The odds are already stacked against the Kansas City Chiefs putting anything together in terms of a late-season run to make the playoffs. That much is clear. At 0-2 (and an abysmal 0-2 at that), the Chiefs hardly look like a playoff team in any facet of the team. However, the 0-2 mark is hardly a guarantee that the team's season is officially tanked.
As a matter of fact, Adam Schefter noted this morning that 22 of 177 teams that have started 0-2 since 1990 have made the playoffs. That comes out to 12.4 percent. That's not a bright ray of hope, but it does present the possibility that if a team simply got into an early rut and finds its identity in time, things are not over. However, the numbers fall tremendously from there. The last time an 0-3 team made the playoffs was 13 years ago when the Buffalo Bills did it in 1998. In other words, lose that third straight game and your chances are basically zero.
The Chiefs must enter into the Chargers game this weekend with that in mind, knowing that their season can go from meaningful to meaningless in one simple game. One win over the division favorites show that the Chiefs still have life and memories of what it was like to play in the playoffs last season. One win over the Chargers show that maybe the roster has more talent than the injured reserve list right now and would get rid of the venom that everyone seems to have toward Todd Haley and the rest of the food chain at Arrowhead.
Matt Cassel must protect the ball and carry this team. Thomas Jones and Dexter McCluster must step up in the running game. Steve Breaston must become the new option he was brought in to be, and Dwayne Bowe must embody the No. 1 receiver role. The talent is all here to win some games this year, and with enough inspiration and solid coaching, the Chiefs could even turn it around. So this weekend holds all the cards for the Chiefs and their hopes in the AFC West. If they lose, then any real chance is over for post-season hopes.