The Kansas City Chiefs’ just aren’t getting it done this season.
The Week 11 road matchup with the Denver Broncos was as close as it gets to a must-win game in the regular season. But on Sunday afternoon,
Denver did what Kansas City couldn’t: move the ball when it mattered. The Broncos were rewarded with a crucial 22-19 victory that put the Chiefs at 5-5 for the season.
Here are five things we learned from a disappointing defeat.
1. The Chiefs aren’t closing out their games
Sunday’s biggest indictment came from the Broncos’ head coach Sean Payton. With the game tied at halftime, he said he liked his team’s chances to win because Kansas City was a “first-half team.”
Let that soak in. This season, the team is 0-5 in one-score games.
While Sunday’s contest was filled with deflating moments, the worst of them came at the end.
- With the game tied, quarterback Patrick Mahomes threw an interception in the red zone.
- The Chiefs led by three points and had the ball with eight minutes left in the game — and went three-and-out.
- The Chiefs had the ball with the game tied and four minutes left — and went three-and-out again.
- On a crucial third-and-6 on the final drive of the game, linebacker Nick Bolton was covering Denver’s top wide receiver Courtland Sutton — and gave up the first down.
Whether it is from personnel, coaching or scheme, the Chiefs are no longer a team you have any faith in pulling out a win.
2. The Chiefs need to shake things up
For the team to play so poorly after its bye week was simply embarrassing. We can argue about the specific changes that should be made, but the team looks (and feels) stale from the top down.
Head coach Andy Reid has earned every single one of his accolades. He deserves to be considered one of the greatest head coaches in the history of the game.
But let’s be honest: the Chiefs organization is filled with a bunch of yes men. There is something to be said about having people around who push you with honest feedback — and challenge you to be better. Much was made about the tension between Reid and former offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy. As football fans like to say, “steel sharpens steel” — and it might be that friction isn’t always a bad thing.
The Chiefs’ coaching staff is made up of old horses with a lot of experience — and there is value in that — but these days, there aren’t a lot of new ideas coming out of Arrowhead. Maybe there should be.
3. There must be some hard conversations at Arrowhead
At the top of this list is a serious talk that Reid needs to have with special teams coordinator (and assistant head coach) Dave Toub.
The special teams unit has been a penalty-ridden embarrassment in 2025. Toub’s unit exemplifies one of the team’s core problems: its play is sloppy — and there is no accountability. The unit is allowed to continue shooting the team in the foot, while Toub is never close to the hot seat.
I don’t care if Toub is buddies with the head coach. Even if it is a small and symbolic move, the assistant head coach title should be taken away from him.
What about offensive coordinator Matt Nagy? I don’t care how talented Denver’s defense is. Continued mental errors and penalties by players like Jawaan Taylor are inexcusable. Mahomes has to get better at throwing the deep ball — and stop making mistakes when he gets frustrated. If he has more talent at wide receiver than he has ever had before, then why does he still feel like he has to play hero ball on a play-by-play basis? Nagy needs to hold his players accountable, too.
The team also needs someone who will speak up when Reid abandons the running game — someone who can bring him back to center. And if Reid isn’t willing to listen, then that is yet another hard conversation that needs to take place.
I’m not calling for coaching changes. But these issues must be addressed. And we don’t just need conversations. We need answers.
4. The Chiefs need more impact players and fewer role guys
This roster feels like it was built around the core players of the 2023 championship team.
The only problem is that some of them just aren’t the same players they used to be. Kansas City is paying for past performance — not for what these players will do in the future — and it’s hurting them.
- Defensive tackle Chris Jones is still a good player, but he is not playing up to his $23.6 million cap hit — let alone the $44.9 million he will count against the cap in 2026.
- There is no reason for placekicker Harrison Butker to carry a cap hit of $7.3 million, making him the league’s highest-paid kicker.
- I love tight end Travis Kelce — and he is still playing at a high level — but his $19.8 million cap hit is hard to swallow.
Someday, all of these players will be in the team’s Ring of Honor. But they’re being paid for being yesterday’s legends — not for winning games today.
The Chiefs need to be drafting the stars of tomorrow, instead of accessories for guys who have lost a step.
5. Tyquan Thornton is awesome
In a game with few bright spots, wide receiver Tyquan Thornton continues to prove that he needs more playing time. He routinely exhibits the kind of gritty effort that is sorely missing from this team.
The Chiefs look like a former champion who has been in so many brawls that all the fight has gone out of them. Somehow, they need to find the dawg that used to be part of their collective identity. Thornton is showing them what that looks like.
