The panic in Kansas City has subsided for now, which tends to happen when the Chiefs play teams as bad as the Washington Football Team. After a passionate halftime conversation (rock bottom will do that), it looks for now like the Chiefs may have figured some things out. At the very least, the internet's a little more bullish on them again. Here's what the Power Rankings are saying:
ESPN: #9
If the Chiefs can play defense like they did in Sunday's win over Washington instead of how they did in the first five games, the AFC West title is within reach. If they can do that and limit turnovers -- they have a league-high 14 giveaways -- then they will win it. But those are two big ifs. The problem with the Chiefs is not their 3-3 record but the way they've played for much of the first six weeks.
NFL.com: #9
For two quarters on Sunday, the Chiefs looked as lost as ever. The turnover epidemic was only intensifying, with three in the first half -- including perhaps the ugliest single play in Patrick Mahomes' career. They were clearly pressing, but they didn't panic. Kansas City came out of the tunnel and dominated, shutting out Washington on defense, while Mahomes authored the cleanest half of the season, completing 19 of his 24 attempts for 175 yards and two touchdowns without a turnover, ultimately producing a 31-13 win.
CBS Sports: #10
Against Washington, they finally looked closer to the Super Bowl team from the past two years. The defense wasn't a disaster, which is progress.
Sports Illustrated: #3
Sunday in Washington felt like it will ultimately be a microcosm of the Chiefs’ season: A first half in which they repeatedly shot themselves in the butt with sloppy turnovers, then a second half where they cleaned that up and basically did whatever they wanted. The defense is a bit of a question mark—though it does take time to adjust to Steve Spagnuolo’s system.
Bleacher Report: #8
At first glance, Sunday's 31-13 win by the Kansas City Chiefs would appear to be just the sort of emphatic victory they needed after getting drilled by the Buffalo Bills in Week 5. In some respects, it was. Running back Darrel Williams scored two touchdowns in relief of the injured Clyde Edwards-Helaire, and Patrick Mahomes threw for 397 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Washington Post: #11
They’re not back to being the mighty Chiefs. Not yet. Patrick Mahomes threw two more interceptions Sunday at FedEx Field, one of them on the kind of ill-advised throw that he’d vowed to avoid as part of a reevaluation of his on-field decision-making. But it was a very good second half in the triumph over Washington and the Chiefs, at least, are back to .500.
Sporting News: #9
The Chiefs looked like they were headed to another mistake-filled mess in Washington, but then the light went on for Patrick Mahomes and Tyreek Hill again to turn a frustrating winnable game to a total rout. The defense was a nice surprise in protecting the lead well.