Underperforming Travis Kelce & Patrick Mahomes Amplify Kansas City Chiefs Struggle as They Meet the Mighty Bills

The Kansas City Chiefs have fallen from the top and are still falling. On paper, an 8-4 team by no means  underperforming, unless they are the defending champions. Their earlier loss against the Super Bowl LVII finalist Eagles could be justified, but the statistics fail to do the same after the Packers‘ defeat. And for all their good work, quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce‘s flunking statistics account for most of the downfall.

The Chiefs are preparing to take on the Bills next, a franchise that nearly made the unthinkable happen against the Eagles. Judging by the Eagles game alone, the Bills could be a tough nut to crack for the champions. To make matters worse, rival QB Josh Allen is outperforming the 2x NFL MVP in almost every statistic. So, are the Chiefs any good going against the AFC East side?

Josh Allen tops Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce unconvincing too

Coming to the Kansan QB first, Mahomes has registered 3,127 yards (8th), 301-444 pass completions (2nd), 67.8 completion rate (7th), 22 touchdowns (4th), and 95 passer rating in 12 games played this season. It has never been the case before that the Super Bowl LVII MVP is not leading the league in at least one area. By the 12th week of last season, the QB was leading the league in almost every statistic and went on to win the AP NFL MVP by the end of it.

Josh Allen, on the other hand, has already improved from the past season where he finished 7th in terms of passing yards. In the same number of games this season, the QB has 3,214 yards (6th), 295-301 pass completions (3rd), 68.1 completion rate (4th), 24 touchdowns (2nd), and a 95.8 passer rating. Other than the pass completion, the injury-ridden QB is leading in every other statistic including sacks (15) compared to Mahomes (17).

Travis Kelce on the other hand, is far worse than Mahomes compared to last year. In 12 games this season, the tight end has 74 receives (12th) for 813 yards (17th), disappointing 5 touchdowns (7th) along with only two 40+ yard games. Except for a handful of impactful moments, Kelce has been virtually invisible in this season. Just like Mahomes, he too has failed to step up when necessary, like in trailing situations.

Read More: Amid a Depressing Season, Regretful Patrick Mahomes Blames Himself for the Loss vs. the Packers

The tight end finished the last season with the 3rd highest receives to add to his Super Bowl glory but would be lucky to make it to the top 10 as things stand. Kelce’s premier rivals Tyreek Hill and Stefon Diggs last season, are all doing better than him in 2023. The 2022 AP Offensive Player of the Year Justin Jefferson has been inactive since week 5 with a hamstring injury, or Kelce could potentially have been dropped one more place.

And the downgraded statistics have directly impacted the Chiefs’ season. Something the Bills will keep in mind when going against them this weekend.

Will Patrick Mahomes prove the doubters wrong, once again?

In their Super Bowl-winning 2022 campaign, the Chiefs lost only 3 games: something the team has already crossed this year with 5 games left in hand. Earlier, after the Eagles’ loss, they lost the AFC top spot with 3 losses and 8 wins, something that belongs to the 9-3 Ravens now. The Packers further pushed the Chiefs down, and now the Dolphins are above the reigning champions as well.

In this context, the Chiefs will be facing the Bills who are desperate to seal a playoff spot. Individual statistics don’t favor the Champs well either, whereas the Bills might carry additional confidence for going the extra distance against the Eagles. However, all of the discussions and uncertainties will be thrown out of the window if Mahomes-Kelce shows up at the right time to prove the doubters wrong. As they have done many other times in their career.

But will they do it? In a below-standard season for the Chiefs and the stars, that remains the biggest question. The game will be live from Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas, on December 10, Sunday.

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