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Regular season in five words or fewer: Top of AFC West again

The Chiefs won their seventh straight AFC West title, but it wasn't as easy as it might have looked. The Chiefs are 5-0 in divisional contests heading into the final regular-season game against the Raiders -- they won all five games by six or fewer points. The Chiefs have played five games against opponents that currently have four or fewer wins, and they lost one and won three by six or fewer points. The Chiefs are still to be feared in the postseason, as Patrick Mahomes has passed for more than 5,000 yards and is having an MVP-type season.

When the Chiefs said goodbye to Tyreek Hill in a blockbuster trade last spring, it created very real questions about who would step up to replace the explosive Pro Bowler as a touchdown threat in Kansas City. The answer? Jerick McKinnon, obviously. The veteran running back -- re-signed on the eve of training camp -- had two scoring receptions in Sunday's 27-24 win over the Broncos and now has seven TD catches since Week 13, more than any player in football in that span. (Yes, the power of Patrick Mahomes is prominently at play here.)

They haven't looked right the past few weeks, but they are finding ways to win games. They have to be better come playoff time.

Of QB Patrick Mahomes' league-leading 40 TD passes this season, only 13 have gone to wide receivers. Throw a few more of those, and Kansas City will wait and see if it's enough to give them the AFC's regular-season throne.

The Chiefs haven't been blowing teams out, but they've done this before. They aren't always the best team against the spread because they hit lulls in which they do just enough to win. And they have won, which is what matters most.