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| (AP Photo/Rick Osentoski) |
At the end of Week 3 in the National Football League, the Oakland Raiders and San Diego Chargers sit atop the AFC West with records of 2-1. The Denver Broncos hold the third spot at 1-2, while the Kansas City Chiefs bring up the rear at 0-3.
Anyone surprised? We are. The Chiefs lit up the NFL last season, earning a 10-6 record and winning the division. It seemed a new era was born in Missouri.
Despite a 23-point loss in the divisional round to the Baltimore Ravens, the Chiefs gave fans plenty of reason for optimism in 2011.
The Chiefs put their wrong foot forward this season, though. After falling to the Buffalo Bills (41-7) and the Detroit Lions (48-3), the franchise lost any semblance to the playoff squad of 2010. Their second half play against the Chargers last weekend was promising, but not good enough to snag a win and silence the growing number of critics in Kansas City.
At this rate, players might want to implore Lady Luck for a win come their week four matchup against the Minnesota Vikings.
But luck has not been good to Kansas City thus far. Running back Jamaal Charles tore his ACL in Week 2 against the Lions, knocking him out for the season. The Chiefs will need to slug throughout the rest of the season without their best offensive weapon. Could it get any worse?
Unfortunately for head coach Todd Haley, the worst could be yet to come. Kansas City only faces two playoff teams in the first half of this season, but five in the second half, including the reigning Super Bowl Champions, the Green Bay Packers, and the hungry Pittsburgh Steelers.
Haley and company face a long season ahead if they don’t start turning things around fast. But with an improving Oakland squad, a consistently good franchise in San Diego, and no Charles, this nightmare might not end anytime soon.
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