The panic lights are flashing in Kansas City. A Thanksgiving loss to the Cowboys dropped the Chiefs to 6-6, and the team that has made three straight Super Bowls suddenly finds itself fighting for air in a crowded AFC race.
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Thursday's 31-28 setback pushed Kansas City to ninth in the conference standings, sitting 1.5 games back of the Bills, Jaguars and Chargers at 7-4.
It gets worse. All three of those teams beat the Chiefs earlier this season.
"At the end of the day, you've just got to win every game now and hope that's enough," Patrick Mahomes told reporters after the loss, clearly aware that Kansas City is staring at its first missed postseason since 2014.
And the road ahead looks even tougher as injuries start piling up at the worst possible time.
Rookie left tackle Josh Simmons, who was expected to solidify a shaky offensive line, dislocated and fractured his wrist against Dallas and is likely headed for injured reserve, per NFL Network. Guard Trey Smith missed the game with an ankle issue, and tackle Jawaan Taylor exited with an arm injury.
That leaves Mahomes with an offensive line missing multiple starters, including both tackles, making "superhero mode" far more difficult to access when the Chiefs need it most.
With the AFC stacked and 10 wins not guaranteed to secure a playoff spot, Kansas City might have to run the table to survive.
"We're going to play a lot of good football teams coming up," Mahomes said. "If we're going to make the playoffs, we're going to have to win them all."
The schedule does them no favors. The Texans come to Arrowhead next with the league's top pass rush, followed by the Chargers, Titans, Broncos and Raiders.
In Kansas City, the panic button isn't just close. It's probably already been pressed.
