'Underdog Mentality' Fueling Chiefs' Bounce-Back Year

Jul 21, 2025 9:31 AM EDT

In the span of just one game of football, the Kansas City Chiefs dropped from potentially one of the best teams ever to being questioned over whether they are good enough to even win their division?

Really?

As it stands, the Chiefs — who opened training camp on Monday — aren’t among the top favorites to win the Super Bowl, with the Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens ahead of them in the AFC. So, Andy Reid’s team has a lot of motivation ahead of the 2025 season.

For Bleacher Report’s Moe Moton, in addressing the “buzz meter” for Super Bowl contenders, he has the Chiefs at a three, meaning they are underrated in the sportsbook world (currently +800 to win the Super Bowl per DraftKings).

“The Kansas City Chiefs can take on an underdog mentality for the upcoming season,” Moton writes. “The Philadelphia Eagles dismantled them in Super Bowl LIX, and the oddsmakers have underestimated them. As long as head coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes are together in Kansas City, the Chiefs should be top three in odds to win the Super Bowl and top two to win the AFC.”

It is interesting how one game can alter the perception of a team, and we think the offensive line issues are likely at play here, too.

With Patrick Mahomes’ left side being completely new in 2025, some are unsure how well Jaylon Moore and Josh Simmons will be able to protect their quarterback. Additionally, Kingsley Suamataia is at left guard, having moved inside from left tackle, which presents another new challenge to navigate.

Still, the Chiefs have enough credits in the bank (we think) to warrant at least being favorites in the AFC, having won it for three straight seasons, but alas, here we are, with the Chiefs — led by Mahomes and his suggestion that a bounce-back effort will be fueled by revenge — having to prove doubters wrong in 2025.