The Kansas City Chiefs will start the season looking to become the first team in NFL history to win the Super Bowl in three consecutive years.
If anyone is built to re-write history, it’s Patrick Mahomes, but there is an extremely high bar for success for the franchise.
The Chiefs enter this season with the best odds to win it all at +500 on DraftKings Sportsbook. They have +300 odds to win the AFC, are -230 to win the AFC West, and -600 to make the playoffs outright. Their season-long win total sits at 11.5 games with the over slightly favored at -115 odds.
DraftKings Drive For Week 5 – Record After 5 Games (3 Wins: +180 Odds)
The betting lines are rightfully inflated just about every way you look at it regarding the Chiefs. Patrick Mahomes and the rest of the organization have accomplished about as much as they possibly could in this short period of time.
Despite the success, Kansas City is not immune to the “Super Bowl hangover.” They started last season with a frustrating 21-20 loss to the Detroit Lions and will have some tough challenges out of the gate this year.
Kansas City will open the season against the Baltimore Ravens with new addition Derrick Henry set to provide a fresh element to their offense. They then face Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals, followed by the Atlanta Falcons and Los Angeles Chargers.
If the Chiefs are clicking, they’ll look like the Super Bowl favorite. But, expect opponents to treat their matchup with Kansas City as their own Super Bowl in the short term.
The human nature of struggling to get fired up this early in the season has a chance to set in for the Chiefs, meaning a 3-2 record after the first five weeks feels very realistic—plus, the +180 is great value to get it at. Their 11-6 record last year following the Super Bowl victory is their most losses since the 2017 season. Don’t be surprised to see some similar rust in their play before they ultimately find their stride down the stretch of the season.
Travis Kelce Over 6.5 Receiving TDS (-115)
There can be no complaints about the level of team success that has been achieved, but last year was a down season for Travis Kelce statistically.
The future Hall of Fame tight end was kept under 1000 yards receiving for the first time since 2015, and tallied just five touchdowns on the season. This is less than half of the 12 he tallied the year prior and the fewest since 2015 for Kelce.
The Chiefs did a nice job of adding to their receiving corps this offseason. Marquise “Hollywood” Brown will be a notable addition, as well as 28th overall pick Xavier Worthy out of Texas. While there still may be a suspension coming for some portion of the season, Rashee Rice will also look to build off the successful rookie season he had last year.
Each of these names will make interesting fits in the Chiefs’ system, but none of them are the red zone threats that will take away targets from Travis Kelce. Despite the lack of touchdowns, Kelce still led Kansas City in red zone targets last year with 121. Rashee Rice was second in this category with 102, and Justin Watson ranked third with 53 red zone targets.
Brush off last year, and look for the 34-year-old to clear the 6.5 touchdown mark this season.
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All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
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