The Kansas City Chiefs entered the 2025 season with a singular focus, reaching a fourth consecutive Super Bowl and a sixth appearance in seven years. Coming off a franchise-best 15-2 record, they returned largely the same squad that had narrowly lost the Lombardi Trophy to the Philadelphia Eagles. However, 2025 proved to be a brutal reality check.
Kansas City finished the year at a staggering 6-11, representing a nine-game decline in wins, the largest single-season drop in the NFL this year. But despite a premature exit and a crushing injury to Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs’ front office shouldn’t be panicking just yet.
Patrick Mahomes Wins MVP for the Chiefs
Once their two-time league MVP returns to the fold, the Chiefs will undoubtedly reclaim their status as perennial contenders. Mahomes played just 14 games this season, leading to career-lows in passing yards (3,587) and touchdowns (22). This marked his second consecutive season under the 4,000-yard mark, a stat that would be a death knell for most quarterbacks but speaks to the high standard he has set.
Despite not finishing the season on the field, he was officially awarded the team MVP, taking home the Derrick Thomas Award. Mahomes secured the honors over center Creed Humphrey, who was the only Chiefs player selected as an All-Pro this year, and defensive standouts Nick Bolton and Trent McDuffie.
It was a “boom-or-bust” statistical year for No. 15, he had five games with three or more touchdowns but also recorded three games with zero touchdowns, the highest total of his career.
However, the silver lining for the Chiefs Kingdom is that Mahomes has already begun his recovery. The current timeline suggests he will be 100% for the start of the 2026 season, keeping the hope alive that the Kansas City dynasty is merely on a one-year hiatus.
Travis Kelce’s future and the Return of Eric Bieniemy
The more pressing mystery in Missouri isn’t the quarterback’s health, but the future of Travis Kelce. Even in what many considered a “down” year for the franchise, Kelce remained the undisputed heartbeat of the offense. He led the team in every major category: targets (108), receptions (76), yards (851), touchdowns (5), and receiving first downs (45).
While retirement rumors always swirl around a player of his tenure, all signs point to Kelce returning for at least one more run.The motivation for that return likely stems from the rumored reunion with offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy.
It was under Bieniemy that Mahomes and Kelce enjoyed their most prolific professional years, and bringing him back into the fold alongside Andy Reid could be the spark this offense needs to rediscover its identity. With Mahomes rehabbing and Kelce still producing at an elite level, a Bieniemy homecoming would signal that the Chiefs are going all-in for 2026 to prove that 2025 was nothing more than a temporary lapse in greatness.
