Despite Patrick Mahomes’ Difficult NFL Start, Kirk Cousins’ Falcons and Justin Herbert Disregarded as Threats to Chiefs Three-Peat Ambitions

The NFL schedule for the 2024 season just dropped and Kansas City Chiefs are the talk of the town right now. It’s no news by now that Patrick Mahomes and the men in red start their season off with some of the toughest games against the Baltimore Ravens and the Cincinnati Bengals. But later, they will also have to deal with Justin Herbert and Kirk Cousins.

While many think that Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow are hard to beat, people are also clubbing Herbert and Cousins into the same conversation. In the wake of this new schedule, Emmanuel Acho spearheaded a debate on SPEAK and wanted to know whether the Los Angeles Chargers and Atlanta Falcons QBs are a genuine threat for back-to-back Super Bowl winners.

The common consensus between the hosts was that the Chiefs shouldn’t be worried about anyone else but just focus on the first two games of the season. Acho asked Joy Taylor and Co., “The schedule, y’all saw it, Herbert, Kirk Cousins, Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson, four top 10 quarterbacks. That’s how Patrick Mahomes is starting this thing. Do you think the schedule is too donning for a 3-peat?”

Facing the 2x MVP Lamar Jackson and the Super Bowl contender Joe Burrow should be “extremely difficult” for the KC arsenal, per Joy Taylor.

But again, Taylor seemed dismissive of Kirk Cousins-led Falcons and the Chargers commanded by Justin Herbert and didn’t perceive them as a real threat. “Falcons? I don’t know what the Falcons are, okay. I sure as hell don’t know what the Chargers are. Justin Herbert ‘sounds’ good,” said Taylor and added, “I don’t think that’s a very difficult stretch.”

The problem with Kirk Cousins and Justin Herbert is that they both are coming off season-ending injuries. Herbert suffered a fractured right finger in December and went through surgery as he got put on IR later. As for Cousins, he suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in week 8 of the last season, which might make bouncing back a difficult process.

Moreover, the Chiefs have some new receivers in their lot, a problem that they didn’t address throughout the last season. Hence, the Chargers and Falcons not being a major threat to the Chiefs might be a believable assumption to make. The team in red can surely pursue their 3-peat dreams.

But despite all the praise and confidence from the SPEAK panel, the Chiefs have one small thing to worry about.

The Chiefs’ schedule is hectic, but not in the way you think!

Adam Teicher of ESPN did a sound analysis of the Chiefs’ regular season. The good news is that the first two games will be played at the Arrowhead. But there’s bad news as well. The team has a lot of traveling to do in the 2024 season. 9 of their last 15 games will be on the road, which might be weary for Patrick Mahomes and his squad.

But coming back to the Chargers, the Chiefs will play one game at home and other on the Chargers’ turf. Also, the Kansas City Chiefs are scheduled for 5 prime time games. Per NFL, the KC team has the 16 toughest schedule, which is right in the middle. Also, the team is set to do something that they haven’t done since 1927, when a short-lived football team called the New York Yankees had a tougher schedule than most.

While the team doesn’t have tough opponents, they will play a game every day of the week except Tuesday. They have two games on Monday, one on Wednesday, one on Thursday, one on Friday and Saturday, and 11 games scheduled on Sunday. Hence, time management would be a key part of the team’s preparation if they want to have a successful season.