The Kansas City Chiefs are given a rare opportunity on Feb. 9 to win three consecutive Super Bowl championships, making them the first to do so in American team sports since the Los Angeles Lakers from 2000-2002. This would also make them the first National Football League (NFL) franchise to do so since the NFL/AFL merger in 1966, where the Green Bay Packers accomplished the feat twice from 1929-1931 and from 1965-1967.
The potential three-title run started in the 2022 NFL season and initially, many fans had doubts about the team’s success. The Chiefs traded wide receiver Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins, and fans were worried if Mahomes could succeed without the five-time All-Pro receiver. To finish the season, Mahomes exceeded expectations. According to ESPN, Mahomes ended the year with 5,250 passing yards, 41 touchdown passes and won the NFL AP Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. The Chiefs ended the season with a record of 14-3 and securing the No. 1 playoff seed in the American Football Conference (AFC), and went on to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LVII.
Despite Mahomes’s dominance in 2022, the next two seasons weren’t as clean as the prior. In 2023, the Chiefs finished with a record of 11-6, which was only good enough for the No. 3 seed in the AFC playoffs, and Mahomes ended with more than 1,000 yards less than his prior year. The real stars of the Chiefs in 2023 were their defense. They ended with the second fewest yards-per-game allowed (289.8), second most sacks produced (57.0), and the second fewest points allowed (17.3). Two key players were defensive linemen Chris Jones and George Karlaftis, both of which created 10.5 sacks on the season. Limiting the effectiveness of offensive players like Christian McCaffery was vital to their victory against the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII.
Although they had the best record of the three seasons in 2024, it was the least dominant in their dynasty. While their defense was still ranked in the top five, they were missing the star performances from Jones and Karlaftis, both of whom failed to reach the level of performance in the year prior. Mahomes only had 3,928 passing yards, missing out on the 4,000 mark for the first time in his career where he played the majority of the season. No offensive player exceeded 900 rushing or receiving yards, which has happened for the first time in more than 20 years. Although 11 of the Chief’s victories have been decided by one possession, they only lost one game playing without resting their star players. The team ended the season with a 15-2 record and the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoff picture.
With playoff victories against the Houston Texans and the Buffalo Bills, the Chiefs are playing for their third consecutive championship against the Eagles on Feb. 9 with a shot at making Super Bowl history. The Eagles are coming off a dominant 55-23 victory over the Washington Commanders, being led by MVP finalist Saquon Barkley. ESPN analytics currently have the Chiefs favored by one-and-a-half points to win Super Bowl LIV. With NFL history on the line, the stage is set in New Orleans this February.
