Football is back, baby. After months of speculation, worry and COVID-19 induced chaos, the NFL officially kicked off its 2020 season on Sept. 10. In a 2019 AFC Divisional Round rematch, the Houston Texans took on the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
The Texans never stood a chance. While Houston may have only lost by two touchdowns in a 34-20 defeat, it was only Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson’s magic that saved Houston from this game being a complete blowout. With almost any other quarterback, the game would have been an absolute stomping.
The awe-inspiring quarterback Patrick Mahomes once again put up godlike numbers in his first game since bringing home the Super Bowl MVP, tossing 211 yards and 3 touchdowns on just 32 attempts. The Chiefs’ new rookie running back out of Louisiana State, Clyde Edwards Helaire, also had himself a hell of a day, rushing for 138 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries in his NFL debut.
All things considered, it is the opinion of this writer that the Super Bowl is done and dusted. Kansas City is essentially a lock to repeat. Not only did they maintain their core, offering huge contracts to stars like Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce and defensive tackle Chris Jones, but they actually got better, and improved their offensive line as well as brought in an effective running game for the first time since Jamaal Charles left the team in 2016.
Now, this team is not perfect — their defense still has some notable holes, especially in their back end. However when compared to the rest of the league, they are far and away the best team. The only club that might have stood a chance was the Baltimore Ravens and their dynamic reigning MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson. But with the loss of Pro Bowl safety Earl Thomas in the offseason, there is little chance Baltimore’s defense will be able to contain the ridiculously high powered Tyreek Hill and Mecole Hardman-led Kansas City passing attack.
Barring catastrophic injury luck, the Chiefs have got the 2020 championship in the bag. The rest of the league may as well pack it up and go home.
