Following the Kansas City Chiefs’ 20-13 loss to the Denver Broncos on Christmas Day, NFL media dug the Chiefs further down the collective power rankings leading into the final week of the 2025 regular season.
Here is the sampling ahead of Week 18:
(Down from 21)
If that was Travis Kelce’s home farewell, he gave Arrowhead denizens a few moments early and late in the competitive loss to Denver. It wasn’t the Super Bowl send-off the Chiefs had hoped for, but it will have to do if he is indeed done after this season. Kansas City would face identity questions this offseason without him — and with Patrick Mahomes rehabbing a major knee injury — but it could be good for this franchise to build its infrastructure a bit more and learn how to win in new ways. Andy Reid says he’ll be back in 2026, and Mahomes eventually will be, too, but it’s no certainty that the Chiefs will have anything close to the same firepower they once did.
— Eric Edholm
ESPN: 25
(Down from 22)
What we learned this season: The roster wasn’t as strong as the Chiefs believed in all three facets.
This was supposed to be the season that the Chiefs’ offense returned to being an elite unit. Instead, the group surrounding quarterback Patrick Mahomes couldn’t properly support him. The Chiefs’ rushing attack was historically bad, while the young receivers (Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy) didn’t progress much. On defense, the pass rush lacked production around defensive tackle Chris Jones. Even the special teams unit took a step back with kicker Harrison Butker missing nine total kicks (field goals and extra points).
— Nate Taylor
The Athletic: 25
(No change)
Head coach check-in: His Eagles Era?
Andy Reid is fourth all time in regular-season coaching wins (279), and he gets Patrick Mahomes back next year, but this team has a lot of other issues to fix. Reid spent 14 years in Philadelphia before the magic ended there. Next season will be Year 14 in Kansas City. The difference with the Chiefs is that he already has three Super Bowl titles. He only made one Super Bowl appearance with the Eagles.
— Josh Kendall
Sports Illustrated: 24
(Up from 32)
I know this isn’t technically Chiefs related, but did you know that Taylor Swift runs the equivalent of eight miles for every Eras Tour performance?
— Connor Orr
Pro Football Talk: 25
(Down from 22)
How quickly can they put things back together?
— Mike Florio
(Down from 23)
They showed some fight in the loss to the Broncos, which I expected. But one more game and then it’s home for the playoffs. It just doesn’t seem right, does it?
— Pete Prisco
Yahoo! Sports: 25
(Down from 24)
The Chiefs played hard and nearly beat the Broncos. It’s tough when your third-string quarterback gets just 66 yards in his first career start. The funniest thing in Week 18 might be the Chiefs playing so poorly again that the Raiders somehow beat them, screwing up Las Vegas’ plan to get the first pick in the 2026 NFL Draft and some hope at quarterback. It’s possible. The Chiefs won’t generate a lot of offense and they just need the season to finish. And they probably don’t want the Raiders getting their preferred quarterback. The only motivation to win might be to send Travis Kelce out the right way, if Sunday is in fact his final NFL game before he retires.
— Frank Schwab
The Sporting News: 24
(Down from 21)
The Chiefs tried their best to stay in their game with the Broncos with defense given there’s not much offense, down to No. 3 Chris Oladukon at quarterback. They will try to end their five-game losing streak vs. the Raiders in Week 18.
— Vinnie Iyer
USA Today: 26
(No change)
The last time they endured double-digit defeats, Romeo Crennel was the coach and Matt Cassel the quarterback.
— Nate Davis
FOX Sports: 25
(Down from 23)
Can we just skip ahead to Travis Kelce’s retirement press conference? They’ve lost seven of eight now. It’s just getting sad.
— Ralph Vacchiano
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