NFL power rankings aren’t worth a whole lot during the offseason. They don’t have wins and losses to go off of. They don’t always give you an accurate look at how much a team has improved, because it’s still an ongoing process at this point. Performance is hard to project until pads come on, which won’t happen for another two months.
Power rankings can give you a good look at the strengths or weaknesses of your team following free agency and the NFL draft. It also gives you an idea of what the media is looking at as a potential barrier to a successful 2019 season.
In the case of the Chiefs, there are a lot of mixed opinions floating around about the team. Looking on the bright side, most outlets still have them ranked within the top-10 teams in the NFL. Let’s take a look at what the latest power rankings are saying about the Chiefs.
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NBC Sports – Peter King
Chiefs ranking: No. 1
“Seems a little crazy with the firing of the 2017 NFL rushing champ (Kareem Hunt) six months ago and the iffy status of the NFL’s most dangerous weapon because of a child-abuse investigation (Tyreek Hill). But this is an In-Mahomes-We-Trust pick, mostly. I wonder if you could ever say that a rookie picked as low as 56—that was the draft slot of the Chiefs’ top pick, Georgia receiver-returner Mecole Hardman—would enter a season as the rookie with the most pressure to produce at a high level from opening day. With Hill facing a possible suspension to start the season, or more significant banishment, Hardman’s a huge factor for the Chiefs. I went back and watched his highlights from the 2018 national title game against Alabama, and he made a couple of prime-time plays. He took a shotgun snap at quarterback from the ‘Bama 1-yard line, play-faked to Sony Michel, and beat three defenders around the left corner for a touchdown. Then he flashed his 4.33 speed down the right sideline, beating the Alabama corner for an 80-yard TD from Jake Fromm. But is Hardman as tough and competitive as Hill? Will he strike fear into defenses? We’ll see in a tough three-week open to the KC season: at Jacksonville, at Oakland, Baltimore at home.”
I do agree with King that any power ranking based on the Chiefs should be heavily focused on the reigning NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes. Plenty of the power rankings out there hardly mention Mahomes, and that’s a big mistake.
I’m not sure that I agree on King’s take on Chiefs rookie WR Mecole Hardman. It’s just hard for me to get behind the idea that a player who has only played two seasons as a receiver in college would have such big expectations in his first year in the NFL. The Chiefs will certainly throw a lot on his plate, but I think the veteran receivers will be called upon to pick up any slack the team faces with a possible suspension of Tyreek Hill.
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ESPN – NFL Nation
Chiefs ranking: No. 1
“Young blood on defense. The major defensive acquisitions (safety Tyrann Mathieu and end Frank Clark) are 26 and 25, respectively. Similarly, the Chiefs’ other significant defensive additions should have their best football ahead. That should help resuscitate a unit that had relied on older players such as Eric Berry and Justin Houston, both 30 and recently released by Kansas City.”
Adam Teicher is quite optimistic about the Chiefs’ new defensive stars and their abilities to offset the losses of Justin Houston and Eric Berry. At this point I feel like Houston and Berry were more emotional leaders than they were assets on the football field. Injuries changed the course of their careers.
The idea that they’ve added players with their best football ahead of them, suggests that the defense should be able to improve from an abysmal 2018 season. All Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes need is a defense capable of getting them an extra stop. With that the Chiefs could be bound for greatness.
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NFL.com – Elliot Harrison
Chiefs ranking: No. 8
“The story of the draft in Chiefsville unfortunately has little to do with the team’s actual draft. With a prosecutor re-opening an investigation into child abuse involving receiver Tyreek Hill, Kansas City acquired an absolute speedster in Georgia receiver Mecole Hardman (No. 56 overall), who doubles up as instant offense in the return game. This guy is a sterling example of the notion of “football speed” — he ran a 4.33-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine, but in game action, it looks more like he’s got 4.03 speed. One question a lot of people have been asking: Why trade Dee Ford away and then acquire Frank Clark? I will say that the latter player is more consistent. Still, odd times in K.C., all the way around. Hope CB/S Juan Thornhill (No. 63 overall) pans out, because the secondary has only been panned the last two years. Versatile player.”
Harrison brings up two really good points about the Chiefs here. First up the team got the more consistent player in Frank Clark as opposed to Dee Ford. Consistency has to be a big focus this season because they’re hoping for a repeat performance that puts them in Super Bowl contention.
Next is the pressure on Juan Thornhill to come in and be an instant contributor. The Chiefs had one of the worst secondaries in the NFL in 2018, so there is a ton of pressure to improve during the 2019 season. Harrison’s colleague, James Palmer, seems to get the impression that Thornhill will be a contributor right away in this defense.
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CBS Sports – Pete Prisco
Chiefs ranking: No. 5
“The Tyreek Hill situation could be a major factor for this team. Will he play? If not, what does it do to the offense? If he isn’t there, the speed factor isn’t the same for sure.”
Tyreek Hill is obviously a big topic of conversation when it comes to the Chiefs. Power rankings are fixated on it, but we don’t yet know the outcome of the situation as it relates to football. I am not entirely convinced that people should be basing their power rankings solely on that situation.
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Sporting News – Vinnie Iyer
Chiefs ranking: No. 2
“The Tyreek Hill situation is somehow messier and uglier than what happened with Kareem Hunt. Patrick Mahomes, however, gives their offense a high ceiling no matter what, and they quickly found the right pieces for their new complementary 4-3 defense under Steve Spagnuolo.”
There are a lot of believers in Patrick Mahomes out there. Interestingly enough, there are also some believers in their new look defense under defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. Typically when you go over an overhaul on defense such as the Chiefs have it brings questions and doubt, but we’re seeing a lot more optimism early on. It’s probably because of how difficult it would be to digress from the No. 31 ranked defense.
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