Confident Chiefs talk early successes entering back half of regular season

The 2022 Kansas City Chiefs kept the receipts

The 2022 Kansas City Chiefs kept the receipts.

Yes, quarterback Patrick Mahomes and head coach Andy Reid heard all the criticisms and concerns this offseason about how they would sustain a championship pedigree sans Tyreek Hill and others.

Fresh off a thrilling 30-27 win over the division rival Los Angeles Chargers, and sitting firmly in the driver’s seat of the AFC West, the Chiefs (8-2) are (briefly) stopping to smell the roses.

“It starts off at the top,” Mahomes said when asked about the Chiefs’ success despite overwhelming roster turnover. “If you look at the organization, everybody comes to work with the mindset of how can they make themselves better to make this organization better,” he finished.

Mahomes and Company are effectively four games clear of the Los Angeles Chargers in the division standings, positioned to win the AFC West for a seventh consecutive season.

“There were some unknowns because we hadn’t been through games with some of the guys,” head coach Andy Reid said Wednesday of his preseason concerns.

Among a flurry of offseason decisions, Kansas City decided to part ways with veteran defensive back Tyrann Mathieu, clearing the way for a youth movement in the secondary.

“But as (the season) went on, I could see we continue to improve and that we would be okay,” Reid said. Kansas City started four rookie defensive backs in Sunday’s win over Justin Herbert’s Chargers. And despite some early game lapses, Kansas City held Los Angeles to just seven second-half points.

“We have good players, a good locker room — coaches that are willing to work,” Reid said of his team’s championship culture. “It’s everybody. It’s not one thing we’re doing. It’s everybody involved.”

Not just poised for divisional success, Reid’s crew looks to solidify the top seed in the AFC for the first time since 2020.

A big reason why? How the Chiefs begin every season under Reid — in the grueling temperatures of St. Joseph, Missouri, for training camp.

Mahomes told new additions: “Get through training camp, and you’ll be ready to go for the entire season.”

“And I think they understand that now,” Mahomes continued. “They understand why we did what we did in training camp to prepare them to be in those moments.”

The Chiefs’ QB1 is a big reason for Kansas City’s success through 11 weeks, leading the league in passing yards and touchdowns. The Chiefs say they’re enjoying the fruits of their labor while ensuring they won’t soil before it’s time to eat.

“I’m pleased,” Andy Reid said. “But like you said…the most important thing is there’s a lot of season left.”