text: The Chiefs start to the season was no more than mediocre, and the before their bye week the Chiefs were destroyed by the Pittsburgh Steelers 43–14, which put the Chiefs on 2–2 for the year. After the bye week, however, the Chiefs won their next five games and were sitting at 7–2 on the season until an upset occurred as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were able to eek out a two-point victory against the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, as the Bucs won 19–17. The Chiefs experienced an almost identical game against another team that missed the postseason, losing 19–17 to the Tennessee Titans at home. This loss put the Chiefs at 10–4 and the dream of a division title was in jeopardy. Heading into Week 17, the Chiefs were 11–4 and their rival, the Oakland Raiders, were 12–3 but the Raiders did not have the tiebreaker on the Chiefs. In order for the Chiefs to clinch the division, similar to the 2015 season, the Chiefs needed a win and the division leader to lose. Unlike 2015, however, the division leader lost as the Oakland Raiders were unable to start their quarterback, Derek Carr due to an injury and the Raiders lost to the Broncos. The Chiefs were able to pick up a crucial victory over the San Diego Chargers (which would also be their final game in San Diego) and clinch the division and a first-round bye.
  Heading into the 2016-17 NFL playoffs, the Chiefs were 12–4 and claimed the second seed in the AFC. After the Pittsburgh Steelers were able to defeat the Miami Dolphins in the Wildcard Round, it was confirmed that the Chiefs would have to play the same team that beat them by 29 points fifteen weeks prior. While the Chiefs were able to hold Pittsburgh from scoring any touchdowns in their divisional round game, the Chiefs were only able to put up 16 points of offense and the Steelers' six field goals were enough to put the Steelers into the AFC Championship Game and once again give a devastating playoff loss to the franchise.