KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It has been 50 years since the Chiefs last played in a Super Bowl.
Last year, they were so close they could taste it, but Dee Ford jumped offsides in overtime, and Tom Brady took advantage and sent Kansas City home losers again.
It is a memory the Chiefs have carried with them for a year.
“Anytime you lose and you’re that close, you don’t feel good,” Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes said. “You’re not going to be happy with the season. As you look back on it, you understand the experiences that you got, and I’m going to use those experiences to go out there and find a way to keep playing. We understand it’s a day-by-day process. You have to execute every single day and be the best player you can be every single day. From practice to meetings to whatever, it is so that when you get to those games, you can execute at a high level and try to just keep playing.”
Now, Kansas City is back in the playoffs and back at Arrowhead Stadium trying to erase the memory of last year and get to the Super Bowl in Miami. Their road there begins with the Texans on Sunday. Houston pulled out a stunning 22-19 win in overtime over the Bills last week to set up this matchup.
The game is a matchup between two of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL — Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. It also features two teams who have been in the playoffs plenty, but always seem to come up short.
For the Chiefs, this is their sixth appearance in seven years under Reid. They are 2-5 in that time, with one of those wins coming over the Texans. Reid may be the best coach without a Super Bowl ring in the sport. He has won 207 games and but is 12-14 in the playoffs with the Eagles and Chiefs.
Texans coach Bill O’Brien has gotten his team to the playoffs in four out of his six years. They have gone 2-3 but never advanced past the divisional round. In their short franchise history, the Texans are 0-3 in divisional playoff games and 0-3 in road playoff games.
Sunday’s game matches up two franchises that always seem to play in January, but also always seem to lose in January. But someone will leave Arrowhead a winner on Sunday.
