After the Divisional Round, four teams were left standing: the Baltimore Ravens, the Detroit Lions, the San Francisco 49ers, and the Kansas City Chiefs.
Let’s dive into the final Team of the Week installment of the season with less than two weeks until a champion is crowned.
Without further ado, this week’s top team is the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Swifties … or, I mean, the Chiefs.
Guess Who’s Back, Back Again
In an NFL season with so much uncertainty that Joe Flacco led a team to the playoffs, one thing stays the same: the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship.
NFL dynasties have been a thing since the 1960s. During that time, the Green Bay Packers reigned over the NFL. In the following decade, the dynasty was the Pittsburgh Steelers. Two decades after the 1960s, the San Fransico 49ers were supreme in the NFL (and are now back in the Super Bowl).
In the 1990s, the top dynasty was the Dallas Cowboys, who have not been a real threat in the postseason since then.
Finally, in the 2000s and 2010s, the team that reigned supreme was the New England Patriots.
If they secure a second Super Bowl win in five years, Kansas City has a chance to join this list, much to the dismay of 31 other fanbases.
Playoff Mahomes: Built Different
During the NFC Championship celebration, 49ers tight end George “McRiddle” Kittle said, “They had us in the first half, not gonna lie.” That is how most NFL fans feel about Patrick Mahomes. During the regular season, it seemed like the Chiefs had a Super Bowl hangover. However, in the playoffs, they seem to find some dark magic and have all of a sudden looked like the team that won the Super Bowl last season. This is the team we all thought the Chiefs would be when they played the Detroit Lions in Week 1.
In the AFC Championship alone, Mahomes threw 30-for-39 with 241 yards and one touchdown, thrown to none other than Taylor Swift’s boyfriend, Travis Kelce. Mahomes’ record in the playoffs is 14-3, which is surprising since Mahomes has only been in the league since 2017.
The Chiefs have now won the AFC West for the eighth consecutive year, securing a second consecutive Super Bowl berth. Six of those division titles came with Mahomes under center.
Patrick Mahomes start to his career:
2018: Reached AFC Championship
2019: Reached Super Bowl
2020: Reached Super Bowl
2021: Reached AFC Championship
2022: Reached Super Bowl
2023: Reached Super BowlNot bad. ✅ pic.twitter.com/CjU92HpCta
— John Ewing (@johnewing) January 29, 2024
This past weekend, Mahomes was able to dismantle the Ravens, a team most NFL fans thought was going to beat the Chiefs. Even in a “down year” for the Chiefs, Kelce now has the most receptions in postseason history, passing Jerry Rice. Kelce has 156 receptions in 21 playoff games.
Patrick Mahomes is Anakin Skywalker of the NFL
Anakin Skywalker is the best-written character in the Star Wars universe, dating back to the prequels. Patrick Mahomes is the best-written character in the NFL when it comes to conspiracy theories that the league is scripted.
Mahomes was once the hero in the hearts of NFL fans when he helped to dismantle the Patriots’ dynasty. While Tom Brady‘s departure from the Patriots was brewing, an elite trio of Mahomes, Kelce, and Tyreek Hill led the Chiefs to a Super Bowl win over the 49ers in Miami. That’s just like when everyone thought Skywalker was expected to be the chosen one.
“You die the hero or live long enough to be the villain.” Like Skywalker when he turned to the dark side, in the minds of NFL fans, Mahomes was the chosen one who was supposed to destroy the Patriots, not become them. He was supposed to bring balance to the NFL, not create another dynasty.
Currently, the haters hate Mahomes for several reasons: he keeps winning, Taylor Swift exists, and beyond. Mahomes might as well pull an Anakin Skywalker and slaughter those 49ers (younglings) with the football (his red lightsaber).
It’s the Final Top NFL Team
This the the final Top Team of the 2023 season. It started with the Detroit Lions and ended with the Kansas City Chiefs. This reminds us of the Super Bowl that could’ve been if the Lions did not get Atlanta Falconirus.
It has been a wild ride this season navigating the top teams in the NFL.
A chaotic season? Yes. A fun season? Also yes.
It has been an honor to identify the NFL’s top team every week. Good luck to the Kansas City Chiefs and San Fransico 49ers and I will see everyone this Septemeber for another season of Gates’ Top Team.
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