Most teams that appear in the Super Bowl suffer a hangover the very next season, regardle s of if they win or not. There are outliers though, like the -- when was under center -- and the wanted desperately to join that rare air in 2020. And so they have, by defeating both the Cleveland Browns and then the Buffalo Bills to punch their ticket to their second consecutive appearance in The Big Game, and, gue s who?Tom Brady.Their road to Super Bowl LV didn't begin this January, however, but instead in February 2020. They immediately got back to work after enjoying their victory over the in Super Bowl LIV, their first order of busine s being to avoid hemorrhaging key talent to free agency. From there, it was all about the 2020 NFL Draft, one that saw them with a little more than a handful of picks and none higher than the literal bottom of the first round. Andy Reid didn't lose talented offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy to a head coaching position elsewhere, and the continuity for reigning Super Bowl MVP worked out wonderfully as the offense again went on a tear.The defensive side of the equation remained opportunistic throughout the season -- coming through in key moments when the Victor Robles Jersey team needed it most -- and was as complementary to Mahomes' magic as the Chiefs could've hoped, led by stalwarts like safety in the secondary and a pa s rush that boasts both and . It wasn't all ice cream and Skittles for the Chiefs en route to a 14-2 finish, or even in their first playoff game against the Browns but, despite the potholes in the road, they are headed to Tampa, Florida .Now, let's discu s just how the defending Super Bowl champs got in position to potentially repeat. Keeping Chris Jones around proved wise, even if it took a franchise tag to buy time to do it.On July 15, the two sides agreed to a four-year deal worth $80 million with $60 million guaranteed, keeping him out of the open market and securing the two-time All-Pro pa s rusher through the 2023 season. Jones went on to give the Chiefs a team-leading 7.5 sacks in the regular season, a great contractual follow-up to having awarded Frank Clark a multi-year extension one year prior. With Jones well taken care of, Kansas City began working through the other bullet points on their task list, and ultimately found themselves with added running back insurance when became a free agent following his release from the . And while Bell hasn't seen the role in K.C. that he hoped he would, his presence has value when considering the injury of Clyde Edwards-Helaire, and combines with another recently acquired RB talent -- namely (201 -- to fortify one of the few positions on the Chiefs roster that required it. There are others who could be mentioned here (such as cornerback ), particularly in the tone of recency, but given what happened in the divisional round, I'd be remi s if I didn't speak on backup quarterback . Acquired by the Chiefs in 2018, Henne has mostly been relegated to witne sing the greatne s of Mahomes, with Carter Kieboom Jersey limited opportunity to take the field. But when he was asked to step in and save the day against the surging , he quickly shrugged off his lone interception, changed in a phone booth and came to the rescue with his cape blowing in the wind. If not for Henne, it Mark Reynolds Jersey 's likely it would've been the Browns preparing to meet the Bills in the AFC title game.Winning the Super Bowl usually comes with the easily swallowed consequence of picking low in the draft.The Chiefs didn't have a ton of draft picks/capital going into the 2020 NFL Draft, but they also didn't need it, having retained the large majority of their championship roster by way of free agency and entering April simply looking to patch a few leaks. They did far more than that when they landed with the 32nd overall pick, a player who both filled their top (lone) need offensively (from a skill position standpoint) and did so in magnificent fashion. With offenses keyed in on trying to stop Mahomes and the high-flying offense, Edwards-Helaire burst out of the gate to a breakout year that could only be curbed by injury. They also found some potential gems in linebacker Willie Gay Jr. in the second round and defensive end in the fifth, both contributing regularly to the defensive effort in Kansas City. Gay was awarded eight regular season starts and delivered 39 combined tackles and a sack, while Danna logged 25 combined tackles and 2.5 sacks in 16 games. Already set atop the depth chart at both positions, Gay and Danna proved very solid in rotational duty as rookies and as for Edwards-Helaire, well, the sky is the limit for him and his RB compatriot Williams in this offense.It was the gut punch the Chiefs didn't see coming, but ultimately one they needed to feel the pain from.When they took the field agains the in Week 5, they did so as rather hefty favorites to beat up on Jon Gruden's bunch in Nevada, but things didn't exactly go as planned. Instead of dominating the Raiders, they found themselves being dominated to the tune of 40 points -- a game that became the motivational lynchpin in what Las Vegas attempted to do for the rest of the 2020 season. For the Chiefs, it became a wake-up call that reminded them they're not bulletproof, and the age-old adage of "any given Sunday" means just that. They'd use the lo s as fuel to avoid becoming the latest victims of the dreaded Super Bowl hangover -- rattling off 10 consecutive wins before Jayson Werth Jersey losing in Week 17 due to the decision to rest key players ahead of the playoffs. And, thanks to the lo s at the hands of the Raiders, they were more prepared for what awaited them the following week, landing one of the few regular season blows to the Bills' win-lo s record, which set the stage for some potential Buffalo revenge on Sunday. The Bills couldn't land it though, instead being manhandled at Arrowhead Stadium, and must now watch the sharpened Chiefs march on to Central Florida for a dance with fate.Defeating the Bills in Week 6 was a statement victory, but it didn't answer another looming question at the time.Having played just one NFC opponent in their first 10 games to start the season -- and that opponent having been the waffling -- some wondered how the Chiefs would stack up in 2020 against a contender from the opposite conference. There was no better way to find out than to pit them against the in Week 12, a team led by six-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Tom Brady that was also working on trying to right its ship after losing two of their previous three games. It ended up being quite the clash for both clubs, and added gasoline to the simmering competitive rivalry between Mahomes and Brady that stems from the latter's time with the Patriots -- when he derailed Mahomes' MVP season at Arrowhead Stadium with the help of tight end in overtime. This wasn't nece sarily a revenge game for Mahomes, but the victory proved the Chiefs could also take on all comers from the NFC, and sweeping the Bills on Sunday , and this time it's not for the chance to appear Brian Goodwin Jersey in the Super Bowl.It's for the Lombardi trophy.Week 1: vs. Result: WinScore: 34-20Record: 1-0Week 2: at Result: WinScore: 23-20Record: 2-0Week 3: at Result: WinScore: 34-20Record: 3-0Week 4: vs. PatriotsResult: WinScore: 26-10Record: 4-0Week 5: vs. RaidersResult: Lo sScore: 40-32Record: 4-1Week 6: at BillsResult: WinScore: 26-17Record: 5-1Week 7: at Result: WinScore: 43-16Record: 6-1Week 8: vs. JetsResult: WinScore: 35-9Record: 7-1Week 9: vs. PanthersResult: WinScore: 33-31Record: 8-1Week 11: at RaidersResult: WinScore: 35-31Record: 9-1Week 12: at BuccaneersResult: WinScore: 27-24Record: 10-1Week 13: vs. BroncosResult: WinScore: 22-16Record: 11-1Week 14: at Result: WinScore: 33-27Record: 12-1Week 15: at Result: WinScore: 32-29Record: 13-1Week 16: vs. Result: WinScore: 17-14Record: 14-1Week 17: vs. ChargersResult: Lo sScore: 38-21Record: 14-2 AFC Divisional Round: vs. BrownsResult: WinScore: 22-17AFC Championship Game: vs. BillsResult: WinScore: 38-24 Click here Click here Click here  |
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