Kansas City Chiefs

Chiefs face must-win vs. Jets

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

foxsports

The Kansas City Chiefs need to find a way to beat the New York jets this Sunday afternoon at Arrowhead Stadium.

Kansas City is 1-1. It’s not a bad position to be in, especially considering only five teams in the AFC have a perfect record. However, if the Chiefs lose on Sunday to the Jets, it could be the start of a major avalanche.

For Andy Reid, getting to the bye week (Week 5) at 2-2 would be fine. The schedule is much lighter down the stretch and with the returns of Jamaal Charles and Justin Houston, the Chiefs would be a nice pick to make a huge run in the second half. For now, it’s about not getting buried and staying in the hunt for home-field advantage.

Should Kansas City lose this week, though, it would be a serious issue. The following week sees the Chiefs travel to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night, a game that is the hardest on the docket. With the way Pittsburgh is playing – and it will have Le’Veon Bell back – it could be near impossible for Kansas City to find a win there.

After the bye, the Chiefs will take on the Raiders in the Black Hole. Oakland’s defense has been hideous and Reid has always been great with two weeks to prepare, but this would be a scary game. A loss would drop the Chiefs to 1-4 and while the team proved it could come back from a tough start in 2015, this would be brutal.

Kansas City has to make it happen against the Jets. It can be ugly, it can be because New York plays horribly, it can be because of a bad call. Doesn’t matter. All that matters is that the Chiefs are 2-1 going to Pittsburgh. Suddenly, the long-term picture would be rosy.

In short, this week is absolutely massive.