BQB Red Friday Preview Week 14: Chiefs @ Patriots

Who: Kansas City Chiefs at New England Patriots

When: Sunday, December 8, 3:25 PM

Where: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts

Most ardent fans know of the multiple narratives circulating going into this high profile match up. The most obvious being, the massive playoff implications on the line for both teams. While both spots have pretty much been procured for these two teams, the setting has yet to be determined. And this Sunday’s game could go a long way to determining that setting for this season’s playoffs.

Clearly, most Chiefs’ fans have vengeance on the mind – as I expect most of the Chiefs themselves do. The last time the Patriots met with the Chiefs, it was the AFC Championship game at Arrowhead. And their Super Bowl dreams 50 years in the making were crushed in overtime in a blow that no amount of beer or barbecue could remedy. Even though this isn’t a championship game, the Chiefs will undoubtedly treat it as such.

The curious thing about this matchup is just how different both teams look currently when compared to who they were during that AFC Championship game last January. Both quarterbacks, while still incredibly talented, are showing signs of their mortality. Tom Brady is clearly struggling in his offense this year and our beloved league MVP, Patrick Mahomes has struggled with injuries for the portion of this season in addition to key players in his offense. Statistically speaking, Mahomes is coming off his worst two games in his career, noticeably lacking in his usual video game numbers and Jedi master moves that we’ve all come to expect.

Last year, the Chiefs carved up the Pats’ defense in sharp contrast had the Pats to 3^rd and 10 in overtime on 3 separate occasions. Sadly, the Chiefs couldn’t stop them on any of those occasions so it’s safe to say that Sunday’s game promises to be a very different game of football.

One thing is for sure, the Chiefs’ offense has to step it up if they hope to win this game. In the last two weeks, the Chiefs’ offense has not been quite the firework display fans are accustomed to seeing. But as long as Mahomes is taking his snaps, this BQB doesn’t believe the offense will ever be bad. It’s just seemed to have slowed down and recent games have been carried mainly by big defensive plays and turnovers that put the offense in a good field positions. While that is a valid strategy against the Chargers and the Raiders, it may not be the best way to go against the Patriots on their home turf. Say what you want about the decline of the Pats’ offense and Tom Brady’s age, they are still the Patriots and he is still Tom Brady. 

But for me, it’s not Tom Brady that scares me. It’s the Pats’ defense. In recent weeks the Pats’ defense has been hailed as one of the best in the country which leaves cause for concern for a somewhat sputtering Chiefs’ offense. Players like Mahomes, Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, Shady McCoy and many others, the offense is going to come alive with a vengeance to be the high powered space shuttle we’ve seen in the past. Based on what I’ve witnessed in the last few weeks, the Chiefs’ defense should have no trouble giving Tom Brady a long and unpleasant afternoon in Foxborough, especially since the Pats’ offense seems to be a shell of what it once was. But without an offensive showing from the league MVP and his playmakers, the defensive showing may not be enough. You cannot count on Brady throwing picks like Philip Rivers and Derek Carr to then give the Chiefs a cushy field position.

BQB prediction:

I am very hesitant to make a prediction for I truly believe if the Chiefs’ offense fires on all cylinders, they should walk away with a win and a virtually guaranteed playoff berth. But we are in the Pats’ home and they have not lost at home in two years.

I pray I’m wrong on this one but I am giving the nod to the Patriots, squeaking out of a close one.

21-17.

What are your thoughts? Sound off in the comments below!