As the Kansas City Chiefs prepare to close out their season against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, the mood inside the building has shifted. While it is unfamiliar and reflective, it is still rooted in competition. For the first time in the Patrick Mahomes era, Kansas City will enter the offseason without earning a postseason run, giving the finale a different weight for both coaches and players.
But for head coach Andy Reid, some things about this matchup will be exactly the same.
“It is the Raiders,”
he said, “so we understand that. It doesn’t really matter what the records are. It’s still those two teams playing each other.”
As far as Reid is concerned, it’s perfectly OK that it all feels so strange.
“I want to keep that a strange feeling,” he said. “You don’t like hitting right now, obviously. But that’s what it is. Then you’ve got to go back and fix things, make sure they’re right.”
Quarterback Chris Oladokun said the rivalry alone ensures Sunday’s game will carry intensity — regardless of records or outside narratives.
“At the end of the day, it’s an AFC West opponent,” said Oladokun, who has now spent four seasons with the team. “It’s a rivalry game versus the Raiders, and so both teams are going to come out swinging.”
And Oladokun dismissed any suggestion that Las Vegas might ease up to get a better draft pick in April.
“That’s not going to happen,” he insisted. “The Raiders are going to come out there. They play really hard. Defense is really good. I think they have a really good D.C., Patrick Graham.”
Linebacker Nick Bolton framed the moment through a broader lens shaped by perspective and opportunity.
“Everything changes,” he observed. “Life can change in a blink. You can have the ability to play football today — and it [can] be taken away from you tomorrow.”
Bolton said that regardless of the stakes attached to a game, this perspective guides his approach.
“I just go out there and play every snap like it’s my last,” he said. “Everybody’s fighting for the one dream. Everybody’s also trying to provide for [their] family.”
Center Creed Humphrey — one of the team’s steadiest voices — acknowledged that while everything feels different, the team’s focus hasn’t drifted from preparation or effort.
“For us,” he said, “it’s about focusing on this week, going out there and playing our best ball of the year and finishing the season the right way.”
For Humphrey, the formula is pretty simple.
“It’s my job to go out there and play my best ball every single week,” he said. “If you’re on the field, you should be playing to win.”
As Kansas City approaches an unfamiliar offseason, the message from Reid and his players is consistent: Sunday still matters. The season may be ending earlier than expected, but the expectation — to compete, prepare, and play the game the right way against a familiar rival — remains unchanged.
