Are you ready for some Chiefs football?
Like the past three seasons, the Chiefs Wire staff will offer its weekly predictions for each Chiefs game. Here are our picks for Kansas City’s Week 10 matchup against the Tennessee Titans.
Charles Goldman’s pick: Chiefs win 43-17
Season record: 5-4
Twitter: @goldmctNFL
Starting quarterback Patrick Mahomes will return to action this week. He’s returning to a Chiefs team that is playing complementary football and coming off of a big win at home. I expect Kansas City to return to their explosive brand of offensive football against the Titans. Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce could be due for big days among other key playmakers.
Tennessee is dealing with several injuries on both sides of the ball. They’re playing better since the switch at quarterback, from Marcus Mariota to Ryan Tannehill. They had a nice two-game streak going before falling to the Panthers in Week 9 on the road. Derrick Henry is always a worry.
If Mahomes comes back rust free and the Chiefs’ defense and special teams can keep things rolling, there’s no reason why this couldn’t be the best showing of the season.
Wesley Roesch’s pick: Chiefs win 35-13
Season record: 8-1
Twitter: @WesleyRoesch
Patrick Mahomes is back. The Chiefs are getting healthier. The defense is getting better. The Titans have one of the worst offensive lines in the league. Oh, and Ryan Tannehill. This smells like a recipe for success for Kansas City.
I think this game is when the team will start to turn things around and become the team it’s supposed to be this season. Honestly, I think K.C. could even run the table, but for now, we’ll just lock it in that they’ll have a great showing against Tennessee.
Nicolas Roesch’s pick: Chiefs win 38-13
Season record: 8-1
Twitter: @Nicolas_Roesch
I don’t believe the Titans are as good as their record indicates, and considering their record is 4-5, it’s safe to say I’m not very high on them. The Titans have played the 24th-most difficult schedule in the league this season and are still under .500. Ryan Tannehill is an average quarterback at best, and he is playing behind the NFL’s worst offensive line.
Tennessee has a solid defense, but the Chiefs have already faced a ton of very good defenses this season. The K.C. offense has executed admirably in Patrick Mahomes’ absence, and now with him back I expect it to return to elite status.
John Dillon’s pick: Chiefs win 19-17
Season record: 6-3
Twitter: @TheJohnDillon
With two sharp starts under his belt, Matt Moore will resume his role as a backup in Week 10 with Patrick Mahomes back under center. The Chiefs are starting to get healthy as the final stretch of the season is getting started, and despite adversity in the front half of their schedule, the back end looks favorable.
Kansas City should be wary of a Titans team that looks rather soft on paper. Tennessee was never really going to be a contender this year, and the fact they benched Marcus Mariota only serves to prove that fact. They aren’t necessarily a cupcake opponent, but without some key cogs on offense functioning, and with a defense that has more big names than big games, they’re certainly beatable.
Though the tea leaves are telling me this is a trap game I’ll take the Chiefs’ cheese and call it a close 19-17 win for Kansas City. Expect a defensive showdown on both sides as Mahomes returns from injury.
Vinciane Ngomsi’s pick: Chiefs win 31-20
Season record: 6-2
Twitter: @VincianeNgomsi
Rejoice, Chiefs Kingdom! After a two week hiatus, Patrick Mahomes is back. What incredible news for not only the reigning MVP but also those anxious ready for him to make his triumphant return. With that being said, I expect Kansas City to triumph Tennessee by a healthy margin. The team is likely still riding high from an incredible win against the Minnesota Vikings and I don’t expect the momentum to quit for the remainder of the regular season.
Now that a proper run game has been successful for Andy Reid, I hope they Eric Bieniemy will utilize Damien Williams more. I also want Mahomes to diversify his receivers so that both Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce can add to their touchdown accounts for the season. While the Titans defense is slightly better than their offense, the Chiefs have already faced similar if not stronger defenses so this won won’t be as difficult to manage. Let’s get to work!
Danilo Di Julio’s pick: Chiefs win 38-17
Season record: 6-3
Twitter: @ThunderDan88
This week marks the return of Patrick Mahomes, who appeared to be champing at the bit to get on the field last week versus Minnesota.
