buffalo and got cut midseason. He was a postseason hero in KC. Smith-Schuster put up almost 1000 yds for KC two years ago and was their #1 receiver. The next year he did nothing as the fifth option in a NE offense that wasn't exactly loaded with weapons. Hardman did literally nothing for NYJ. Many people thought Hopkins was washed up when he joined the Chiefs. He quickly proved he's not even close, and he hasn't even learned the offense yet. Not sure why you view Watkins as a failure. He was good for KC when healthy. Especially in the playoffs.

Okay, so they scored with under two minutes left. So? They tied the game, yet you're acting like it was a meaningless garbage time score. It was the same situation as the KC-Carolina game. Carolina scored with almost exactly the same amount of time on the clock to tie the game. And if the Bills hadn't been bailed out by multiple flags, they'd have likely been punting to Miami with a minute left and giving them good field position, needing only a FG. How was that a convincing win? Last time I checked a few weeks ago, KC's offense led the league in success rate, and they have the best 3rd down conversion rate in the NFL in over a decade. The offense hasn't been explosive, but it's usually efficient. PPG isn't a very meaningful number. Points per drive is more telling. Scoring 27 in 14 possessions isn't good. Scoring 27 in 8 drives is very good. Mahomes wasn't better last season. He has the highest completion rate of his career this year and ranks highly in all meaningful stats. Aside from throwing a few more picks than usual, he's been solid. Most importantly, clutch. His play at the end of games has been elite. It's convenient to now say it was an "easy fix" regarding the WRs. Leading up to the playoffs, the narrative was that KC's WRs were so bad that they didn't have a chance to go far. It wasn't just drops. It was players not running proper routes and not even knowing where to line up. You either don't remember last year or you're being disingenuous. But you're right...there's no Rashee Rice coming to save the day. There's Hollywood Brown, a better player than rookie Rice. The offense could use a better LT and an explosive WR. Both of which are on the way. In fact, Morris has already played his last game. If you told Andy Reid that he has no reason for optimism, I'm pretty sure he'd laugh in your face. Hollywood/Hopkins/Worthy/Kelce/Gray/Smith-Schuster/Pacheco/Hunt + Humphries is far better than rookie Rice/MVS/Watson/Hardman/Pacheco/CEH/Donovan Smith. It's not even close. Now let's suppose that Watson is able to return for the postseason, and Omenihu picks up close to where he left off last year. If you think anyone will want to come to Arrowhead to face that team in January, you're kidding yourself. With or without Watson.

The funny thing is, it’s Bills fans who want to pretend that Allen is clearly better than Mahomes. I’ve never said that Mahomes is significantly better.

I watched those games. The Jets squandered numerous golden opportunities to win that game and repeatedly shot themselves in the foot. And the Dolphins tied the game w/ 4:40 left. Buffalo needed a late FG to win. On that last drive, they were facing 3rd and 14 at their own 26 and two straight penalties on Miami gave them a first down. So yeah, they were pretty fortunate there. For a fanbase that rants/raves about KC allegedly getting calls, Buffalo sure seems to draw a lot of flags at critical moments. Saying they look like garbage late in the year and don't have reason for optimism isn't writing them off? The Bills were down 35-10 after three quarters in one game and completed 30% of their passes in the other. That's a little different than winning a close game.

The Bills were lucky to beat the Jets and Dolphins, and looked like a bad team vs Baltimore and Houston. Did you write off their playoff chances after those games? These are all NFL teams, and KC gets everybody's best shot. Especially within the division. A team like the Raiders will always be far more excited to take on the Chiefs than vice versa. What nobody mentions is that Bryce Young and Aidan O'Connell both played great games. They were consistently dropping dimes and their receivers were making tough catches. The KC defense deserves some blame for that, but they both looked as good as any QB has looked against the Chiefs all year.

An 11-1 team that's getting key players back from injury and just signed a player that addresses their biggest weakness has no reason to be optimistic? Lol. If you say so.

That was very different. KC was up 7, their defense had dominated Baltimore all game, and it was 3rd and long.

The coaching staff is the reason some of these games have finished in the way they have. Attempting a low-percentage deep pass on 3rd and 2, when a 1st down ices the game? Just mind-numbing idiocy. Reid's late-game decisions have always left a lot to be desired. Mahomes has just covered up that weakness the last several years.