{"id":225238,"date":"2026-01-26T05:24:19","date_gmt":"2026-01-26T05:24:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/26\/be-back-soon-kansas-city-mayor-reacts-to-chiefs-absence-from-afc-championship\/"},"modified":"2026-01-26T05:24:19","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T05:24:19","slug":"be-back-soon-kansas-city-mayor-reacts-to-chiefs-absence-from-afc-championship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/26\/be-back-soon-kansas-city-mayor-reacts-to-chiefs-absence-from-afc-championship\/","title":{"rendered":"“Be back soon”: Kansas City Mayor reacts to Chiefs' absence from AFC Championship"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

\n

K<\/span>ansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas<\/strong> offered a tongue-in-cheek apology to residents after the AFC Championship Game concluded without the Kansas City Chiefs,<\/strong><\/a> a rarity that underscored just how unusual the 2025 NFL season was for the city.<\/p>\n

For nearly a decade, Kansas City fans had grown accustomed to seeing their team dominate January football, making this postseason absence especially noticeable.<\/p>\n

The Chiefs’ campaign unraveled quickly. Andy Reid’s <\/strong>squad limped to a 6-11 finish, ending the year on a six-game losing streak and missing the playoffs for the first time since 2014. <\/p>\n

The situation worsened in mid-December when franchise quarterback Patrick Mahomes <\/strong>suffered a torn ACL, an injury that not only derailed the remainder of the season but also raised questions about his readiness for the opening of the 2026 schedule. <\/p>\n

Without their leader on the field, Kansas City struggled to find consistency on either side of the ball.<\/p>\n

That downturn was a sharp departure from the dominance that defined the previous era. Over the past ten years, the Chiefs established themselves as one of the NFL’s premier dynasties. <\/p>\n

Reid, Mahomes,<\/strong> and tight end Travis Kelce<\/strong> formed the backbone of a team that reached five Super Bowls and captured three championships.<\/p>\n

From 2018 through 2024, Kansas City appeared in seven consecutive AFC Championship Games, turning what was once a lofty goal into an annual expectation for fans and city officials alike, including Lucas, who served as mayor throughout every title run.<\/p>\n

AFC Championship Sunday felt strange without the Chiefs<\/h2>\n

This year’s AFC Championship presented a very different picture. The New England Patriots, guided by rookie quarterback Drake Maye<\/strong>, defeated a Denver Broncos team missing Bo Nix<\/strong> by a narrow 10-7 margin. <\/p>\n

Denver opened the scoring with a touchdown pass from Jarrett Stidham<\/strong> to Courtland Sutton,<\/strong> but Maye <\/strong>responded just before halftime with a six-yard rushing score to tie the game.<\/p>\n

As snow poured down in the second half, offensive production became scarce. New England managed the only points after the break, converting a field goal that ultimately sent the Patriots to their first Super Bowl since the Tom Brady <\/strong>era. <\/p>\n

The moment served as a reminder of how quickly power can shift in the NFL, even among storied franchises.<\/p>\n

Watching the game without Kansas City’s involvement, Lucas <\/strong>voiced what many fans were feeling. Taking to social media, he apologized for the lack of excitement, joking that the game felt slow without the Chiefs. <\/p>\n

Despite a disappointing year, optimism remains in Kansas City. The organization still boasts experienced leadership, a proven coaching staff, and a core that has thrived under pressure before. <\/p>\n

While 2025 marked an unfamiliar low point, few doubt the Chiefs’ ability to rebound, making their absence from the AFC Championship feel more like a brief interruption than the end of an era.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas offered a tongue-in-cheek apology to residents after the AFC Championship Game concluded without the Kansas City Chiefs, a rarity that underscored just how unusual the 2025 NFL season was for the city. For nearly a decade, Kansas City fans had grown accustomed to seeing their team dominate January football, making […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":225239,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6808],"tags":[42554,55634,55543,228,2034,122,93,1174],"class_list":{"0":"post-225238","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"tag-adriano-boin-sam-english","9":"tag-afc-championship-game-english","10":"tag-afc-west-english","11":"tag-agency_sam","12":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs","13":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs-english","14":"tag-nfl-english","15":"tag-nfl-playoffs-english"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225238","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=225238"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225238\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/225239"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=225238"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=225238"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=225238"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}