Two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City, kept hungry by a season filled with narrow triumphs, will try and clinch an NFL division crown with a victory on Sunday.
The Chiefs (11-1) have already sealed a playoff berth but are pressed to keep winning by the Buffalo Bills (10-2), who own a tie-breaker edge thanks to a 30-21 triumph over Kansas City last month.
One slip by the Chiefs and the Bills, who have also secured a post-season spot, could match them and claim the inside track to home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.
So there’s plenty at stake on Sunday when the Chiefs play host to the Los Angeles Chargers (8-4) needing a victory to clinch the AFC West crown while the Bills will visit the Los Angeles Rams (6-6).
The Chiefs have won nine games this season by seven points or fewer, a fact Kansas City star quarterback Patrick Mahomes says has kept his team hungry to improve every week.
“The hope is that with all these close finishes, we’re getting wins but it’s keeping us hungry so that we can continue to try to get better as the season goes on,” Mahomes said.
Mahomes says he can see how much the team has evolved already knowing they have yet to reach their peak.
“We’ve done better executing the offense, going to the right positions. I’ve done a better job of giving guys chances to make plays,” he said. “It’s little plays here and there that have stalled out drives. There are plays in games where if we make that play the offense scores 30 points and we’re not even having this discussion.”
Producing a better record than last year even with inferior statistics can produce a championship club, a confident Mahomes says.
“I feel like we have the talent and we have the coaching staff and we have the work ethic to go out there and win any football game,” Mahomes said.
“It’s about doing that on a day-to-day and week-to-week basis. We have those guys that are motivated enough to do that but it’s not going to be easy. It never is.
“You have to play your best football at the perfect time in order to win a championship. That’s what I’ve learned in my time in the NFL.”
– Eagles, Vikings hopeful –
The Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings, both 10-2, can clinch playoff berths with victories on Sunday and some help.
The Vikings, who host Atlanta (6-6), need a triumph and either losses by Arizona and the Rams or an Arizona-Seattle draw.
The Eagles, who entertain Carolina (3-9), have several clinching options if they win, the easiest requiring losses by the Rams, Arizona and either Atlanta or Tampa Bay.
Sunday’s other games include the New York Jets at Miami, New Orleans at the New York Giants, Las Vegas at Tampa Bay, Cleveland at Pittsburgh, Jacksonville at Tennessee and Chicago at San Francisco with Cincinnati at Dallas on Monday.
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