The Kansas City Chiefs have a definitive goal, and it’s known within the building as “The Streak.” It’s not about winning Super Bowls, either, even though that’s the ultimate goal.
It’s about their streak of winning division titles. That nine-season streak is currently in jeopardy, but it wouldn’t take much to get things back on track, especially given the opportunity at hand when they meet the Denver Broncos on Sunday at Mile High.
“That’s always our first goal,” said quarterback Patrick Mahomes said in a piece written by Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. “It’s like the first goal we have that coach Reid puts up, is win the division, and we understand that it’s always a challenge and you have to go up against really good football teams that are scouting you all year long. We’ve been really good at that over these last seven, eight, nine years — whatever it is. We got to continue to get better and better.
“We have a lot of division games in front of us. If we can go out there and handle business and do what I think we can do, we can find a way to win this division.
Much of that mindset is about priorities, according to Mahomes.
“It checks that first box for you to show that you’ve accomplished something in the year, and now let’s build on to the next goal,” he said Wednesday. “It’s been something that’s been important to us, and so we’ll still have that mindset of finding a way to win it this year.
“But it all starts with this week.”
Reid understands that the Chiefs are facing a different challenge this year. They’re used to controlling the division with relative ease, but this year they have to come from behind.
“The thing about our division here is it’s strong — a strong division. The AFC West is tremendously strong,” Reid said. “We’re all trying to shoot for the same thing.”
The Chiefs know they have to play better, and Mahomes also thinks that’s an achievable goal. As always, he's setting his sights high.
“We have to go out there and play our best football,” Mahomes said, “and I don’t think we’ve done that yet.
“If we can go out there and handle business and do what I think we can do, we can find a way to win this division,” Mahomes said. “Everything is out in front of us.”