Dan Graziano discusses the Chiefs' secure playoff spot and examines potential overreactions in Week 17 of the NFL season.
Dan Graziano is a senior NFL national reporter for ESPN, covering the entire league and breaking news. Dan also contributes to Get Up, NFL Live, Sports Center, ESPN Radio, Sunday NFL Countdown and Fantasy Football Now. He is a New Jersey native who joined ESPN in 2011, and he is also the author of two published novels. You can follow Dan on Twitter via @DanGrazianoESPN.
With many things still unknown in the NFL as teams approach the final week of the regular season, there are bound to be reactions to both expected and unexpected outcomes. But as the dust settles, some of those reactions will be proven legitimate while others will be seen as overreactions. This is what makes the final week of the regular season so exciting. The Kansas City Chiefs have clinched the top overall seed in the AFC playoffs, meaning they will get a first-round bye and home games until the Super Bowl. Nothing that happens next week can change that. Coach Andy Reid can choose to rest his starters or play them for a few series to avoid them having too much time off before the playoffs. The Chiefs have earned the right to take Week 17 off after winning 15 of their first 16 games. The Cincinnati Bengals' loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday prevented them from clinching a playoff spot in Week 17 and kept the Cincinnati alive in the postseason race. If the Bengals win their final game and the Ravens lose, Cincinnati will make the playoffs. The Chiefs and Bengals have had some closely contested games in recent years, with a 3-3 record for Patrick Mahomes against Joe Burrow since 2020. Again, the Chiefs can do whatever they want in Week 17. It's likely that Mahomes will play a quarter or two in Denver next weekend. This is probably just a decision by Reid to give his starters some rest or avoid any unnecessary injury risk in a meaningless game. The Chiefs should certainly not intentionally lose the game just to prevent the Bengals from making the playoffs
NFL Chiefs Bengals Playoffs Week 17
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