Carding the 9-3 Kansas City Chiefs: Are they who they say they are?

After a thrilling 29-28 victory over the Atlanta Falcons, the Kansas City Chiefs have a quick turnaround to a Thursday night pairing with the division-leading Oakland Raiders. It sets up as perhaps the biggest game under John Dorsey-Andy Reid administration. The winner takes firm control of the division and takes a big step toward one of the top two seeds in the AFC playoff picture. It’s tough to imagine the losing team failing to qualify for the postseason, but they may be doing so as a wildcard.

The Chiefs appear to have the edge on paper. They won the initial matchup with the Raiders and have the re-match on their home field. The team will be healthier than it was in the first contest. It also helps that the Chiefs aren’t the traveling team this time around. The last TNF contest between the two teams worked out in Oakland’s favor (a 24-20 victory at the O.co Coliseum). Both teams are superior to their 2014 selves and are currently among the Top 5 teams in the National Football League.

Kansas City won the mid-October tilt handily. After drawing first blood in the first quarter, the Oakland Raiders managed just three points in the last 45 minutes of regulation. The Chiefs produced 400+ yards of total offense, dominated the time of possession battle and converted 7-of-13 third down situations. Defensively, they didn’t allow a single point in the second half, and held every offensive player not named Amari Cooper in check. The Chiefs will need a similar performance on Thursday night. The Raiders are Top 5 in scoring and total offense.

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If the Chiefs are to make a deeper run into the postseason, a good way to facilitate that process would be to earn themselves a bye in the opening round of the playoffs and at least one home game in the divisional round. Thursday’s game won’t seal that for them, but it would give them a slight edge with just three games left to play in the regular season. A win would give the Chiefs a 7-2 conference record, a 4-0 record within the division and a 10-3 record overall. Most importantly, it would give Reid and company the top divisional tie-breaker should Kansas City and Oakland finish the season with the same record.

Let’s assume the Chiefs win on Thursday night. The Chiefs would then become the AFC’s No. 2 seed (Oakland would fall to the No. 5 seed). If the playoffs began the week following, the Chiefs would have the weekend off and Oakland would travel to Baltimore in the Wildcard Round. With a loss, the Chiefs would meet the Ravens — a team that has won four its last five games. We all know the playoffs don’t start in Week 15, but that establishes a clear enough picture of just how big a game this is for Kansas City.

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If I’m being honest, it also serves as a good way to measure this team’s playoff preparedness. Teams that have real aspirations of postseason success summon their best football in the month of December. If the Chiefs can do that this week, there’s good reason to think they can advance when January football starts. The Raiders have been an NFL darling this season and sweeping them makes quite the statement. After beating a playoff-caliber offense in Atlanta last Sunday, another win in a short window, would reinforce the narrative that Kansas City is a team no one wants to face come tournament time.

The Chiefs have proven they can win in a number of different ways. That kind of flexibility should serve them well as the season wears on, especially in the postseason. Kansas City could find its ceiling under nationally-televised lights on Thursday. They could also prove that their Super Bowl aspirations aren’t a figment of their imagination. A pair of victories over the conference’s top team would go a long way to establishing this team as a viable Super Bowl contender. In truth, it would also put them within arm’s reach of the top seed in the AFC.

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The Patriots have been on a roll since Tom Brady returned, but they do have road games at Denver and Miami down the stretch. Oakland’s remaining schedule is a bit softer, but they’re set to face an improved Colts team in Week 16 and play Denver again on the road. Winning this game puts the Chiefs squarely in control of their own postseason destiny.

Is this the most important regular season game of this regime’s tenure? Does a loss snuff out Kansas City’s hopes of a first-round bye in the playoffs? Is Oakland at a big disadvantage as the traveling team in a short week? Use the comment section below to weigh in. As always, we appreciate your readership and support.

Until next time, Addicts!