Mahomes: 7 for 7 AFC Championships + Chiefs-Bills 4th Playoff Game

This was my reaction to the last Chiefs playoff game in the pre-Mahomes era:

No insight, no thoughts, not even a post title. Just utter defeat. 

At this point the Chiefs were 1-10 in the playoffs from 1994–2017, their one win being a Wild-Card win over the Texans. 

That stretch included 5 appearances in the Divisional Round, 4 from byes. All 5 ended in defeats. 

When the 2018 NFL Season kicked off, I never knew what it was like to watch the Chiefs in the AFC Championship. 

Since then, the Chiefs have NEVER not been there. 

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I made this post about AFC Championship QBs in November 2018. 

Let's update the list through January 2025:

Brady: 13 (plus 1 in NFC)

Mahomes: 7

Manning: 5

Roethlisberger: 5

Flacco: 3

Sanchez: 2

Burrow: 2

Allen: 2

Stewart: 1

Gannon: 1

McNair: 1

Plummer: 1

Rivers: 1

Luck: 1

Bortles: 1

Tannehill: 1

Lamar: 1

Peyton Manning played 17 seasons, all in the AFC. He made the AFC title games 5 times, never back to back. 

So going 7 for 7 is insane.

The rest of the AFC "Big 4" has 5 combined. 

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There's really only one play to talk about in the Chiefs divisional win over the Texans.

The ball was released from Mahomes hand .13 seconds ago. His left hand will hit the ground in .1 second bracing for impact. A quarter of a second between getting sacked and getting this ball off. 

Just getting this ball off for a completion is a wildly impressive play. This goes for a touchdown. 

But it's not just about the play itself. It's about the context.

It's 3rd and goal. The Chiefs have a one-point lead. With under 12 minutes to play. If he takes the sack, the Chiefs kick a field goal and have to protect a 4-point lead in the final minutes. If he throws an interception, the Texans take over down 1 point. The game can absolutely turn on this play. There are three Texans defenders in the end zone, within a few yards of Kelce. If this throw is off-target, it could lose the game for Kansas City. 

That's the context that makes this play so incredible. 

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As a whole, I respect Bills Mafia so much. They stuck by their team when they weren't good, are as passionate as anybody, and deserve to see a Championship in their city. This fact is inarguable: A Bills Championship would mean more to them than any of the other teams still alive. 

As a fan of sports in general, it would be cool to see. 

But I'm a Chiefs fan who grew up in Kansas City. I never thought this day would come. To actually be in the middle of a Chiefs dynasty is insane. 

To want more rings and trophies is without question, greedy. 

Here's where I've landed. 

I wrote after Super Bowl LVIII: "I am never allowed to complain about anything in sports for the rest of my life."

I stand by that. 

If it was up to me to decide the winners, it would be very selfish of me to pick the Chiefs to win yet again, when it would mean so much to Bills fans. 

But it's not up to me. 

So on Sunday I'll be rooting for my team, and if the Chiefs win a historic three-peat, then I'll be here to celebrate that too.