Patrick Mahomes led the Chiefs on a magical journey in 2018, but there are a lot of reasons to believe Kansas City can win a Super Bowl this season.
The Chiefs were the most fun team in the NFL to watch last season, but their terrific ride came up short in the AFC Championship game against the Patriots. Most people seems to be overlooking Kansas City as legitimate Super Bowl contenders this season, but there are lots of reasons to be optimistic about this team’s chances in 2019.
This piece focuses on the five biggest reasons to believe the Chiefs can lift the Lombardi Trophy when all is said and done. As always, they’ll need some luck along the way to become Super Bowl champions, but if they do etch their collective names into immortality, it will occur because of the following five reasons.
5. The Honey Badger
There are a lot of new faces on the defensive side of the football for the Chiefs this season. None will give the group more swagger than Tyrann Mathieu. His sheer confidence from the safety position will give Kansas City’s defense an edge they didn’t possess last year.
Of course, Mathieu can also give them a schematic advantage against opponents. He’s a difference maker at safety who can line up all over the field. The Texans simplified his role last season, but look for the Chiefs to unleash him in a variety of ways. That could easily allow this unit to produce a lot of turnovers as opponents try to play catch up to Mahomes and the team’s prolific offense.
Mathieu isn’t going to make passionate Chiefs fans forget about Eric Berry instantly, but he’s a good bet to have a more productive season in 2019. If the Honey Badger plays up to his Pro Bowl potential, this defense is going to take a massive step forward.