{"id":301205,"date":"2025-08-19T18:08:21","date_gmt":"2025-08-19T18:08:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/301205\/"},"modified":"2025-08-19T18:08:21","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T18:08:21","slug":"chiefs-roster-can-kansas-city-avoid-a-repeat-of-the-2021-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/301205\/","title":{"rendered":"Chiefs Roster: Can Kansas City avoid a repeat of the 2021 season?"},"content":{"rendered":"

For the third straight year, I\u2019m considering the 10 biggest questions I have about the Kansas City Chiefs<\/a> in 2025. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s pretty easy to compare the Chiefs\u2019 2020 and 2024 seasons.<\/p>\n

In both years, Kansas City was coming off a Super Bowl victory. Both squads won a lot of regular-season games on the way back to the Super Bowl, where they were both blown out \u2014 in large part because their offensive lines played poorly.<\/p>\n

So in 2021, the Chiefs brought back most of the team except for the offensive line, where they began the season with five new starters. They hoped the boosted offensive line \u2014 alongside the rest of the roster \u2014 would be enough to avoid another Super Bowl loss.<\/p>\n

In 2025, they haven\u2019t made as many changes to the offensive line, but still used their biggest asset \u2014 their first-round pick \u2014 on left tackle Josh Simmons, after giving left tackle Jaylon Moore a two-year deal worth $30 million. This was seen as a hedge against failing to acquire Simmons or not having him ready for the season. Kansas City also traded stalwart left guard Joe Thuney so it could retain right guard Trey Smith. But just as in 2021, the team is otherwise keeping most of its roster, hoping that improved tackle play will make the difference.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, 2021 proved to be a frustrating year for the Chiefs, who started the season with a historically bad defense. By the middle of the season, the defense had turned things around, but the offense had fallen off a cliff. It took about two months for the offense to find ways around the two-high coverage shells defenses were sending against it.<\/p>\n

In the Divisional round matchup against the Buffalo Bills \u2014 the famous \u201c13-seconds\u201d game \u2014 the defense was horrible, but the offense was fantastic. In the first half of the AFC Championship against the Cincinnati Bengals, the defense was largely pretty good, while the offense was dominant. But after halftime, the offense fell apart against the Drop 8 defense the Bengals played \u2014 and the Chiefs missed the Super Bowl.<\/p>\n

So in 2022, Kansas City traded wide receiver Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins, acquiring draft capital that it used to rebuild the defense with young players. That one move changed the team\u2019s identity on both sides of the ball. The Chiefs\u2019 offense became a more surgical and efficient \u2014 while the defense became a suffocating coverage unit.<\/p>\n

So while it ended up putting Kansas City in a position it could start over, we\u2019d hate for the Chiefs to have another season like 2021.<\/p>\n

Was it simply a Super Bowl hangover? It\u2019s hard to say. It\u2019s impossible to know how a Super Bowl loss will affect a team, because it hits every team differently. But I don\u2019t believe Super Bowl hangovers prevent a team from being properly motivated. Injury luck, coaching, roster turnover \u2014 and the league\u2019s deliberate parity \u2014 all play a role in every team\u2019s fortunes in every season.<\/p>\n

So what might happen that could lead the Chiefs to a disappointing 2025 season?<\/p>\n

My biggest concern is the weapons around quarterback Patrick Mahomes. There\u2019s a chance that wide receiver Rashee Rice \u2014 coming off an injury and a potential suspension \u2014 won\u2019t have a great year. What if wideout Xavier Worthy doesn\u2019t take a step forward? What if tight end Travis Kelce regresses for another season? Kansas City is already limited at running back \u2014 and any receiver not named Worthy or Rice isn\u2019t proven. If the Chiefs don\u2019t get the best version of those two players, it could be a problem.<\/p>\n

And what if the offensive line isn\u2019t better? I have little doubt that Simmons will be an improvement at left tackle, but he could still struggle. Meanwhile, there could be a total disaster at left guard \u2014 and at right tackle, Jawaan Taylor is still a concern for me. While I\u2019m optimistic about the group, there is the potential for problems.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t have many concerns about the defense. But it\u2019s possible the unit won\u2019t play as well. What if the Chiefs\u2019 two rookie defensive linemen don\u2019t immediately prove to be impactful? If that happens, the defensive line looks thin. What if cornerback Kristian Fulton gets hurt? Will Kansas City be good enough at outside corner? Will Jaden Hicks be a replacement for safety Justin Reid?<\/p>\n

Still, I believe the Chiefs can avoid another season like 2021 \u2014 mostly because the players are younger. In 2021, the team\u2019s players were older. Tyrann Mathieu took a step back. Anthony Hitchens was much worse. It\u2019s possible to see the Hill trade simply as a way to replace older players.<\/p>\n

In 2025, Kansas City doesn\u2019t have that issue \u2014 at least not to the same extent. On both sides of the ball, the team\u2019s core players are very young. There\u2019s reason to believe the team\u2019s current players can improve in ways that 2021\u2019s players could not. In addition, they experienced 2021. The Chiefs know how it feels to be humiliated \u2014 and how hard that next season can be.<\/p>\n

But in the final analysis, they\u2019ll just need to be better than they were four years ago. The Ravens and Bills are powerhouse teams that are better now than they were then \u2014 and Kansas City will need to meet them where they are. While I\u2019m really high on the Chiefs, I also recognize they\u2019ll have to work hard to get back to the point they\u2019ve been over the last three years.<\/p>\n

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