The close of Week 13 saw two of the headline acts of the AFC clinch their respective places in the postseason. The reigning champions and owners of an 11-1 record out of the AFC West, the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Buffalo Bills, with their 10-2 record, secured a place in the playoffs that week.
Plus, helped by the rebuild in New England, the continued failings of the Jets, and the Miami Dolphins being struck by major injuries early, the Bills have already secured the top spot of the AFC East. The Playoff Picture is beginning to become clear, and with some notable absences.
At 5-7 and without Dallas’ franchise quarterback, Dak Prescott, the Cowboys look primed to miss the postseason in 2024/25, as do the San Francisco 49ers and the Cincinnati Bengals. All three teams are firmly below a 0.500 win percentage as of December 3, with only a handful of games to go and the top teams now heating up.
Of course, what’s on everyone’s mind is how, or even if the Kansas City Chiefs can be stopped. Seeking a third Super Bowl in a row and going 11-1 to kick off the 2024 campaign, it’d be a hefty task even if the Chiefs started slipping as the regular season came to a close.
Seeking a Historic Feat
The Kansas City Chiefs won Super Bowl LVII and LVIII in 2023 and 2024, beating the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 and the San Francisco 49ers 25-22 in overtime, respectively. Now, on February 9, 2025, they could well be at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana to strive for an unprecedented third Super Bowl.
By claiming the NFL’s top prize in 2024, the Chiefs joined a rather exclusive club. To date, eight teams have been able to win the Super Bowl in consecutive years, with the first to do so being the Green Bay Packers in 1967 and 1968 with the very first two Super Bowls. Not one team in NFL history has achieved the three-peat, as NBC writes.
However, some onlookers are seeing a team that’s running out of steam. Contrary to the 11-1 record through to Week 13 of the 2024 season, the Chiefs had secured a 9-0 record in single-score games. Some will say this is a sign that Andy Reid still knows exactly what it takes to win, others will see it as lucky and that eventually, luck runs out.
Perhaps underlying this thinking is that quarterback Mahomes and his star-studded cast aren’t among the chief picks for regular season honors. Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce have long been one of the NFL’s most imposing offensive duos. For the Pro Bowl fan vote, as of December 3, neither featured in the top ten lists.
Stopping History from Being Made
With Gibbs grinding away on the ground and St. Brown catching passes to leave secondaries in his dust for fun, the Detroit Lions rock up with a roaring offense in every game. Most impressive this season has been the dynamism of the offense coupled with the improved showing on defense. Plus, many stars of the show are in awards contention.
Even with a fair bit left of the regular season, as of December 3, it’s clear that the efforts of the Detroit Lions have won favor in the NFL betting. Dan Campbell has flown ahead in the Coach of the Year 2024/25 market at +110 and Jared Goff is a dark horse at +1000 to win the Regular Season MVP prize.
Most importantly, at the time of writing, the Lions were firmly ahead in the Super Bowl odds. At +275, the Lions are the clear leaders ahead of the +500 Bills, Chiefs, and Philadelphia Eagles. Behind them, it’s the Baltimore Ravens at +1000. In the regular season, the Lion managed to match the champions’ record and do so in style.
Coming into the postseason, the Lions and Eagles certainly look to have the advantage. After all, they won’t need to meet the Chiefs – if they go on another imperious run – until the Super Bowl. The Bills, on the other hand, could see their run cut short again before the big show.
Even after winning five consecutive AFC East titles, as Yahoo reported, the Bills remain underdogs to the Chiefs. Since 2021, the Bills have met the Chiefs three times in the postseason. Two were divisional ties and the other was for the AFC Championship. On all three occasions, Mahomes and the Chiefs beat Josh Allen and the Bills.
However, if the Bills finally beat the Chiefs in the playoffs, they’d automatically become the frontrunners for the Super Bowl – even if the Lions were still in the hunt. If the Chiefs make it to the Super Bowl again, though, few would bet against them making history.
