Chiefs are a heavy betting favorite in Divisional Round game vs. Texans. Uh oh ...
Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu will appear in his third NFL playoff game Sunday, his first with the Chiefs, so there’s no history here.
Just as well.
“I’m excited to get on this stage, to be healthy, to have a clear mind, and ultimately have one goal and that’s to get to Miami and won the Super Bowl,” Mathieu said. “We have a great opportunity.”
That opportunity begins with the Divisional Round game against the Houston Texans at Arrowhead Stadium, and the Chiefs are a heavy betting favorite, 9 1/2 points.
But the eve of the postseason is time to address the uncomfortable history of Chiefs in the playoffs. Being a favorite hasn’t mattered much. They’ve lost their last three postseason games at home, as favorites.
- Last season, the Chiefs were a three-point favorite over the New England Patriots in the AFC title game and lost 37-31 in overtime.
- The 2017 season ended with a 22-21 loss to the Tennessee Titans in the Wild Card Round. The Chiefs were an 8 1/2-point favorite.
- The Pittsburgh Steelers, a 2 1/5-point underdog, beat the Chiefs 18-16 in the 2016 Divisional Round.
The worst loss by odds? The Chiefs were listed as a 10 1/2-point favorite over the Indianapolis Colts in the 1995 Divisional Round game, according to www.sportsoddshistory.com, and lost 10-7.
The Chiefs are 10-19 overall in playoff games in their history, including a victory in the 1962 AFL Championship Game as the Dallas Texans.
As the Chiefs, they went 4-2 in AFL playoffs and Super Bowls. Since the NFL-AFL merger that began with the 1970 season, the Chiefs are a woeful 5-17 in playoff games.
Among non-expansion teams — ones that entered the NFL after the merger — only the LIons (one) and Browns (four) have fewer playoff victories since 1970.
Eight losses have come with the Chiefs as the betting favorite.
But there is hope from a oddsmaker standpoint. The website www.sportsbettingdime.com recently posted odds about championship potential by city. What cities would win a championship in either the NFL, MLB, NBA or NHL in 2020. For the NFL, two chances were provided, this season’s Super Bowl 54 and next season’s 55.
Obviously the more sports a city has the better the odds. That’s why Los Angeles is the favorite at 1/2, followed by Baltimore/Washington 1-1 and Boston 7/4.
Kansas City wasn’t on the original list, which included cities or metropolitan areas with three or more teams. But asked specifically about Kansas City, a sportbettingdime.com official listed Kansas City at 7/3. The Royals are included in the equation but the odds that the Chiefs beat the Royals to a title is 13/1.
This story was originally published January 9, 2020 at 3:17 PM.