With their win over the Houston Texans in Week 16, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs moved one step closer to securing the No. 1 seed in the AFC.

With that, their path to three-peating as Super Bowl champions would improve significantly.

Patrick Mahomes Sends 3-Word Message After Chiefs Beat Texans

Patrick Mahomes Leads Chiefs to Victory Despite Ankle Injury

Mahomes completed 68.3% of his passes for 260 yards and 1 touchdown in the contest, finishing the game after a full week of practice despite his ankle injury suffered in Week 15.

“Thank you God!” Mahomes posted on X on December 21.

The Chiefs QB hit eight different Chiefs players for completions in the game, led by rookie first-round pick and wide receiver Xavier Worthy, who had seven receptions for 65 yards and 1 touchdown.

X GON’ GIVE IT TO YA#ProBowlVote + @XavierWorthy pic.twitter.com/RsXdDZ8OgJ

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) December 21, 2024

The win moves the Chiefs home record to 8-0 this season. They close out the regular-season slate on the road against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 17 and then on to the Denver Broncos in Week 18.

Of course, the Chiefs are 7-1 on the road, so the challenge is still not insurmountable.

Chiefs’ Magic Number Down to 1

KC already beat the Broncos, who lost to the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 15, taking their meeting at Arrowhead Stadium in Week 10.  The Steelers are staring a 2-3 mark in their last five games right in the face, trailing the Baltimore Ravens at halftime in Week 16. KC needs to win one more game to secure the No. 1 seed thanks to their loss to the Buffalo Bills in Week 11.

Buffalo remains two games back in the standings.

A Bills loss in Week 16 would put an end to the drama for the top seed. But the Chiefs can take the drama out of it all together by taking care of business.

Securing the No. 1 seed means a bye week, the only one in the conference. It also means home-field advantage, potentially throughout the postseason. The Chiefs being who they are, though, have also taken a road-heavy path to a championship.

The good news for the Chiefs: they would not face the Bills until the AFC championship game.

Texans’ Young Star Feared to Have Suffered Season-Ending Injury vs Chiefs

The game was costly for the Texans. Houston wide receiver Tank Dell suffered what head coach DeMeco Ryans said was a significant knee injury on a touchdown reception in the third quarter to bring the game within one point.

CJ Stroud connects with Tank Dell for a 30-yard touchdown

📺: #HOUvsKC on NBC/Peacock
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/yqn1VFbpVU

— NFL (@NFL) December 21, 2024

Dell suffered a broken leg in 2023 that ended his promising rookie season after 13 weeks and 11 games.

He has missed just one game this season, a win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 4.

Like the Texans, the Chiefs have had to endure injuries at the wide receiver position. Rashee Rice is out for the season with a knee injury. Free agency signing Hollywood Brown made his 2024 season debut in Week 16.

Chiefs GM Brett Veach has done well to stockpile players at the skill positions. Even when the Chiefs lose players, their replacements are generally at or near the level of the opponent.

Of course, there is a limit to that. Hopefully, for the Chiefs’ sake, they do not reach that limit.

Main Photo: Denny Medley-Imagn Images