I’ll keep this brief. The energy that has been swirling around this team on offense, defense and special teams will result in a tornado of scoring being unleashed on the Tennessee Titans. I don’t see this game being close. Instead, I expect the Chiefs to come out hot, scoring early and often in a game that will put the league on notice.
The MVP has returned and the Chiefs are for real.
Talon Graff’s pick: Chiefs win 31-14
Season record: 6-3
Twitter: @CoachGraff34
Barring an unforeseen hiccup, Patrick Mahomes will be back on the field for the Chiefs. Matt Moore did an honorable job filling in, so hats off to him. Tennessee is a good game for our Mahomes to return. Even though they are currently the last team in the AFC South, they’re not a bottom feeder by any means but they have still gone through their fair share of turmoil this season. Benching Marcus Mariota in favor of Ryan Tannehill comes to mind.
The former Miami Dolphin won his first two starts for the Titans but threw two interceptions and got sacked four times in last week’s loss to the Panthers. The Titans offense is better with Tannehill but still struggles to put a ton of points on the board. Running back Derrick Henry has given the Chiefs defense fits in the past but our offense will force Tennessee to throw the ball. Mahomes’ return should be a joyous occasion and a fun road trip.
Kevin Scott’s pick: Chiefs win 35-17
Season record: 8-1
Twitter: @KevinScottFF
The Titans return home after a tough loss on the road to the Panthers. At 4-5, the Titans have fallen to the bottom of the AFC South and 2 games behind the leading Texans. If ever there was a time for them to be desperate for a win, this is it.
Like the Vikings last week, the Titans win with an old-fashioned, ball-control offense. They prefer to run the ball often and bleed the clock. That can work against the Chiefs and is how all of the Chiefs’ three losses have turned out. The Colts, Packers, and Texans all ran the ball consistently and had advantages in time of possession.
If the Chiefs want to avoid another loss to this ball-control style of play, their defense must show up again. The run defense has improved dramatically the last couple weeks, yet they still rank 28th in the league in rushing defense per footballoutsiders.com. They must show up in a big way and stop the run, forcing Ryan Tannehill to throw it often. That should lead to success, as the Chiefs’ secondary has been very good recently.
The Titans’ defense is excellent against the run (rank 3rd) but struggles against the pass (rank 20th). This sets up nicely for what the Chiefs prefer to do, and if Mahomes is sharp in his likely return, an opportunity could present itself to get up early with some big plays in the passing game. If they can strike early and get a lead, they should roll to victory. If, however, they struggle early and get behind, the Titans could easily win.
I will guess that Mahomes will be amped to make a big play in his return and will strike early, leading to the Chiefs win.
Ed Easton’s pick: Chiefs win 28-17
Season record: 8-1
Twitter: @EdEastonJr
This week’s matchup with the Tennessee Titans will be a good wire to wire victory needed for the team’s confidence heading down the stretch. The possibility of either Patrick Mahomes or Matt Moore starting for Kansas City won’t change the final result in the Chiefs favor.
The Chiefs offense will remain effective this week with strong production from Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill. The defensive side of the ball picks up where they left off in the finish to last week’s victory over the Vikings. Chris Jones will add to his sack total, giving Ryan Tannehill problems all day. The Chiefs get their second victory in a row with good momentum heading into their Monday night battle in Mexico City.
Mitch Carney’s pick: Chiefs win 38-13
Season record: 7-2
Twitter: @MitchMitchcar11
I have the Chiefs winning this one easily with the return of Patrick Mahomes. The Chiefs offense may still be without some of their starting offensive linemen, but Mahomes is going to come out ready to go since he missed the last two games. I’m going to predict a four-touchdown performance by Mahomes in the first three quarters.
The Chiefs defense has been playing really good lately against some pretty good offenses, so I believe they can be dominant against the Titans. Derrick Henry may have a good game, but I don’t expect Ryan Tannehill to do much especially if the Chiefs pass rush does as well as they have been. It should be an easy win for the Chiefs this week as they win 38-13.
