Kansas City Chiefs Cautioned on 1 Problem With the Team

The Kansas City Chiefs are in a good position heading into the new season, and there are plenty of NFL teams who would love to have the strengths and weaknesses that this team posseses. We’re talking about a team that almost pulled off a three-peat last season, and even though they lost, their record is still fantastic.

But, that said, there’s always something that could be standing in the way of success. Of course, no NFL team is perfect, so we can’t expect the Chiefs to have zero flaws. But, the fewer problems, the better.

Now, heading into the 2025 season, one NFL expert is looking at what the Chiefs have going for them and also what they lack.

1 Thing May Stand in the Way of the Chiefs

In a feature for Bleacher Report published on June 16, Alex Ballentine lays out the best- and worst-case case scenarios for each team in the NFL heading into the new season. Of course, these are just projections, so take them for what they are, some fun predictions and observations. But, it’s also a helpful tool to brace for some possibilities in the season.

In the story, he notes that “it’s an offensive league and every front office goes into the offseason with a vision for how it will improve the unit for the next season.” He adds to “just look at how much money and resources teams are willing to pour into finding a quarterback, building an offensive line and retaining a star receiver.”

For the Chiefs, his worst-case scenario is that there is “no explosive element” to the lineup, which leaves very little margin for error

In the piece, he points out that “just having Andy Reid and Mahomes is going to be good enough for the Chiefs to at least be above average.” But, he says that “the lack of an explosive element left the offense leaning completely on efficiency last season. The Chiefs were seventh in success rate, but 27th in passing plays over 20 yards.”

Ballentine adds that “Getting Rashee Rice and Marquise Brown back from injury should help with that. Xavier Worthy potentially getting better at tracking down deep balls could make a difference. But this has been an issue since Tyreek Hill left and it’s capping the Chiefs’ ceiling.”

The Best-Case Scenario for the Kansas City Chiefs

On the flip-side, the best-case scenario is improved pass protection for Mahomes and receiver health for the team. Ballentine really thinks this could be the difference-maker.

“The Chiefs have learned the hard way how important pass protection is during Patrick Mahomes’ tenure,” he writes. “Both Super Bowl losses to the Buccaneers and Eagles could be chalked up to not protecting their franchise quarterback.”

He mentions that they likely have “resolved the issues on the left side by signing Jaylon Moore, drafting Josh Simmons and moving Kingsley Suamataia inside to left guard.”

Finally, he notes that “if Mahomes has time, he’s going to make up for a lot of the Chiefs’ shortcomings on offense.”