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photo by AP On the offensive side, backup offensive lineman Nick Allegretti is now a Washington Commander, but Mahomes will have some new horses in the stable with the additions of wideout Hollywood Brown and tight end Irv Smith. Still to be determined is the fate of wideout Mecole Hardman, who teamed up with Mahomes for the walk off touchdown in Super Bowl LVIII. The special teams will welcome the end of his playing days. Andy Reid, who turned 66 in March, says he’s not going anywhere just yet. The coaching staff was largely spared the poaching one tends to see after a Super Bowl championship. The Chiefs have already made some off-season moves, but will have to fill significant gaps on defense. While tackles Mike Pennel, Derrick Nnadi and Tershawn Wharton will return along with linebacker Drew Tranquill, corner L’Jarious Sneed is taking his coverage skills to Tennessee, linebacker Willie Gay is now a New Orleans Saint, and safety Mike Edwards has signed with perennial playoff foe Buffalo.

back Harrison Butker following a career-best season, but bid adieu to punter Tommy Townsend (Houston) after signing Matt Araiza. Despite a late-season lull before the

best team stats in Reid’s tenure here, giving Mahomes some breathing room while trying to work new wideouts into the rotation and absolutely justi fying the coaching move that installed

On the surface, the key pieces for another successful run are locked in place.

playoffs began (Kansas City was just 5-5 during the meat of its schedule), the team refocused and charged through four playoff games that, combined, were statistically more challenging than any team had ever faced in the post-season. And we saw how that worked out. That dismal stretch at the end of the regular season was marked by offensive inconsistencies, and the Chiefs were able to survive, then advance, largely on the back of Jones and his fellow defenders. The defense recorded its

Steve Spagnuolo as defensive coordina tor after the 2018 season ended with a sudden-death overtime New England touchdown in the AFC championship game. That came in Mahomes’ first full season. Since then, the final games have ended thusly: Super Bowl victory, Super Bowl loss, AFC title game loss, Super Bowl victory, Super Bowl victory. So the question—have the Chiefs built a dynasty?—has been answered in the affirmative. The next question, then, is this: Can they keep it?

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May 2024