The Kansas City Chiefs consecutive division titles ended this year. Last week's loss to the Houston Texans eliminates the possibility of them overtaking the Denver Broncos in the AFC West Division.
The team they play on Sunday, the Los Angeles Chargers, still have a mathematical chance of catching the Broncos and close out their 2025 regular season against the Broncos on the road … a game that could decide the West.
For that to happen, the Charges need to get to within one game of the Broncos in the standings because if they do that, a win in the Mile High City to end the season would have them win the AFC West by virtue of a pair of victories over the Broncos this season. The Chargers beat the Broncos at SoFi Stadium in September … and the Broncos haven’t lost a game since in building their two-game division cushion.
Okay, that is a lot of balls in the air, but how about the Chargers at Arrowhead this week? Will the Chiefs now fold their tent and look forward to a month off when for the past nine seasons they played postseason games? How much do the Chiefs have left in their tank after dropping their last two games at Dallas on Thanksgiving and last Sunday night at home to the Houston Texans?
In fact, the defending AFC Champions who have participated in the last three Super Bowls have lost four of their most recent five games. Why then are they favored on Sunday against a Los Angeles team that is three games ahead of them in the standings and beat them on a neutral field, in Brazil, to open this season?
Why was the line opened at what appeared to be a number too high, apparently pegged to what the Chiefs used to be instead of what they are. The opening line on this game had the home team favored by 4½ points, and even though a solid majority of bettors are taking the road team here, the line has crept up to as high as six points.